Brad Mehldau
Highway Rider

Good morning everyone and welcome to my kitchen, today I will present you with a nice quick yet tasty dish: 

In this brand new double album so good it makes your ears tingle, Mr. Mehldau, produced once again by Jon Brion, and in the company of his friend Joshua-saxophone-Redman, as well as an orchestra, arranges and writes everything himself, showing us in as many as 15 tracks how one can create a jazz record that sounds modern, yet without electronics, accessible but NEVER mundane, captivating, elegant, and cinematic, while at the same time maintaining a classic heart.

Ah, I know, it's not easy, but I have the recipe:

Take a lot of Chopin (some even grate a little Brahms, Strauss, and Tchaikovsky), Bill Evans in flakes, Chick Corea, a leaf of E.S.T., two ample hectograms of improvisation and blend it all together, then add Larry Grenadier, Jeff Ballard, and Matt Chamberlain (no skimping!) that you had minced and marinated with lemon, pour everything into a floured mold, and bake at 180° for about an hour and 40 minutes.

And voila, cooked and devoured! ...

Rating: 4.5. Difficulty: 2.