Pianist Mehldau and longtime collaborators Jorge Rossy (drums) and Larry Grenadier (bass) share a brilliant set at New York's pre-eminent jazz club, the Village Vanguard. Standards, originals, and even a Radiohead cover flow together perfectly, each song providing a solid foundation for Mehldau's daring, yet never self-indulgent improvisations. Along with great songs like "Nice Pass" and "I'll Be Seeing You," Art of the Trio, Vol. 4 offers sharply written liner notes from Mehldau himself, decrying the sorry state of jazz criticism.

Harold Check