Metheny is a really smart cookie. Might not like his music, but the dude has put some serious thought into what he does.
I went down a rabbit hole after watching this interview a few days ago and found older one. This section I thought was very interesting.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=czrHAyvdz5o
― earlnash, Sunday, 29 August 2021 15:16 (two years ago) link
Crap, it did not post the time...section starts at around 15:44.
Eventually I want to check out that speech he gave at that Neuroscience convention. That Alan Alda podcast also has some really interesting dialog on improvisation and working as a group and how it works. It was really interesting to see them find common ground between acting and music.
― earlnash, Sunday, 29 August 2021 15:22 (two years ago) link
I interviewed him the other week; it'll be on Stereogum soon. He is a really smart dude. We talked about Ornette, Derek Bailey, Charlie Haden...the stuff you'd expect me to ask him about.
― but also fuck you (unperson), Sunday, 29 August 2021 15:31 (two years ago) link
This Beato interview is fascinating
― Mr. Cacciatore (Moodles), Monday, 30 August 2021 21:49 (two years ago) link
Somehow I had never heard him talk about his music and technique before. I always pictured him as this kind of airy, new agey person, but he is way more sharp and direct than I imagined. Dude does not fuck around. The whole segment where he's going through the different ways you could work through the chords of "James" is astonishing.
― Mr. Cacciatore (Moodles), Monday, 30 August 2021 23:47 (two years ago) link
Interview with Questlove today
https://pca.st/episode/1fcaf033-265a-4f37-b184-d881bc42e541
― Ⓓⓡ. (Johnny Fever), Wednesday, 8 September 2021 16:53 (two years ago) link
Staying on the Pat Metheny data dive, I came across this article by Lyle Mays. This is also an interesting read that fits in with some of these other interviews.
https://www.lylemays.com/something-left-unsaid
― earlnash, Wednesday, 8 September 2021 17:24 (two years ago) link
There's an intriguing review on Amazon of Metheny's "Offramp" album that I'd like to share here:
5.0 out of 5 stars "Music That Could Change An Outcome"Reviewed in the United States on February 21, 2019Verified PurchaseIn the 80s a girl brought this album and a bottle of wine to my place. She was gorgeous but I was involved and as a result never heard the album until now. I wonder how differently the night might'veended if I had played it then4 people found this helpful
― EvR, Wednesday, 8 September 2021 20:11 (two years ago) link
My Stereogum interview with Metheny just went up.
― but also fuck you (unperson), Wednesday, 8 September 2021 20:19 (two years ago) link
He's making the rounds!
Favorite Metheny moment: the rapid-fire trading with Kenny Garrett on here (also at the end of Lonnie's Lament on that record)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sd3oiusxK4g
― change display name (Jordan), Wednesday, 8 September 2021 20:48 (two years ago) link
I love that he shouts out Joe Dyson, I saw him play a few times in New Orleans with different people when he was very young and knew he had it, he's a fantastic drummer.
― change display name (Jordan), Wednesday, 8 September 2021 21:00 (two years ago) link
Wow, I've other people do the mechanical instrument thing (Dan Deacon, Squarepusher - which doesn't sound worlds away from this), but the scale of his Orchestrion setup is pretty insane
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=evHVh4bqaOQ
― change display name (Jordan), Thursday, 9 September 2021 17:50 (two years ago) link
How would *you* like to be his roadie? Even Terry Bozzio's guy would be all "no thanks."
― Josh in Chicago, Thursday, 9 September 2021 17:55 (two years ago) link
That Tim Martin is looking well
The Music That Made Me is back! Tonight multi-award winning guitar legend Pat Metheny chooses The Beatles, Wes Montgomery and Gary Burton.The Music That Made Me with Pat Metheny, this evening from 9pm| @PatMetheny | pic.twitter.com/DGTCPvL4Mn— Jazz FM (@jazzfm) September 5, 2021
― edited to reflect developments which occurred (Camaraderie at Arms Length), Thursday, 9 September 2021 18:42 (two years ago) link
https://www.sandiegouniontribune.com/entertainment/music/story/2023-10-30/heckler-evicted-from-pat-metheny-solo-guitar-concert
― lord of the rongs (anagram), Wednesday, 1 November 2023 09:58 (seven months ago) link
Staying on the Pat Metheny data dive, I came across this article by Lyle Mays. This is also an interesting read that fits in with some of these other interviews.https://www.lylemays.com/something-left-unsaid🕸
― Naive Teen Idol, Friday, 3 November 2023 23:07 (seven months ago) link
There's a lot of interesting information there, but Mays sure didn't suffer from a lack of self-regard.
― Halfway there but for you, Friday, 3 November 2023 23:40 (seven months ago) link
The last paragraph shows a lot of humility, though.
― immodesty blaise (jimbeaux), Saturday, 4 November 2023 00:02 (seven months ago) link
Listening to Offramp right now. I never had the patience for this album when it came out, but it sounds crazily good now.
― Naive Teen Idol, Sunday, 5 November 2023 04:08 (seven months ago) link
Man, savetherobot just hepped me to this article and it is just amazing.
Thanks for posting that! A great read. I bought of a lot of Pat's music through Discogs over the last two years and I'm amazed at the consistently high quality of all of them. Planning to do the same with Lyle Mays' solo work.
This was a release I was not familiar with: Gary Thomas – Till We Have Faces with Pat on guitar.
― EvR, Sunday, 5 November 2023 10:58 (seven months ago) link
Was it ever reported or revealed what that heckler was heckling?
― Josh in Chicago, Sunday, 5 November 2023 14:35 (seven months ago) link
pat's funny guitar guy faces.
― "another slice of death, please." (Austin), Sunday, 5 November 2023 17:02 (seven months ago) link
"Get a haircut!!"
― Josh in Chicago, Sunday, 5 November 2023 17:07 (seven months ago) link
"...or at least style it or somethin, jeez!"
― "another slice of death, please." (Austin), Sunday, 5 November 2023 17:17 (seven months ago) link
Going back through some Metheny records and I definitely don't vibe with all of it, but there is so much great stuff. Generally the smaller the group, the better. His solo guitar record from this year is lovely.
Trio 99>00 (w/Bill Stewart & Grenadier) is sounding amazing. The Scofield record (I Can See Your House From Here) is a classic. Rejoicing (Charlie Haden/Billy Higgins) is really nice, good joke to open with "Lonely Woman" on a record with two Ornette Coleman alums and multiple Ornette tunes, but it's not THAT Lonely Woman, it's the Horace Silver tune.
― Jordan s/t (Jordan), Tuesday, 7 November 2023 21:31 (seven months ago) link
Love it when he switches to acoustic on ballads
― Jordan s/t (Jordan), Tuesday, 7 November 2023 21:49 (seven months ago) link
love the “lonely woman” on rejoicing. The bside is weird!
― brimstead, Tuesday, 7 November 2023 22:09 (seven months ago) link
Whoa, it really is, out comes the guitar synth!
― Jordan s/t (Jordan), Tuesday, 7 November 2023 22:56 (seven months ago) link
'Question and Answer' is another Metheny trio date to check out with Dave Holland and Roy Haynes. The title track I would put in my list of favorite tunes by PM.
― earlnash, Wednesday, 8 November 2023 02:14 (seven months ago) link
Trio 99>00 (w/Bill Stewart & Grenadier) is sounding amazing.
Agreed. I remember reading that was recorded in one day after a long tour where none of that material was played. There is no guitar synthesizer on the whole record. Great (and hard to play) arrangement of "A Lot of Living To Do".
The Scofield record (I Can See Your House From Here) is a classic.
I got this one recently. If you like this one, you'll probably like "The Sound of the Summer Running" by Marc Johnson that has both Pat and Bill Frisell. Tasteful, restrained duo playing. In that same category I'd put "Beyond the Missouri Sky". The most recent one is also very nice.
― EvR, Wednesday, 8 November 2023 09:31 (seven months ago) link
There's another showcase one that's pretty good, Scofield's "Grace Under Pressure," with Frisell, Charlie Haden and Joey Baron.
― Josh in Chicago, Wednesday, 8 November 2023 13:06 (seven months ago) link
I listened to a bit of Question & Answer yesterday and while the playing is great and Roy Haynes is beguiling on it, the early '90s sound was driving me a little crazy, like the tone of the flat ride cymbal and the bass (not to get all Steve Hoffman about it). I put on Like Minds (the Gary Burton record that also has Metheny, Haynes, and Holland).
Also thinking about how perfect Bill Stewart sounds on those trio records (99>00 and the live one). Like he's clearly listening to everything and reactive, but also has such a big bag of slick shit that he's worked out on his own, and everything is perfectly placed and clear. It's just very different from later period Haynes & Higgins, which is a much rawer thing with the weight of history behind it. No slight to either thing, Stewart is unique & brilliant, just different.
― Jordan s/t (Jordan), Wednesday, 8 November 2023 16:45 (seven months ago) link
The first I heard Stewart was on those Maceo Parker soul jazz records. so good.
― Josh in Chicago, Wednesday, 8 November 2023 16:59 (seven months ago) link
Damn the version of 'Question & Answer' on Trio Live is really worth checking out...they play the whole tune through properly once, and then the guitar synth comes out (but it's cool) and they just rip for another 10 minutes.
― Jordan s/t (Jordan), Wednesday, 8 November 2023 18:07 (seven months ago) link
I love how committed he is to that one guitar synth patch, it seems so antithetical to the idea of synths, but dammit he's going to play the fuck out of that patch
― Muad'Doob (Moodles), Wednesday, 8 November 2023 20:34 (seven months ago) link
Haha. Ok I think Trio>Live is now officially my favorite Metheny album.
― Jordan s/t (Jordan), Thursday, 9 November 2023 20:46 (seven months ago) link
It's great that Metheny likes to switch things up and also keeps hiring young musicians (his current drummer is Joe Dyson, a great New Orleans drummer who I saw with Donald Harrison when he was probably 15). But it's also insane that he's never reunited this trio in the last 20+ years (?).
This random facebook page has a full concert: https://www.facebook.com/watch/?v=506269073217146
― Jordan s/t (Jordan), Thursday, 9 November 2023 20:55 (seven months ago) link
Fucking Bill Stewart.
― Jordan s/t (Jordan), Thursday, 9 November 2023 21:02 (seven months ago) link
Check out Bill (and everyone!) killing it on this Mingus cover:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_LvXPjUcIcQ
Full band, btw: Maceo Parker – alto saxophone, piano, organFred Wesley – tromboneAlfred "Pee Wee" Ellis – tenor saxophoneDon Pullen – organ Rodney Jones – guitarBill Stewart – drumsBootsy Collins – bass guitar, guitar
― Josh in Chicago, Thursday, 9 November 2023 21:35 (seven months ago) link
I think those Maceo albums were also the first time I heard Bill Stewart, love that he was in that band. It's great to hear him play pocket and just keep it there, but still be able to hear the little Bill Stewart details.
― Jordan s/t (Jordan), Thursday, 9 November 2023 21:43 (seven months ago) link
The one time I saw him live was with John Scofield. I assume he's well-regarded, but I never hear anyone (outside of drummers) talk about him. Then again, not sure who outside of drummers would talk about him, lol.
― Josh in Chicago, Thursday, 9 November 2023 21:50 (seven months ago) link
Damn, I've never seen him. His trio with Larry Goldings and Peter Bernstein was playing in Milwaukee a few years ago and I didn't make the trip. I think any modern jazz musician would talk about him pretty reverently, same as Brian Blade or anyone from that generation, I think they're living legends at this point.
― Jordan s/t (Jordan), Thursday, 9 November 2023 22:05 (seven months ago) link
Some fun breakdowns here - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4gA6XaUiX68
― Jordan s/t (Jordan), Thursday, 9 November 2023 22:06 (seven months ago) link
My recent Rock Nacional studies led me to wonder about Pedro Aznar’s time with Pat but I haven’t really grokked it yet.
― My Prelapsarian Baby (James Redd and the Blecchs), Thursday, 9 November 2023 23:01 (seven months ago) link
I did see the Bill Stewart Larry Goldings Peter Bernstein trio somewhat recently in the beforetimes at the Jazz Standard and it was as good as advertised.
― My Prelapsarian Baby (James Redd and the Blecchs), Thursday, 9 November 2023 23:03 (seven months ago) link
― Naive Teen Idol, Friday, 10 November 2023 03:39 (seven months ago) link
Lol, good to know.
There some great sets by John Scofield's (w/Bill Stewart) and Bill Frisell's current trios here:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=30f1xTrVqXU
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SEfgRFzbgjU
― Jordan s/t (Jordan), Monday, 13 November 2023 18:19 (seven months ago) link
Who is that Frisell drummer?
― Josh in Chicago, Monday, 13 November 2023 18:26 (seven months ago) link
Rudy Royston
― Jordan s/t (Jordan), Monday, 13 November 2023 18:31 (seven months ago) link