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“Following the breakthrough commercial and critical success of his two GRAMMY-winning R&B-oriented Black Radio albums, Robert Glasper returns to his acoustic jazz roots with Covered (The Robert Glasper Trio recorded live at Capitol Studios). The album reunites Glasper with bassist Vicente Archer and drummer Damion Reid, reforming the trio that created his first two Blue Notes releases, Canvas (2005) and In My Element (2007).

Covered, which was recorded before an intimate gathering of invited guests in Capitol Records’ histor-ic Studio A, was designed to bring Glasper’s newfound Black Radio fan base along as he returned to the jazz fold. The set list features songs by hip-hop and R&B stars like Kendrick Lamar, Musiq Soulchild, John Legend, and Bilal alongside the jazz standard “Stella By Starlight.” Displaying his trademark eclecticism, Glasper also includes tunes by Radiohead and Joni Mitchell, along with a stirring collaboration with legendary singer/activist Harry Belafonte. The Glasper originals on the album in-clude a re-working of “I Don’t Even Care” which was a bonus track on Black Radio 2 featuring Macy Gray and Jean Grae.” – Blue Note Records

“Robert Glasper’s plunge into the world of R&B and hip-hop widened his fan base and earned him a pair of Grammy Awards, but he found himself missing the piano. So he reconvened his original acoustic trio with bassist Vicente Archer and drummer Damion Reid and cut Covered: The Robert Glasper Trio Recorded Live at Capitol Studios. Like Herbie Hancock before him, Glasper demon-strates on his new disc that jazz stars who indulge a taste for popular music can go home again.

Glasper’s piano here is as immediately identifiable as ever: deeply soulful, emphasizing vibe over show-offy virtuosity. That formula dominates a half-dozen sophisticatedly listenable jazz covers of artists ranging from megastars Radiohead (“Reckoner”), Joni Mitchell (“Barangrill”) and John Legend (“Good Morning”) to lesser-known Glasper associates Musiq Soulchild (“So Beautiful”), Jhené Aiko (“The Worst”) and Bilal (“Levels”). He brings more flash to bear on the lone jazz standard here, “Stel-la by Starlight,” but really reminds people what he is capable of instrumentally on “In Case You For-got.” The latter chops showcase begins with Glasper, unaccompanied, blazing his way through light-ing-quick runs and a kind of space-age stride with pauses for quick, mood-lightening quotes of Bonnie Raitt’s “I Can’t Make You Love Me” and Cyndi Lauper’s “Time After Time.” Archer and Reid each get their lone, memory-jogging solos on this one as well.” – JazzTimes

About Robert Glasper:
“Hailing from Houston, Texas, Robert Glasper is a jazz pianist with a knack for mellow, harmonically complex compositions that also reveal a subtle hip-hop influence. Inspired to play piano by his moth-er, a gospel pianist and vocalist, Glasper attended Houston's High School for the Performing Arts. After graduation, he studied music at the New School University in Manhattan, where he found per-formance work with such luminaries as bassist Christian McBride, saxophonist Kenny Garrett, and others. After graduating college, Glasper worked with a variety of artists, including trumpeter Roy Har-grove, vocalist Carly Simon, and rapper Mos Def. The pianist released his debut album, Mood, on Fresh Sound New Talent in 2004. Canvas and In My Element followed in 2005 and 2007, respectively, on Blue Note Records.

In 2009, Glasper released the forward-thinking album Double Booked, which featured a mix of modal post-bop and funky, '80s Herbie Hancock-inspired numbers with two separate bands. The first of these was his trio with drummer Chris Dave and upright bassist Vicente Archer; they recorded five originals and a cover of Thelonious Monk's "Think of One." These tracks were followed by five more originals by his electric band, dubbed the Robert Glasper Experiment, featuring Dave, electric bassist Derrick Hodge, and Casey Benjamin on saxes and vocoder.

In 2012, the Robert Glasper Experiment (with a slew of all-star guest vocalists) issued their first stand-alone album, Black Radio, for Blue Note, which sought to blur boundaries between jazz, hip-hop, R&B, and rock & roll; it entered the Billboard jazz charts at number one. Later in the year, Glasper and Blue Note released Black Radio Recovered: The Remix EP; 9th Wonder, Georgia Anne Muldrow, and Pete Rock were among those who participated. In 2013, the Robert Glasper Experiment (now includ-ing Hodge and Benjamin with drummer Mark Colenburg) returned with their equally star-studded sophomore album, Black Radio 2. ~ Matt Collar & Thom Jurek” – Blue Note Records

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