When it comes to Randy Newman singing in public, his fans no longer have to say, as he once did of God, “I Think He’s Hiding.” Newman is back on record, and in a beautiful way, as a duet partner for Jon Batiste on the latter’s new single, “Lonely Avenue,” a bluesy cover of a Doc Pomus-penned Ray Charles classic. The track and its accompanying music video are out today on DSPs, as the second single to be released from Batiste’s upcoming “Big Money” album.

“Randy hadn’t been singing or recording,” Batiste says. “I was very honored our friendship inspired him to get back into it again. Our musical connection is very special — which could make for a classic album, perhaps, someday, if we ever wanted to. For now it’s just more fun to keep serenading the living room. I’m just grateful we have this song, this video and this beautiful life. The world can now hear this 12-bar blues ode to Ray Charles — and hopefully we can put a dent in the loneliness epidemic that our country is facing today.”

The video, directed by David Henry Gerson, portrays Batiste being drawn by the sound of Newman’s voice through the hallways of a seemingly abandoned apartment before they connect around the piano.

In real life, the track was recorded live in Newman’s not quite so forlorn living room, in one take. Newman’s debt to Ray Charles is no secret, nor should be Batiste’s own, and their collaboration on the tune is described as having “emerged organically during a conversation between Batiste and Newman about life, music and family. With a handheld recorder running, the two sat at the piano and created something intimate, spontaneous, and entirely unfiltered.”

It’s notable that this is the only cover song on Batiste’s upcoming album. “Ray is my patron saint,” Batiste says. “Just as the ‘Big Money’ songs are in conversation with each other, I’m in conversation with Randy and Ray.”

It’s not the only track on the record to include a featured artist: The leadoff track for “Big Money,” “Lean on My Love,” credits Andra Day as Batiste’s vocal partner, and the closing number, “Angels,” features No ID and BIlly Bob Bo Bob. Batiste has described the project as “some deeply serious fun.” It’s a vocal record that stands in contrast to the recent instrumental album of Batiste’s that topped the classical charts for nine weeks, “Beethoven Blues.”

Newman has mostly stayed away from live performances since early 2022, when he announced that he had to cancel planned European tour dates due to health setbacks that included surgery for serious back issues. He did come back recently, however, to sing “Political Science” and “I Think It’s Gonna Rain Today” at a filming of “Everybody’s Live With John Mulaney” in April in Los Angeles.