The Pat Metheny Interviews

by Richard Niles

Pat Metheny is one of the most critically acclaimed, commercially successful, and musically significant artists of the last 50 years. He has not only revolutionized his instrument, but also changed the face of jazz itself.

In 2007, composer, arranger, and performer Richard Niles wrote and produced a three-part series of in-depth interviews for the BBC titled Pat Metheny – Bright Size Life . This book is comprised of these never-before-printed interviews and discussions with Metheny, whom Niles has known and worked with since 1974. In this series of intimate, in-depth interviews, Metheny

• reveals why he was driven toward music with a stratospheric drive and dedication

• uncovers the inner workings of his creative mind, showing step by step how he set and achieved each of his own demanding goals

• describes his methodology as a guitarist, improviser, and composer

• demonstrates his concepts and methodologies on the guitar. Niles has transcribed these unique musical performances for the book.

Some of Metheny's closest colleagues, including Lyle Mays, Gary Burton, Jack DeJohnette, John Patitucci, Metheny's brother Mike, and the late Michael Brecker, have contributed to the book, which also includes numerous photographs and a discography.

Genres: Music, Jazz

184 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2009

Reviews

[Randall Wallace · Rating 1 out of 5]

This pompous book about pondering if Pat Metheny has “underlying philosophies that shape his work” offers nothing, has bad un-sharp copies of original pictures, and horrific printing. This was meant to be a book about a musician yet there is no usable info inside that is technically musical. Mervyn Cooke’s book on Pat during the ECM years is terrific – buy/read that instead. Teen magazines often do issues on music stars that avoid all actual musical and gear questions. Welcome to a book with that approach. I learn from almost every book I review (I read one book per week) but sadly not this one. Dig up and read some old Guitar Player interviews with Pat, or spend a few hours doing harmonic analysis of a Pat tune or learn some part of a solo of his – heck, feed your guinea pig - anything will be more constructive than spending your spare time reading this verbal quicksand. Richard’s sole two sort-of-musical insights are that Pat spent every bit of spare time practicing (good to know, but not surprising), and Pat suggested that musicians should work on what they can do right now with what, and who, they already have at their disposal (which is pragmatic). Note that this book is so light on actual content they made it with a typeface large enough for a fourth-grade reader, then they double spaced each page so each page is largely empty like a poetry book. If this book was done for the author’s ego, then the weak shot of him on the back cover (a cross-processed color Zerox shot in bad light with a guitar non-graphically incorporated) did him no favors. So, buy the Cooke book on Pat instead, you’ll learn far more.

[Jeremy Walton · Rating 3 out of 5]

Doesn't really "reveal" very much
The subtitle of this book is "The Inner Workings Of His Creativity Revealed", which, before you've even opened it, seems to be a promise that's going to be hard to keep - after all, if the secret of Metheny's creativity could be explained so succinctly (this book isn't very long at all), there couldn't be very much to it. And so it proves. The author leads off each section with an invitation to his subject like "Pat Metheny and pressure. Discuss.", and records Metheny's responses. He's an articulate, intelligent subject who's clearly passionate about his music, but - beyond 'revealing' that he's been practicing the guitar all day, every day, since an early age - doesn't provide a lot of novel insight into where all that music has come from - at least, when you consider all the other interviews that he's done (and which have long been available on the web).

On the plus side, there are some interesting details about Metheny's early life (which includes him identifying Miles Davis, The Beatles and Wes Montgomery as early influences), some photos of him playing - at an alarmingly young age - that he's apparently provided himself, and some musical examples transcribed by the author from Metheny's playing. But things fizzle out as the end is approached, with a "full discography" [sic] that merely consists of a list of album titles and the years in which they appeared (as woefully sparse as this is, the author still manages to include The Road to You twice, for some reason).

In conclusion, this is a nice collection to have for Metheny fans, but falls short of its promise - as, perhaps, is only to be expected.

Originally reviewed 1 February 2010>/i>

[Mark Ramsden · Rating 5 out of 5]

  Limpid, lucid, fluid, flowing, open, optimistic: you could apply these words to both Pat Metheny's music and this book, a series of interviews by arranger, producer, guitarist and composer Dr Richard Niles, a gently humorous man who, like Pat Metheny, studied at Berklee and whose strong work ethic has been rewarded with worldwide success in more than one genre.

The text delivers throughout on the subtitle's promise 'The Inner Workings Of His Creativity Revealed'. Coming of age when 'the Beatles made the world colour instead of black and white', he has retained a strong melodic sensibility which allowed him to reach large audiences. Metheny's clear articulate speech flows as easily as his music, a refreshing change from outmoded gnomic hipster jive.  

Melody is a better way of reaching a larger audience than the frantic chromaticism often associated with jazz yet Pat Metheny has still taken some serious risks. Starting on a new record label with an Ornette Coleman album? He made it happen somehow, as ever it was a critical and commercial success, although I much prefer the Jim Hall and Brad Mehldau duets. I have been diagnosed with various personality disorders but I'm still not mad enough to get Ornette. (Except we can all be random. So what? And he's been out of tune for the last thirty years. Onwards.)

Pictures throughout show the master at work. With a sigh of relief I noticed that there was one time he didn't look unbelievably poised and handsome but then this was the 70s where flared, checkered golf trousers were de rigeur. Equipment fetishists will dig the info on amps and various axes designed and/or played by the man - fretless and soprano guitars, the Pikasso, a double necked instrument,  and Luddites will rejoice that Pat Metheny when given unfamiliar equipment still managed to sound like himself - one of the tests of a true jazz artist, do they have a unique voice.
He's also A great duettist, this book sent me to the Jim Hall/Pat Metheny duets, which is surprisingly spikey at times, although, like all of his music, uplifting spiritually.

Hats off to Richard Slater for the glorious cover: a bright portrayal of Pat Metheny with plenty of Indian yellow, Hockney-esque in its bright positivity, on a duck egg blue backing which makes the book a pleasant object to have around. There are useful notated exercises, one shows how to go 'inside' and 'outside', to which I would only add, it's better to finish 'inside' or the audience will soon be outside. Not likely to be a problem for Pat Metheny, in whatever form he chooses to present his ideas. Perhaps it's the wide open chords and a tinge of folk sensibility which helps bring in listeners who may be repelled by elitism, or arid experimentation. Whatever the secret is, it's mostly hard work which has caused his deserved success.

All discographical and biographical bases are covered and if you're interested in music theory, practice and philosophy this book will help. If you're already converted to Pat Metheny it's essential.
MarkRamsden.moonfruit.com

[JDK1962 · Rating 3 out of 5]

Pat Metheny is someone I've been listening to for 35+ years, and in fact was the first jazz musician I ever started seriously listening to. That being said, I had high expectations for this book, and it didn't really live up to them: it's fairly shallow in its coverage, with large type, lots of pictures, short chapters, and you'll finish an initial read in an hour or two. If this had been full of chapters like "Improvisation," I would have been thrilled...but a lot of it is Pat being complimentary toward other players, and other players being complimentary toward him, and while that's cool, there's not a huge amount of value to it, at least to me. So, while I like it (that's what a 3-star review means) and I'll keep it on my shelf, I would have loved a deeper dive that lived up to the subtitle "The Inner Workings of His Creativity Revealed."

[Aintlds · Rating 4 out of 5]

Interesting but could have delved much more into "why does Pat Metheny play guitar and love jazz so much." What does the music mean to him? Why the fascination? How does he compose? Where do the ideas come from? Too much history which has been well covered.

[Ward · Rating 4 out of 5]

A quick read with some very good insights into Pat Metheny's creative process (as the title states!). Also contains some transcribed solos from the original BBC radio broadcast.