Pat Metheny: At Last You're Here

Will the real Pat Metheny please stand up? Is he the avant-garde player of Song X, or the smooth jazz radio artist? Is he the synthesizer of World Music styles or the stylist of the synthesized music world? Or something else entirely?

In truth, Metheny does so many things so well, even he must have a hard time deciding which path represents his true calling. For my part, I often have a fondness for Midwest Metheny, the boy born in Lee's Summit, Missouri back in '54 who dishes out jazz Americana with that big, open country sound that no one has ever surpassed. Pat has staked out this territory as his own -- and it's almost as big as the Louisiana Purchase.

That's the side of Pat that comes across on "At Last You're Here," a grand 8-minute track from his new Day Trip CD. Pat the Pastoralist takes you on the closest thing to a day trip that you will find while plugged into your iPod. You can almost feel the breeze and smell the juniper trees. And when Metheny writes a melody this strong, he also seems to find a way of infusing his solos with a singing quality. From beginning to end, this a great performance and highly recommended.