Imaginary Column-Earth-Satellite Dish Live

Imaginary Day Live
By the Pat Metheny Group
Eagle Eye Media

Pat Metheny is unusual among jazz artists in that when he tours, he brings serious gear and can afford guys to carry it all. You can see them setting up for a series of concerts at the Mountain Winery on Imaginary Day Live, the latest live DVD release from the Pat Metheny Group, of course featuring Lyle Mays on piano and keyboards.

Day was part of a concert tour to support the CD of the same title, with the seven of the ten tracks on the DVD drawn from the record’s nine tunes. The original CD cover art was notable for the picto-cryptograms used for the titles, which has been expanded for the DVD, with “Live” becoming egg-pocket watch-Empire State Building-elephant. Day was also notable as Metheny’s most fully realized immersion into jazz-rock territory at the time, which is reflected in the live concert performance.

Metheny seems to prefer starting concerts with a solo performance, which “Into the Dream” essentially is, concluding with some percussive accompaniment. The full band then launches into “Follow Me,” which is vintage Metheny—highly melodic with a medium tempo groove and some nicely harmonized background vocalizing. Probably the best straight-ahead jazz solos come in the following “A Story Within the Story” from Metheny as well as from trumpeter Mark Ledford. The interludes featuring his muted horn and Philip Hamilton’s melodica add a nice flavor to the tune.

Easily the most full-throated jazz-rock excursions are heard on “Imaginary Day” and “The Roots of Coincidence.” The synths on the latter can be a bit overbearing, approaching Floyd levels, but it is a high octane performance (with Mays playing second guitar).

Considering Day represents Metheny’s jazz-rock period, there are a surprising number of moody, introspective tunes, like “Across the Sky,” “Message to a Friend,” and “September Fifteenth.” As heartfelt as Metheny’s performances are, they lose some of their immediacy on video. More successful are the Latinesque “Heat of the Day,” which recalls some of Chick Corea’s Spanish-inspired compositions and features a dramatic solo from Mays, and the up-tempo set-closer “Minuano (Six Eight).”

Day is a very good set that is sure to please his fans, but if you are looking to start your Metheny DVD collection, I would recommend beginning with The Way Up Live, also from Eagle Rock. Not to disrespect Day, but where it is solid, Way Up is outstanding and remains Metheny’s best work to date.

Day Trip

Day Trip
Pat Metheny
Nonesuch Records

Pat Metheny has the most recognizable hair in jazz and a remarkable flexibility to excel within various styles and formats. With his latest release, Day Trip, he strips things down to a simple, straight-forward trio, for a relaxed, enjoyable set of Metheny originals.

Metheny’s newly reconstituted trio consists of the leader’s guitar, Antonio Sanchez on drums, and Christian McBride on bass, who play cohesively together throughout. McBride is proving to be the go-to bassist for powerhouse trios over the last year, performing with Sonny Rollins and Roy Haynes at Carnegie Hall and recording with Bruce Hornsby and Jack DeJohnette on the rock star’s jazz debut. Here, he meshes perfectly with Metheny and Sanchez.

Things lead off with the mid-tempo “Son of Thirteen,” enriched by Sanchez’s rhythms. It is followed by the contemplative “At Last You’re Here,” featuring some of session’s the strongest solo statements from the leader and McBride.

Indeed, it is the peaceful, introspective tunes like “At Last” that are the highlights of Day Trip. In fact, the session’s emotional climax comes with “Is This America (Katrina 2005),” a haunting elegy obviously inspired by current events, but sounding like a delicate, deeply personal statement, rather than a political broadside. (Yes, it can be done.) Metheny’s playing sounds truly inspired and McBride’s arco solo is perfectly fitting.

Day Trip is at its bluesiest with the strutting “Calvin’s Keys,” evidently a tribute to the under-recorded guitarist, Calvin Keys, a veteran of the Jimmy Smith trio. Metheny also changes things up a little by breaking out the guitar synth for a jazz-rock excursion on “The Red One."

Metheny is jazz’s current guitar hero and his return to the trio format is certainly well worth hearing. This Metheny Trio plays at a consistently high level throughout Day Trip, but the CD may actually suffer from high expectations set by the guitarist’s last several recordings, including collaborations with Brad Mehldau and the extended suite The Way Up. Metheny will probably be playing the instant classic “Is This America” for years to come, but his other originals here are not quite as distinct and compelling. Still, Day Trip rewards repeated listening with many moments of dynamic group interplay.

Metheny Mehldau Quartet

Metheny Mehldau Quartet
Nonesuch

Those with large comic collections in their youthful past may remember Marvel Team-Up, the series that joined together diverse characters from the comic company’s universe for a short story arcs. Jazz has produced roughly analogous couplings of big named pairings for a series of sessions, including Jimmy Smith-Wes Montgomery, Freddie Hubbard-Woody Shaw, and Red Rodney-Ira Sullivan. Following in the tradition of jazz team-ups, comes the second Pat Metheny-Brad Mehldau collaboration, simply titled Quartet.

The guitar and piano combination can be fraught with chordal pitfalls, but the musical compatibility of Metheny and Mehldau makes it work seamlessly. Together with Mehldau’s regular rhythm associates, drummer Jeff Ballard and bassist Larry Grenadier they perform some very melodic jazz of a high order.

Well sequenced, Quartet starts with Ballard’s rim-shot kicking off “A Night Away,” the one tune of the set co-written by the co-leaders. It is a catchy, up-tempo performance with inventive solos, propelled along Ballard’s drumming.

While titled Quartet, there are four duets on the disc, including “The Sound of Water,” given a somewhat exotic sound by Metheny’s 42-string Pikasso guitar. In duo performances like “Don’t Wait” Metheny and Mehldau’s warmly sympathetic playing demonstrate that guitar and piano can get along sometimes.

There are some strong compositions recorded on Quartet. Metheny’s “Towards the Light” is a fascinating composition for the shifts in tone and dynamics within the tune itself. It begins with Mehldau’s dark ruminations over Ballard’s insistent pulse, until Metheny takes over on the guitar synth. Around the 6:10 they segue into a propulsive rock beat, and then settle into an airy contemplative closing.

“En La Tierra Que No Olvida” is another Metheny composition that starts with a strong melodic hook. Like some of his best work, it is a bright, shimmering tune, again featuring sparkling solos from the quartet leaders.

The two M’s have shown an interest in cinema. Metheny composed several soundtracks, including A Map of the World and The Falcon and the Snowman, while Mehldau contributed to the Eyes Wide Shut and Million Dollar Hotel soundtracks. Therefore, it follows naturally that Quartet would include two songs which reference cinema: the two concluding tracks, “Silent Movie” and “Marta’s Theme” (from Metheny’s score for the Italian film Passagio per il Paradiso), both of which are played with a thoughtful delicacy.

The comparison between jazz artists and comic super heroes might well be apt, because feats of daring and endurance are routinely expected of both. Listeners will be happy with the latest collaboration of the M’s, and further encounters will be quite welcome.

Speaking of Metheny Live

Speaking of Now Live
Pat Metheny Group
Eagle Eye Media

The Metheny Group knows how to put on a live show. After reviewing his latest DVD The Way Up, I’ve been watching his preceding DVD Speaking of Now Live, and it is another really well put together show.

Instead of opening with an up-tempo flag-waver, Metheny starts the show (or at least the DVD sequencing) with a sensitive solo performance of “Last Train Home.” He follows that by ripping through the bop based burner “Go Get It” with drummer Antonio Sanchez. As an opening it lays down the gauntlet to anyone skeptical of musicians associated with fusion, basically saying “deal with that.”

Throughout the concert, the Metheny Group explores challenging arrangements, and exciting group interplay. “Gathering Sky” starts with Metheny’s infectious vamp, echoed by Lyle Mays on piano. However, the group is not afraid to change up the mood from a fleet solo by Metheny to an extended feature for drummer Sanchez.

“On Her Way” is another highlight, generously spotlighting Richard Bona’s thumb piano and vocalizing during a long introduction, somewhat reminiscent of his work with the Zawinul Syndicate. Metheny’s briskly attacks his solo, and the voices of Bona and trumpeter Cuong Vu effectively blend together. It is a performance that really demonstrates the group’s ability to layer harmonies for a wonderful sound.

The Metheny Group brings it down effectively too, as on “A Map of the World & In Her Family,” which opens as a solo statement from Metheny. Mays takes over on piano, starting delicately, than becoming rhapsodic, until Metheny comes back in for a closing seamless duet.

The Pat Metheny Group has produced one strong album after another, so it is nice to see them also documented in live performance. Technically the set-list here does not match the CD track list exactly, but it is close enough for jazz. One can argue if the Metheny group had recorded the album on this particular night, they would have recorded the tunes they chose for this concert. Jazz artists like the Pat Metheny Group certainly prove that the album is still a viable concept and not just a padded vehicle for a couple of singles. Their performance in Speaking of Now Live proves the merit of each tune in over two hours of exciting music.

The Way Up Live

The Way Up Live
Pat Metheny Group
Eagle Eye Media

With the most recognizable hair and striped shirts in jazz, Pat Metheny is one of most successful contemporary jazz artists. However, the range Metheny has shown over the course of his career, playing adventurous sets with avant-garde legend Ornette Coleman, composing atmospheric soundtracks for films like Falcon and the Snowman and A Map of the World, and leading one of the top fusion-influenced combos with frequent collaborator Lyle Mays, has left some casual observers confounded as to who the real Metheny is. One reason The Way Up was such an important recording when it was released, is that it seemed to synthesize everything the guitarist has previously explored, into a coherent, album-length statement. It was also great music, so The Way Up Live, featuring the Pat Metheny Group performing this extended piece in Seoul, is a welcome DVD arrival.

The Way Up is a complex work co-composed by Metheny and his frequent writing partner Lyle Mays. To perform it live essentially requires a concert-length time commitment. In the DVD bonus interview, Metheny says: “I almost really have to say, we kind of tricked ourselves by saying ‘okay, we’re never gonna play this live, so we don’t have to worry about it.’”

It turned out to be a good trick, as the group played a fantastic concert for the Korean audience. Metheny and Mays obviously are highly attuned to each other, and their solos are consistently creative. DVD watchers may actually be more aware of the textures created by the percussionists, with drummer Antonio Sanchez, a particular revelation. Trumpeter Cuong Vu has been steadily building a reputation as an exiting improviser experimenting with electronic effects. In this concert it seems Vu seems to use even more distorting effects than on the CD. For both CD and DVD, what makes the ensemble sound truly distinct, is the addition of Gregoire Maret’s harmonica. Everyone blends perfectly, creating exceptional music.

In the same bonus interview, Metheny talks about how changing perceptions of time informed the composing of The Way Up explaining:

“I also see some movies now . . . I mean, there’s a whole new kind of way of just spreading out the details with movies like Amores Perros or Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind. I mean, there’s this whole sense of time being thought of in a kind of different way. And I think as we were writing the piece we were thinking of that.”

The Way Up Live is a well produced concert film. It is nicely lit, sometimes to dramatic effect, but never cheesy. The DVD titles make good use of the pole motif from the CD art. Most importantly, it shows the Pat Metheny Group in top form, performing and improvising on a challenging and rewarding extended composition. It is well worth purchasing from a music/DVD retailer that is still open for business.