This new album, a collection of pianist James Rhodes’s favorites from previous recordings, has been my work soundtrack this week.

I don’t typically work with music on, but this music is perfect company. It’s just the piano. No orchestra. No lyrics. And it’s music from some of the greatest composers ever, performed by a dynamic talent.

Here is Rhodes’s explanation of his song choices for this collection:

“For this compilation (of my personal recordings from the last six years) I wanted to carry on in that vein and so I’ve made it a mix tape—these are the pieces that come up in my head unwarranted at 4am to get me through another rotten night of insomnia. These are the ones that always give me hope and a reason to hang on in there—because if music like this can exist then there is simply no question that the good outweighs the bad. They are my inside tracks.”

This album is a great introduction to Rhodes. If you need some music in your life, give this a chance.