Michel Petrucciani & Steve Gadd & Anthony Jackson - Trio in Tokyo (2025 Remastered Edition) (1999)

If there is one quality that best sums up the personality and music of Michel Petrucciani, it is generosity.

It was on stage, in the moment, in close proximity to the audience, in the warm intimacy of a club setting, that he most truthfully expressed his passion for sharing.

“Many musicians,” he confessed, “play too selfishly. They play only for themselves and a few happy few. I play to please and to communicate. I’d like to think I’m a very happy person. That’s why it’s essential for me to transmit and give others the generosity that is vital in art, music, and life.”

This is proven by these magnificent moments captured live in 1997 in Tokyo.

Accompanied by Anthony Jackson and Steve Gadd - two close friends with whom he shared an almost telepathic musical relationship - Michel Petrucciani delivers an intense hour of pianoforte, performing both standards and original compositions to unleash his boundless generosity and sensual lyrical expression live on stage.

Once again, one is struck by the solar clarity of his phrasing, the vigour and percussive precision of his touch (this master of tempo played ‘deep in the note’), and the breadth of his long lines where each note remains distinct and articulate. Michel infused everything he played with great emphasis and nuance - but above all, with sincerity. His heart sang immediately through the piano. This record is the most brilliant demonstration of that.