The great American piano trio in jazz has a long and distinguished history. With so many great names from the past it's possible to overlook today's great exponents who although small in number are continuing to build and expand on this legacy. One such is Fred Hersch who since 1995's Passion Flower has been refining and polishing a very personal approach to the American jazz piano trio that is now reaching a kind of perfection. Floating advances convincing evidence of a breadth of vision that has taken more than 20 years to perfect, and on this album his seven originals have both depth and originality that can be returned to time and again. Taken together with three standards, ‘You and the Night and the Music’, ‘If Ever I Were to Leave You’ and Monk's ‘Let's Cool One’, this is as good a representation of the American jazz piano trio in these contemporary times as you're likely to get.