I really like this CD but one thing bugs me. I think it needs to be remixed. Maybe it's the fact that it was "recorded, mixed, and mastered digitally" that it sounds a bit, and I mean just a tad, drab. Metheny sounds too dark; there is just no sizzle in his sound (I thought that the mixing on Bright Size Life sounded much better) and there is no way to remedy this with all digital recording (can't push the signal into the red) and his amp of choice doesn't lend itself to being pushed very hard. But with that being said, this is a great record that anyone who likes jazz guitar would want to own.

I'm in the same shoes as JC. I'm not really a big Pat Methany fan. I've even attended a couple of shows to try to see what it is that I maybe missing. To no avail. But this recording is something quite different. It's always, in my opinion of course, amazing to hear a guitarist who is categorized as, lets say, "smooth jazz" and then they play standards and you really see them and their skills at work. Which might tell you something about that contemporary jazz stuff. I had this same experience with local great saxophonist Grover Washington. I've never heard him play a set of all standards and when I heard this, MAN! blew me away. The same can be said of George Benson and this recording by Pat Methany. His rhythm section is nothing short of monster status! I really like this recording especially the opening tune "Solar" by Miles Davis. The rest of the recording is not bad at all. I truly enjoy Roy Haynes's playing. Check it out!

The problem that I have with Pat Metheny is that he often sends me into note overload...too many notes, too many ideas. Often, after hearing a Metheny tune, I would not be able to repeat to you any of the thousand ideas he tossed off in his solo. In a nutshell, I would enjoy it more if he would simplify a litle bit...

This was one of the records that completely changed my life. To really hear Pat stretch out both on some standard tunes (All The Things You Are, Solar, Old Folks) and on his own tunes in a trio setting with few effects and an incredible rhythm section is a real treat. If you're just starting to get your playing over changes down, and you're looking for some fresh ideas to play over standards, this recording has them by the truckload. I'd consider it essential transcribing material both for the lines and his comping.