Label: Nonesuch
Jazz
. . . Is there a better (jazz) pianist alive?
No.
What makes him so great? He's got the whole package. It starts with his complete assimilation of the entire spectrum of jazz piano from Fats Waller and Earl Hines to Bill Evans and Keith Jarrett. On this disc, he casually, even insouciantly, trots it out as needed. It continues with his rhythmic conception that encompasses the entire range of jazz pianisms, from swing to bop to free to world and beyond. What amazes about all this lightly worn virtuosity is that it never comes across as mere academico-historic prowess; there's always a bright and glorious accessibility about this music. But we're just scratching the surface with these observations. There are a lot of smart, knowledgeable keysman with similar talents.
What sets Mehldau apart is a serendipitous magic that has to do not only with the selection of entirely compatible bandmates, but an unknown, unquantifiable quality that also enables him to discover, reconfigure, and give fresh meaning to standards and pop gems even as he works in his own startling originals. Mehldau perhaps makes his greatest and most lasting musical impression as song-selector, -conceptualizer, and -executional architect/band leader. It's not merely that he has chops to burn, although that is certainly the case; it's that he finds unusual and serendipitous musical contexts to unfold and display his genius that other pianists fail to locate.
Proof? Just look at his two wildly, astonishingly original takes on Beatles tunes, "Martha My Dear" and "She's Leaving Home." First of all, I generally think the vast majority of jazz renditions of Beatles tunes suck. There's usually either too much reverence or pointless reconfiguration that leads nowhere. Not here. "Martha My Dear," taken as a solo (ad)venture, is scarcely recognizable, what with its reharmonization, obscured melody, and wild rhythmic workout, yet it brims and bursts and bubbles with the authentic heart of the original. "She's Leaving Home," on the other hand, although transformed into a valse triste, retains the wistful melancholy of the original, taking on an almost unbearable poignancy entirely appropriate to its thematic center and eventually working itself up into a legitimately bloozy lament weirdly contiguous with the original, but wholly unexpected and gloriously transformational.
Moreover, Mehldau's range simple astounds. His take on Chris Cheek's marvelous composition, "Granada," conjures the entire history of Andalusia, Spaniards and Moors, even as it unfolds a striking beautiful and mysterious melodic sensibility. The Paul Simon classic, "50 Ways to Leave Your Lover," almost as unrecognizable as "Martha My Dear," nevertheless snaps and crackles with a smart-mouthed jauntiness entirely apropos to the original, although displaying melodic, harmonic, and rhythmic sensibilities once again unexpected though absolutely apposite.
The addition of drummer Jeff Ballard to the trio, who has leant such thrilling percussive moves especially to numerous Jazz Composers Collective projects, notches the proceedings up several levels. As great as Jorge (Jordi) Rossy is, Ballard tops him. He's got such a sure rhythmic sense, such percussive drive, that he constantly gooses the proceedings into new and unexpected territory.
Mehldau just goes from strength to strength. If you want to experience the absolute finest of the younger crop of jazz pianists, look no farther than this remarkable disc.
By Jan P. Dennis.
**
Brad Mehlda- Piano
Larry Grenadier- Double Bass
Jeff Ballard- Drums
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01. Knives Out
02. Alfie
03. Martha My Dear
04. Day Is Done
05. Artis
06. Turtle Town
07. She's Leaving Home
08. Granada
09. 50 Ways To Leave Your Lover
10. No Moon At All
**
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