Prog inspires Brad Mehldau on his upcoming album Jacob's Ladder

Jacob's Ladder will be the next album from Brad Mehldau, the pianist's long-time label Nonesuch has announced indicating 18 March as a release date. Joining Mehldau on the album are Chris Thile, Cécile McLorin Salvant, Mark Guiliana, Becca Stevens and Joel Frahm among others. 'Maybe As His Skies are Wide' from the album is streaming riffing off a Rush piece 'Tom Sawyer' in part.

Mehldau says: “The musical conduit on the record is prog. Prog, progressive rock, was the music of my childhood, before I discovered jazz. It matched the fantasy and science fiction books I read from CS Lewis, Madeleine L’Engle and others at that time, aged ten through twelve. It was my gateway to the fusion of Miles Davis, Weather Report, Mahavishnu Orchestra and other groups, which in turn was the gateway to more jazz. Jazz shared with prog a broader expressive scope and larger-scale ambitions than the rock music I had known already.''

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Quite delicious this. And while Italian pianist Michele di Toro and for that matter drummer Marco Zanoli are not that well-known to UK audiences guest saxophonist Klaus Gesing (for his work with Norma Winstone) and bassist Yuri Goloubev (for his work with Gwilym Simcock) certainly are. It's a pastoral, chamber-jazz style of record, big on subtlety and deft modal progression. Gesing is a little like Tim Garland in the role he so successfully fulfils here. And Di Toro is good at navigating the lush chordal resources at his disposal and Goloubev as he so often does with Gwilym Simcock finds new musical vistas to explore and develop in imaginative fashion. Beautifully recorded by the great studio engineer Stefano Amerio there's a lot to gain from listening to this fine, very thoughtful, record that will boost Di Toro's reputation no end and deservedly so. Out on Bandcamp via this link

Prog inspires Brad Mehldau on his upcoming album Jacob's Ladder

Michele Di Toro Trio feat. Klaus Gesing, From the Sky ****