"Bag of Bones" is an original composition by vocalist and multi-instrumentalist Michael Mayo, written during his time in graduate school while grappling with existential questions about life and death. The piece aims to capture the tethered journey of soul and body, blending a sense of hope with loss. It first appeared as the opening track on Mayo's second album, Fly, released on Mack Avenue Records / Artistry Music in October 2024, self-produced and recorded in two days at The Bunker Studio in Brooklyn. The recording features Shai Maestro on piano and Rhodes, Linda May Han Oh on upright bass, and Nate Smith on drums. Musically, the composition is built around a wistful, shimmering melody over lush, flowing harmonies that evoke simultaneous joy and melancholy. The structure moves through pulsating contrapuntal grooves alternating with spacious harmonic sections, shifting through key centers and progressing from sweetly intimate passages to backbeat-driven intensity. A concluding heartbeat kick drum pattern symbolizes the passage into the afterlife, adding a programmatic dimension to the piece. The album Fly forms a thematic bookend with Mayo's 2021 debut Bones, both reflecting his approach to lush neo-soul jazz marked by vocal innovation and collaboration with top-tier musicians. Situated on an album alongside covers of Wayne Shorter and Miles Davis, "Bag of Bones" holds its own as a striking original that channels modern jazz sensibilities with deeply personal subject matter.
