CD-Charts Position 1
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Day Trip

by: Pat Metheny

Release Date January 28, 2008
This album, like pretty much all his output since the early nineties, lacks that crucial element of experimentation and risk-taking. There's no doubt about Pat's talent but really I'm suprised that he is so stuck creatively. Dont start into his music with this album. I've followed his career since 1985 and was so impressed with 'Still Life' and 'Letter from Home'. This led me to his back catalogue and there are some amazing albums like 'First circle' and 'Watercolors'. Lyle Mays has been a great backup and solos just as inventively. Time moves on but sadly, middle age has made Metheny just too comfortable.

CD-Charts Position 2
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Tokyo Day Trip : Live EP

by: Pat Metheny

Release Date May 19, 2008
Released as a supplement to "Day Trip", the trio's studio set from earlier this year, this is a collection of new live tracks recorded at The Blue Note in Tokyo. In spite of its categorization as an EP (a label that has probably lost all the meaning it had in the vinyl world - indeed, this set clocks in at 40 minutes, which used to be a respectable length for an LP) the keynote here is diversity, as this little group shows off a wide variety of styles, ranging from the folksy atmosphere of "Tromso" to the knotty polyrhythms of "Back Arm & Blackcharge".

In between there's "Travelling Fast", which is probably the piece that'd be most easily recognized as a Metheny tune, featuring as it does his characteristic creamy guitar tone. The breadth ... Read More:

CD-Charts Position 3
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Beyond The Missouri Sky

by: Charlie Haden, Pat Metheny

Release Date February 24, 1997
This is one of the most chilled but moving albums ever. It is a perfect antidote to the stresses of existence and is a perfect counterpart to metheny's recent solo album 'one quiet night'. Pat was quoted recently saying that he is searching for something higher. This is it.

CD-Charts Position 4
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Secret Story: Remastered & Expanded

by: Pat Metheny

Release Date September 24, 2007
The original Secret Story has been one of my favourite albums since it was released back in 1992. Hearing a while back that it was going to be included in the reissues of remastered Pat Metheny titles I must admit to wondering whether it would be worth buying - would the sound be that much better than the original, which already sounds pretty good?

Well, thanks be to Pat Metheny because this is a remastered album in the truest sense. Not only does it sound so much better, but some of the pieces have been altered by bringing various tracks either higher or lower in the mix - it's almost like listening to new songs. This has really added a great deal and has brought so much more to the Secret Story experience.

As far as the 5 previously unreleased ... Read More:

CD-Charts Position 5
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Quartet

by: Pat Metheny and Brad Mehldau

Release Date March 12, 2007
EXCELLENT,LOVE THIS SOUND...TAKES MY HEAD TO A DIFFERENT PLACE...FEEL WARM IN THE DARK...RECOMENDED BY ME

CD-Charts Position 6
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One Quiet Night

by: Pat Metheny

Release Date May 26, 2003
I heard one of the tracks on the radio and bought the album on the strength of it. There is not a dud track on the album. In the liner notes Metheny describes it the realisation of a long held plan to make "a whole record with one single guitar, no overdubs or extra parts; to do a totally solo acoustic record". This gives the record it beautifully pared back sound which allows every inflexion of Metheny's astonishing playing to come through. But the thing that I love about this record is the fact that on each track, to paraphrase Lester Young, Metheny simply sings us a song with his guitar. (He doesn't literally sing.)

The other thing that I love is the relative simplicity of the playing. Metheny eschews needless ornamentation and experimentation for experimentation's sake ... Read More:

CD-Charts Position 7
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As Falls Wichita, So Falls Wichita Falls

by: Pat Metheny, Lyle Mays

Release Date February 01, 1985
It took me a long time to find this CD. I first heard some of the tracks on this used on the soundtrack for the film Fandango, a great road movie starring Kevin Costner, Judd Nelson..etc. I loved the film, but loved the music even more. It took me 10 years before I finally found out it was Pat Metheny and Lyle Mays. To finally have the CD is such a pleasure. This really is a beautifully crafted recording. It may be 25 years old, but good music never fades. "Its For You" (used in Fandango) is pure joy to listen to.

The whole CD is perfect for relaxing to. Dim the lights, light a few candles. Put the CD on a good stereo system, close your eyes and appreciate two masters at work.

I couldnt recommend this CD enough.

CD-Charts Position 8
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Different Trains

from: Nonesuch

Release Date March 09, 1989
The two works on this disc are essential listening for anyone with even the slightest interest in Steve Reich. For those who don't know the composer, there are perhaps easier places to start - the Music for Mallet Instruments, Octet, Music for 18 Musicians, for instance.

It's now nearly 20 years since these pieces were recorded. Different Trains juxtaposes the Kronos Quartet with taped railway announcements, words overheard on trains, lines relating to train journeys etc. Throughout, there's a true integration of the form, since the strings pick up rhythmic and melodic lines from the spoken words, develop them, amplify them.

Electric Counterpoint is performed on an electric guitar. Pat Metheney plays against pre-recorded tapes to create something like a complex - but surprisingly ... Read More:

CD-Charts Position 9
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Bright Size Life

by: Pat Metheny

Release Date February 29, 2000
This record is one of the best dicoveries I ever made. I don't think any record since Davis' 'Kind Of Blue', Zappa's 'Lather' or Stravinsky's 'Soldier's Tale' has had such an effect on me! It's just superb, a must for any guitarist or anyone with any taste for that matter. I just can't wait to get hold of more of Pat's work, and there is plenty of it. Buy it, buy it NOW!

CD-Charts Position 10
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Still Life (Talking)

by: Pat Metheny

Release Date February 13, 2006
A beautifully crafted cd from one of the greatest orchestrated outfits in what is loosely called the jazz canon. 'Still Life (Talking)' could probably be better described as Latin jazz although that probably confuses as much as the jazz label that is often attached to Metheny's work. The Metheny Group is not one of these thrown together outfits that get together for a session only to disband after a handful of live dates. The outfit is a finely tuned and well established ensemble that has grown with the composing skills of its two main contributors, Metheny and keyboard player/pianist Lyle Mays.

'Minuano (6/8)' is, for me at least, the highlight. The piece is a tour de force of subtle grooves, delicate rhythms, simple, effective harmonies and gentle timbres. It builds from a whisper to a strong finale ... Read More: