“I Truly Want You” is one of the very first songs I ever wrote—possibly when I was around 14 years old. At the time, I had just begun immersing myself in jazz: listening deeply, studying its structure, and falling in love with its swing feel and the complexity of altered scales.
This song was my early attempt at weaving those musical elements into something personal. I explored chord substitutions and the beautiful tension they create—tones that, to me, reflected a deep spiritual longing. That yearning for God was something I couldn’t fully articulate yet, but it came through in the music. “I Truly Want You” became the sound of my soul reaching upward.
One of my favorite memories connected to this song is a performance I shared with the incredibly gifted Lisa Simone. We sang it together at our high school Baccalaureate. Lisa is one of those rare vocalists who brings a radiant clarity and depth to anything she touches. She interpreted the melody in such a moving way that I wove her phrasing from the first chorus into the second—a tribute to her artistry and the spirit of collaboration that shaped the piece.
“I Truly Want You” remains a deeply personal song to me—not just because of when I wrote it, but because of what it represents: an early expression of faith, creativity, and the sacred meeting place between jazz and worship.
