Speaking of Now

1	As It Is / Pat Metheny 7:42
2	Proof / Pat Metheny 10:18
3	Another Life / Pat Metheny 7:13
4	The Gathering Sky / Pat Metheny 9:26
5	You / Pat Metheny 8:57
6	On Her Way / Pat Metheny 5:41
7	A Place in the World / Pat Metheny 9:54
8	Afternoon / Pat Metheny 4:45
9	Wherever You Go / Pat Metheny 8:03

Barnes & Noble

From the brilliant straight-ahead work on Trio 99 00 to the free-jazz explorations of his collaboration with Ornette Coleman on Song X, Pat Metheny has traveled the myriad byways of jazz throughout his more than 25 years as a recording artist. But to his millions of fans worldwide, the guitarist is best known as the leader of one of the most successful contemporary-jazz ensembles of recent years, the Pat Metheny Group. Though his “extracurricular” journeys have been great trips, it is with the group that he is most at home, and home has never sounded better than it does on Speaking of Now. Along with longtime cohorts keyboardist Lyle Mays and bassist Steve Rodby, Metheny welcomes three new members into the fold: drummer Antonio Sanchez, vocalist/percussionist Richard Bona, and Cuong Vu on trumpet and vocals, all three established artists in their own right. While the album features many of the trademarks that the group is known for -- airy, guitar- and keyboard-driven soundscapes mixed with world music vocals, especially on the album’s opening track, “As It Is” -- there now seems to be a more varied musical element present throughout. In fact, Speaking of Now is the group’s most diverse album in years. The album really kicks off on the second track, “Proof,” a piece that sounds like it would be perfectly at home on the 1978 Pat Metheny Group recording; it's propelled by Sanchez's swinging, solid drumming, along with a succession of great solos by Metheny, Mays, and Vu. The softer tracks, such as “Another Life” and “You,” highlight vocals of Bona and Vu, both of whom deliver gorgeous performances. Among the more interesting tracks is the funk/blues “Afternoon,” one of the most simple and basically melodic songs Metheny has written in a long time, with a solid groove to boot. The three new members are a welcome addition, putting a new spring into the step of this still vital group. Vu’s moody and haunting trumpet work gives the ensemble a more dynamic sonic dimension, while Sanchez’s fantastic playing is a definite plus, inspiring the group rhythmically. Even Metheny’s own playing is the best he’s done with the group in years -- he delivers a virtuoso performance without hitting you over the head with his prowess. Both superbly performed and always highly enjoyable, Speaking of Now should serve as the blueprint for contemporary-jazz records in the 21st century. Eric Lowenhar

All Music Guide

Speaking of Now finds guitarist Metheny leading a retooled Pat Metheny Group; in addition to longtime core members, keyboardist Lyle Mays and bassist Steve Rodby, the Group now includes drummer Antonio Sanchez, trumpeter/vocalist Cuong Vu, and Richard Bona, who's best known as a bassist, but who functions primarily as the Group's percussionist/vocalist. The result is an exquisite album that features fresh new musical perspectives while losing none of the Group's familiar wide-ranging, melodic, always accessible sound. Most of the tracks on Speaking of Now were composed by Metheny and his longtime collaborator Mays, although three tracks were composed solely by Metheny. There's a buoyant feel to this album that is not to be confused with lightness. This is complex, intricately detailed music that reveals additional layers with each listening. Metheny seems to delight in discovering the myriad means by which his prodigiously accomplished bandmembers can provide coloration to the compositions, both within the larger group and in solo spotlights. Sanchez's rhythmic agility and sensitivity is featured throughout, particularly on "The Gathering Sky," which begins as a sparkling, piano-led number and then transforms into a grooving band jam. One of the album's many solo highlights comes during "Proof," where Vu turns in a poignantly lyrical trumpet solo that is followed by an electrifying, steadily intensifying solo by Mays. Vocals have long been part of the Metheny Group sound, but now he is utilizing them in new ways; "Another Life" opens with Bona and Vu harmonizing on a chorale that leads into the artist's delicate acoustic guitar work, while Bona provides sweet vocalizing over Metheny's guitar on the beautiful, soaring "You." Every track on Speaking of Now possesses a distinct beauty and eloquence. This is a superb offering that is not to be missed. Lucy Tauss

Billboard

This is a slightly more subtle PMG, whose intertwining lines are painted broadly against a wide panoramic canvas....taking the music ever further from its American roots and into a realm that is truly global.