Search - Pat Metheny Group :: Still Life

Distance and In Her Family - underrated and gut wrenchingly

Neil S. Bowman | Malden, MA United States | 03/13/2006

(4 out of 5 stars)

"Pat Metheny is such an amazing musician in every respect that it's hard to pick his best moments at times. While I was a huge fan at the height of this era, "Still Life (Talking)" was brilliant, but starting to take on a bit too much of the 'jazz lite' realm. That might be considered heresy by Pat's fans, but when I compare this album and the direction it started to take after the monumental "Offramp", and earlier genius like "As Falls Wichita" .., it starts to disappoint me in that I often know where the song is going in a way that I didn't on "Offramp". Yeah, I know 'true' fans don't compare albums, blah, blah, blah. Sure they do. People love music that speaks to them, and after this album, frankly, PMG didn't speak to me with their new material any more. I lost it after Nana left (he was after all, only a 'guest' with PMG) and they brought on the chipper, only-too-happy Pedro, and his 'la-la-la's' and 'hooohh's' and hand-claps. I much preferred Nana's other-worldly, exotic, haunted, soul-stirring vocalisations and percussion, making words and noises up for the musical moment in a way that Pedro never could. Judging from a few of these reviews, I don't think I'm the only PMG fan who feels this way. So, for me, after "Still life ..", I fell away from the PMG on record, for the most part. Which means nothing when it comes to their live performances. Everyone should always see Pat and Lyle play together live, always, and forever.



I wrote this because the two exceptions to this slight disappointment are "Distance" and "In Her Family", and I've not found a reviewer who has mentioned what genius they are. 'Distance', could only come from the mind of Lyle Mays, for anyone who has ever heard his brilliant solo music. It's dark and haunting atonally, in a way that those words can't possibly begin to describe, and 'Distance' brings up heartbreaking vibes that I've never heard before. It literally could have been part of the soundtrack to 'The Sixth Sense' in it's darkly moving, stately grace. Chilling is the word for it. 'Distance' leaves me speechless (which is saying a LOT!). The duo of it, which segues into 'In Her Family', can only conjure up one image or feeling - overwhelming loss. The title, to me, relates something very sad, like 'something' tragic runs 'in her family', like cancer, or suicide, or some other horrible affliction. I don't know whose title it is (Pat's or Lyle's), or what the inspiration for the song was, but you almost don't need to know much, just look at the title and listen to the song, and it informs you in a way that lyrics perhaps could not have. If you have lost a loved one, to death, as I have recently, (or on a much minor level, breaking up with a loved one), I defy anyone to listen to these two songs together alone, and not break down. Once the orchestra and cymbal swells at the bridge of 'Family' wash over you in hope, but return to the anguished, child-like melody of absolute crushing solitude, you can really only sit there in your chair, frozen in despair, for a few minutes. PMG accomplishes this like no other artists I know, along with 'The Bat, Part II' (from 'Offramp'). What is it with these guys and the last songs on their CD's? They're as beautiful as any hymns I've heard. There are no more perfect endings to their albums.



So, the other tunes on Still Life (Talking)' are entertaining, crowd-pleasing, mood-brightening, typically reflective pieces (and perhaps, too familiar) that PMG does so well. But nobody does haunting and touching like they do in the last six, or so, minutes of this album. "Distance" is chilling, "In Her Family" is loss."

Classic PMG material.

D. L. Adger | Philadelphia | 04/17/2006

(5 out of 5 stars)

"After replacing this cd in my collection, I revisited one of the best contemporary jazz albums ever made, from one of the best jazz guitarists ever. I honestly had forgotten just how good this cd is. If you took a sampling of 20 Pat Metheny fans, and asked them for their favorite PMG release, you'd quite possibly get 20 different answers. I think that speaks to the "something for everyone" mantra that seems to mark Pat's work. "Still Life (Talking)" is probably my favorite of his Geffen releases. The accompanying core of Mays, Wertico, and Rodby are what makes Pat's virtuosity smoke, but as always with a PMG release, the fringe players always add that extra flavor. Depending on Pat's mood when composing, one could expect to hear anything from Brazillian overtures, to Far East undertones. It really just ups the ante as far as one's overall enjoyment of his music. And the voices! Armando Marcal heads up a trio of unheralded, yet very talented singers to underscore some of Pat's most well known pieces.



If you haven't seen this man live, do yourself a favor and catch him in concert. You will have a new appreciation for him and these songs, as virtually all of them (Minuano, So May It Secretly Begin, and the moving Last Train Home especially) are part of a PMG setlist. Without sounding like a major "Stan", I'll tell you that SLT is a must purchase for music enthusiasts. It's also a great driving cd, which not a lot of jazz is. Turn it up!"