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The Music of Pat MethenyAlthough Pat Metheny is usually listed as a jazz musician, his interests are much less narrow minded and he has crossed into other genres on a regular basis. However, he is best known for his jazz guitar work with the Pat Metheny group and also on solo performances. The artist has racked up a total of 17 Grammy Awards as a testament to his incredibly versatile talent. While he was most popular in the 1970s and 1980s decades, Pat Matheny has remained a constant performer with many concert dates across the world each year.At the age of 21, Pat Metheney made his first break into the musical world. The vibraphonist, Gary Burton, had been training the young Metheny as a protege and the younger student took a place in the elder teacher’s band in 1975. From this seemingly small start, Pat Metheny accumulated enough songs to create his debut album, which was called Bright Size Life and was released to critical acclaim. Unlike other artists of the time, Metheny was very prolific, recording a number of albums and working with many famous names in the jazz genre, including Ornette Coleman, Chick Corea, and Jaco Pastorius. The majority of the artist’s fame came with the creation of the Pat Metheny Group. This musical ensemble featured the talented jazz guitar player paired with Lyle Mays on piano and Mark Egan on bass. Their first album to be released was titled American Garage and was an immediate sensation that topped the Billboard charts for jazz and even made an appearance on the pop charts. Further albums explored the latin jazz heritage and used a number of artists from the South American continent. The latest record from Pat Metheny is called The Way Up and is a single song that lasts over 68 minutes. |