One Quiet Night

Recently, "One Quiet Night" showed up in my mailbox. This is it too.

I had been meaning to get this album for quite some time on the recommendation of jazz guitarist I played with only on a few occasions. I got "Bright Sized Life" back in the summer/fall just as I moved out to California. Even though music by Pat Metheny and even the Metheny Mehldau record has been in my collection for some time now, I never really paid much attention to it until this past year.

"One Quiet Night" is by no means a new album, but that doesn't mean it isn't still good. It is Pat Metheny solo on the baritone guitar. You might think, "Really? It sounds like he's already down two points." But he manages to pull it off, I think. Having the baritone guitar allows him to hit lower notes than if he were on a normal guitar, thus he produces a much fuller sound.

Overall, the album is mellow, but that doesn't make it boring whatsoever. As is typical, Metheny's compositions are harmonically rich making them a pleasure to listen to. Anne said that when she listened to "Bright Sized Life" she claims to have just fallen asleep. Yes, I think that Metheny's music just has a mellower aspect than say Oscar Peterson, but just about anything will if you've only had 4 hours of sleep.

Just as with most jazz performances, what makes them interesting is not usually the tune itself, it is what the performers do with the tune. By contrast, if you compare playing a tune like "All the things you are" and playing one of the Mendelssohn string quartets. If both performances were played with strictly the notes on the page, hands down, the Mendelssohn quartet would be more interesting. That's because there are about 20 notes actually written for "All the Things you are." What makes the performances comparable is how the jazz is interpreted. For example, Oscar Peterson would make more notes come out of a piano than you would have ever though possible, Brad Mehldau plays it in 7/4 time, Keith Jarrett would have the most long-winded phrases, and Pat Metheny would play it slower, smoother, and just prettier than everyone else, cherishing every note he plays (I think). And that's kind of how, "One Quiet Night" comes across.