Later this month, the jazz pianist Brad Mehldau will release his new album Ride Into The Sun, his tribute to the late Elliott Smith. On the LP, Mehldau covers 10 Elliott Smith songs, as well as tracks from Big Star and Nick Drake, and he also includes a few original tracks inspired by Smith. Grizzly Bear's Daniel Rossen appears on some songs from the LP. We already posted Mehldau's versions of "Tomorrow, Tomorrow" and "Better Be Quiet Now." On Monday night, Mehldau was the musical guest on Jimmy Kimmel Live, where he and his band played another Elliott Smith cover.
According to guest host Nicole Byer, Brad Mehldau made his late-night debut on last night's Kimmel. He played "Colorbars," a song from Elliott Smith's 2000 album Figure 8, and he played against a backdrop of the Figure 8 cover. This wasn't an instrumental cover; Nickel Creek/Punch Brothers leader Chris Thile provided the vocals and played mandolin. Mehldau's band also included Felix Moseholm on bass and Matt Chamberlain on drums. It's cool to hear such a different version of such a familiar song, one that never exactly demanded to be presented in jazz form. Below, watch Mehldau's performance and listen to the original Elliott Smith song.
Ride Into The Sun is out 8/29 on Nonesuch.
