Last year my friend invited me to see a Pat Metheny concert
and I enthusiastically accepted. At this point, I had no prior knowledge of
his history or discography, although I did know that he was one of the world's
greatest guitarists and fell somewhere into that vague fusion category of "not
quite jazz" but "not quite pop or rock" either. The show did not instantly win
me over as a fan, as I was kind of puzzled. I know now that it was a balance
between old and new material and showcased not only his dazzling skills on six
and twelve string guitars, but also his current band's amazing skills as well.
What I found hard to pinpoint was a particular fluidity to the set list. He
seemed to teeter between very "out there" tunes in which the band became very
abstract and freaky, with very commercial-sounding, crowd pleasing numbers.
Modern, smooth jazz that your mom would like for instance.
That smooth sound dominates most of this, his self-titled third album, with
bandmates Lyle Mays (Piano, Synths), Mark Egan (Bass), and Dan Gottlieb (Drums).
Producer Manfred Eicher provides a soft filter for these songs, sands down any
rough edges, and leaves a glossy, but subtle mood for everything - make no mistake
though...this may be smooth sounding music, but it is very complex and takes
awhile to sink in. "San Lorenzo" kicks off the album with a semi Brazilian tempo,
a wonderful bass line reminiscent of Jaco Pastorius (Metheny had worked with
Jaco previously), and some real textured guitar work. I love Metheny's solos
for the same reason that I love Wayne Shorter's saxophone playing, which is,
one always need not play fifty billion notes a minute to demonstrate skills,
as texture - the ability to build mood and exploit melody (or dissonance) -
is just as impressive. "Phase Dance" sounded very familiar both on this record
and at the show. I was sure I'd heard it before, which is likely, since Metheny
is no stranger to airplay, having been played on jazz and "easy listening" stations
in the past. I'm not so sure about lately though. Maybe college stations...Anyway,
"Phase Dance" is a great song, but the kind of fusion song that traditional
jazz geezers probably accuse of being too poppy. Mays' happy piano line may
be to blame for this I guess. Those geezers can get bent though, as this may
be smooth jazz/pop music, but to me it's truly beautiful. The next song "Jaco"
may be an ode to his friend Pastorius, and is a pleasant, light funky number
with of course some awesome bass playing.
The rest of the album contiues on in the same vein. Seductive and elegant, Metheny
has now won me over as a fan. You could impress a date with this album, or be
a good kid and buy it for your mom.
Any comments or reviews to grant us with?