Brad Mehldau Trio Groovin' High at SFJAZZ

Brad Mehldau Trio
SFJAZZ Center
San Francisco, CA
April 3, 2025

SFJAZZ Center honored the Bay Area's jazz fans with the Brad Mehldau-Christian McBride-Marcus Gilmore trio, in town for a four-night run from April 3-6, 2025. Opening night was a real treat for the ear, eye, and soul. Casually dressed, the players took the stage, exuding a quiet confidence characteristic of master musicians.

The set opened with Mehldau's catchy "26," which swung and lifted off with a gospel feel à la Les McCann. Mehldau often approaches his work by employing separate sections in his compositions—akin to symphonic movements—and with pleasing effect. In this piece, he transitioned from the motif into a relaxed 6/8 that carried the tune to airy rhythmic heights and then back to restate the original theme.

Next up was Clifford Brown's "Brownie Speaks," which rocketed forth with a Bud Powell growl but featured Bill Evans-like chord voicings, while McBride kept step with his walking bass. Gilmore anchored the sound with delicate and tasteful drumming, adding sparse yet significant syncopation to the palette.

This was followed by Mehldau's well-known composition, "Squirrels," which showcased lively and intricate solos from all three players.

Collectively, the band members have performed with many musical titans, both past and present. Most notably, Christian McBride has played with McCoy Tyner, Herbie Hancock, Freddie Hubbard, and Chick Corea. Marcus Gilmore has collaborated with Chick Corea, Pharoah Sanders, and Pat Metheny. (Tony Williams, Milford Graves, and Elvin Jones are his primary influences.) Mehldau has recorded in a trio setting with Lee Konitz and Charlie Haden and has worked and recorded with Charles Lloyd. Nonetheless, he prefers functioning within his own trio context.

The following selection was Mehldau's composition, "In the Bubble," which featured a captivating point-counterpoint section between him and McBride, who later performed a lyrical bass solo that gave way to an awe-inspiring drum solo by Gilmore.

The audience collectively sighed when the band launched into a beautiful rendition of "When I Look into Your Eyes." The song included a melodic bowed bass solo followed by a piano solo with shades of Junior Mance and even a soupçon of Ramsey Lewis.

The set concluded with a performance of "Love Is So Special," followed by the now-standard standing ovation and then the now—obligatory encore—interesting in that the musicians, even at the end of the night, were still swinging, first trading eights, then fours, twos, and even ones.

Overall, it was an intimate and thoughtful performance that reminded us that, thankfully, San Francisco remains a place where world-class jazz can still be heard on a very cool Thursday night.