One of the most original guitarists from the '80s onward (he is instantly recognizable),
Pat Metheny is a chance-taking player who has gained great popularity but also taken some wild left turns. His records with
the Pat Metheny Group are difficult to describe (
folk-jazz? mood music?) but managed to be both accessible and original, stretching the boundaries of
jazz and making
Metheny famous enough so he could perform whatever type of music he wants without losing his audience.
Metheny (whose older brother is the trumpeter Mike Metheny) started on guitar when he was 13.
He developed quickly, taught at both the University of Miami and Berklee while he was a teenager, and made his recording debut with
Paul Bley and
Jaco Pastorius in 1974. He spent an important period (1974-1977) with
Gary Burton's group, met keyboardist
Lyle Mays, and in 1978 formed his group, which originally featured
Mays, bassist Mark Egan, and drummer Dan Gottlieb. Within a short period he was ECM's top artist and one of the most popular of all jazzmen, selling out stadiums.
Metheny mostly avoided playing predictable music, and his freelance projects were always quite interesting. His 1980 album 80/81 featured
Dewey Redman and
Mike Brecker in a
post-bop quintet; he teamed up with
Charlie Haden and
Billy Higgins on a trio date in 1983; and two years later recorded the very outside
Song X with
Ornette Coleman. Among
Metheny's other projects away from the group were a sideman recording with
Sonny Rollins; a 1990 tour with
Herbie Hancock in a quartet; a trio album with
Dave Holland and
Roy Haynes; and a collaboration (and tour) with
Joshua Redman. Although his Zero Tolerance for Silence in 1994 was largely a waste (40 minutes of feedback),
Metheny retained his popularity and remained a consistently creative performer. He has recorded as a leader for ECM (starting in 1975), Geffen, Warner Brothers, and Nonesuch.
Metheny remained active in the 21st century, releasing
Speaking of Now in 2002, the solo
One Quiet Night in 2003, Way Up in 2005, and
Metheny Mehldau in 2006.
Metheny and pianist
Brad Mehldau returned to the studio the following year for
Quartet.
Metheny released the trio album
Day Trip in 2008. ~ Scott Yanow, All Music Guide
