Chicago-based keyboardist Rob Clearfield has long been an active presence in the Windy City jazz scene, working with folks like bassist Matt Ulery, drummer Jon Deitemyer and guitarist Daniel Bruce. Just last year, his appearances on Bruce’s Earthshine (ears&eyes Records) and trumpeter Adam Larson’s Second City (Inner Circle Music) were indicative of Clearfield’s stylistic diversity, proving that he’s as comfortable churning out Fender Rhodes-based grooves or doing an impressionistic take on Nirvana’s “Smells Like Teen Spirit” as he is in laying down straight-ahead piano solos. On his latest release under his own name, Wherever You’re Starting From, it’s the classical aspect of Clearfield’s muse that comes to the fore, with twelve well-crafted solo improvisations that offer further evidence of the pianist’s impressive range and ability to draw inspiration from a host of sources, from Johannes Brahms to John Coltrane.
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