Label: Nonesuch Records, 2023

Personnel - Brad Mehldau: piano.

The virtuosic American pianist Brad Mehldau dives into the sophisticated pop/rock universe of The Beatles in his new outing, Your Mother Should Know: Brad Mehldau Plays the Beatles. The results are not as bold and imaginative as in Mehldau’s last effort Jacob’s Ladder, where, accompanied by great guest musicians, he delivered Scripture-inspired originals and excellent renditions of prog rock songs.

Here, playing solo, he puts a nice expression in the melody of the opening track, “I Am the Walrus”, adding colorful harmonic filling to generate an elegant dancing quality that the 1967 original (from the album Magical Mystery Tour) didn’t have. Other two great interpretations are “For No One”, whose in-and-out dexterity conduce to bluesy and psychedelic innuendos, and “Golden Slumbers”, whose gospelized sequences immerses us in a lyrical grace.

The remaining eight pieces are not particularly exciting. “Your Mother Should Know” adopts a foot-tapping swinginess in its stride maneuvers; “I Saw Her Standing There” triggers some bass fortitude appertaining to the pianist’s left hand; and “She Said She Said” offers rubato portions in its balladic dormancy. The pianist finishes off with a dramatic if unimpressive reading of David Bowie’s “Life on Mars?”.

Mehldau is an inspiring, out-of-the-box musician, but this particular album is a minor entry in his discography.

Favorite Tracks:
01 - I Am the Walrus ► 04 - For No One ► 10 - Golden Slumbers