If you’re reading this you probably already believe that music is good for you, but in case you needed further proof, I’d like to introduce you to Melody Gardot.

At age 19, she was knocked off her bike by an SUV. Injuries to her head, spine, and pelvis left her in a hospital bed for a year. She could barely move. She couldn’t talk. She suffered short and long-term memory loss. She was overly sensitive to light and sound.

With time, some of the physical injuries began to heal, but there were neural pathways in her brain that needed re-building, and she was struggling to piece together sentences in ways more commonly associated with Alzheimer’s, or soldiers returning from war.

In 2007, a doctor recommended music therapy. The result was completely life-altering. As she told Numéro:

“After the accident, I had to reconstruct myself completely. I was taught to see again and to hear with hearing aids. My body had to be completely reprogrammed. And music therapy was at the core of the healing process.”

Learning to play guitar helped rebuild fine motor skills, singing helped her form words, and by 2008 – five years after the accident – she had released her first album.

What makes this a beautiful song:

1. The lyrics are simple but extremely thoughtful. She asks the stars why she’s compelled to look at them, who else might look at them, who else might offer them love. The kind of thoughts you could imagine yourself having if you were laid up in bed for a long while.

2. She sings in French. Moody, soft jazz always sounds better in French. It just does. Despite her French last name, Gardot is not French herself; it’s just one of the five languages she speaks. Not bad for someone who once lost her ability to speak at all.

3. Because of her aversion to loud noises post-accident, all Gardot’s music has a toned-down, intimate quality. Here, the percussion sounds like barely more than someone tapping on a drum, just to check if it works.

Recommended listening activity:

Lying still for long enough that you start to ask yourself important questions.

Buy it here,

The post Week 794: “Les Étoiles” by Melody Gardot appeared first on Beautiful Song Of The Week.