Missouri has never sounded so beautiful before – and, in some ways, maybe neither have guitarist Pat Metheny and bassist Charlie Haden! The album's a real standout for both musicians during this time in their career – almost a back to basics with the kind of sound that they really put forth in the 70s, especially on ECM – with these subtle, simple, almost painterly progressions that are completely mesmerizing – even though they always understate their presence. Tunes are from a variety of sources – and include great reworkings of "Cinema Paradiso", "Two For The Road", "The Moon Song", "The Moon Is A Harsh Mistress", and "Precious Jewel" – plus the originals "Waltz For Ruth", "Our Spanish Love Song", "First Song", "Message To A Friend", and "Tears Of Rain". CD

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A brilliantly evocative album from Pat Metheny – one that's got a quietly epic feel, as Pat and group soar out across the American landscape in a set of tunes that subtly explore space and sound while still remaining wonderfully fluid. There's nothing forced here, and nothing too slick – just a magical blend of acoustic and electric sounds, touched with those mystical notes that seem to flow effortlessly from the hands of keyboardist Lyle Mays. Titles include "The Epic", "American Garage", "Cross The Heartland", "Airstream", and "The Search". LP, Vinyl record album

One of our favorite Metheny moments ever – and one of the few albums of his that we can go back to, and still enjoy heartily! The album's wonderfully stripped down – and features only guitar by Metheny, keyboards by Lyle Mays, and percussion and vocals by Nana Vasconcelos, all blended together with some sublime ECM production by Manfred Eicher, who's really got "the sound" in full effect here, pillowtizing all the instrumentation into wonderful washes of color and tone. The standout track is the 20 minute epic "As Falls Wichita, So Falls Wichita Falls" – and other tunes include "It's For You", "Estupenda Graca", and "Ozark". LP, Vinyl record album

One of Metheny's seminal sides for ECM, in a trio with Jaco Pastorius and Bob Moses. 8 tracks in all, including "Bright Size Life", "Sirabhorn", "Unity Village", "Missouri Uncompromised", "Midwestern Nights Dream", "Ubiquity Road", "Omaha Celebration" and "Round Trip/Broadway Blues". CD

Arguably the last great album to come from the classic Pat Metheny collaboration with Lyle Mays – a record that's tightened up considerably from some of the group's earlier efforts, but which gives as its reward some wonderfully compelling tunes! Pat's still very much influenced here by a Brazilian fusion style – but he takes that approach, dismantles it, pulls out the best elements – and extrapolates them into a sound that's uniquely his own. Wordless vocals slide out on a few numbers, while guitar and keys sing alongside earthier percussion – in a style that's extremely evocative, and shows that even riding the top of his own success, Metheny was still more than willing to bring in new modes. Titles include "If I Could", "Forward March", "Yolanda, You Learn", "End Of The Game", and "Mas Alla". LP, Vinyl record album

Features Pat Metheny on guitars, Steve Rodby on bass, Pedro Aznar on marimba, vibes, saxophone, and melodica, and Armando Marcal on percussion. Titles include "Have You Heard", "Slip Away", "Vidala", "Are We There Yet", and "Beat 70". CD

A completely solo album from Pat Metheny – but one that still sparkles with the same sort of energy as his fuller group sessions for ECM! At a point when Pat could be content to simply scrawl a few simple lines on the strings of his guitar, he instead does a great job of complicating things here – working with a bit of overdub to explode in fuller sounds that are totally great – played on acoustic and electric guitars, including 6, 12, and 15 stringed versions – as well as a bit of bass. Titles include "Hermitage", "Daybreak", "Sueno Con Mexico", "New Chautauqua", and "Country Poem". LP, Vinyl record album

A really wonderful little record from Pat Metheny – quite possibly our favorite by the man, thanks to some really inventive sounds that still resonate strongly in the groove scene today! Pat's skirting nicely here between the sound-based quality of earlier records, and some of the more fluid and Brazilian-influenced song structures that were emerging in his work – using the percussion of Nana Vasconcelos to give the tracks a nice earthy undercurrent, but still also managing to slide around wonderfully in that fluid groove he was building with keyboardist Lyle Mayes. Includes the great cut "Are You Going With Me?", plus "The Bat", "James", "Barcarole", and "Eighteen". CD

A really wonderful little record from Pat Metheny – quite possibly our favorite by the man, thanks to some really inventive sounds that still resonate strongly in the groove scene today! Pat's skirting nicely here between the sound-based quality of earlier records, and some of the more fluid and Brazilian-influenced song structures that were emerging in his work – using the percussion of Nana Vasconcelos to give the tracks a nice earthy undercurrent, but still also managing to slide around wonderfully in that fluid groove he was building with keyboardist Lyle Mayes. Includes the great cut "Are You Going With Me?", plus "The Bat", "James", "Barcarole", and "Eighteen". LP, Vinyl record album

A near-legendary album from Pat Metheny – the real birth of the "Metheny sound" on record, and a perfect example of the magically fluid groove that he crafted with keyboardist Lyle Mays! The sound here is hard to describe – and even harder when you try to pick out the individual keyboard and guitar bits – because the overall feel of the record is so well wrapped up and lyrically together, yet manages to do so without falling into any too-slick styles or cliched approaches to fusion. We're stunned at how much this one still delights us over the years, and the record still stands as a landmark in its field. Titles include "San Lorenzo", "Phase Dance", "Jaco", "Aprilwind", "Lonejack", and "Apriljoy". LP, Vinyl record album

Pat Metheny on guitar, Larry Grenadier on bass, and Bill Stewart on drums. CD

Pat Metheny on guitars, Lyles Mays on piano and keyboards, Pedro Aznar on acoustic guitar, vibes, melodica, and steel drums, Steve Rodby on bass, and Paul Wertico and Armando Marcal on percussion. CD

With James Francies on organ, piano, and synths, and Marcus Gilmore on drums. LP, Vinyl record album

With Lyle Mays on piano and keys, Steve Rodby on bass, Richard Bona on vocals and percussion, Cuong Vu on trumpet and vocals, and Antonio Sanchez on drums. CD

Features Pat Metheny on guitars, Chris Potter on reeds, Ben Williams on acoustic bass, and Antonio Sanchez on drums. CD

A seminal record in the formation of the Pat Metheny sound of the 70s – a set that brings his wonderfully chromatic work on guitar into play with the piano of Lyle Mays – all at a level that's so stripped-down and spacious, you can easily hear all the genius as it unfolds! And yet the album's also markedly different from some of the other ECM material at the time – as Pat's really stating himself with some more personal ideas, a bit of warm tunefulness, and maybe just a slight current of sentiment – which is what makes the record so wonderful, and so different than some of his labelmates. The set also features Eberhard Weber on bass and Dan Gottlieb on drums – on titles that include "Lakes", "River Quay", "Watercolors", "Icefire", "Oasis", and "Sea Song". CD

Pat Metheny on guitar with Steve Rodby on bass, Antonio Sanchez on drums, Richard Bona on guitar and percussion, Gregoire Maret on harmonica, David Samuels on percussion, Lyle Mays on piano and xylophone, and Cuong Vu on whistle and trumpet. CD

With Lyle Mays on autoharp, harmonium, electric piano, piano, clavinet, celeste – plus Steve Rodby on bass and Paul Wertico on drums. CD

Features Pat Metheny on guitars and synths, Lyle Mays on piano and keys, Steve Rodby on bass, Paul Wertico on drums, and Armando Marcal on percussion. Tracks include "Minuano (Six Eight)", "Last Train Home", "Distance", and "In Her Family". CD

Mike Metheny on flugelhorn, trumpet and synthesizer, Dick Odgren on piano, electric piano and synthesizer, John Lockwood and Rufus Reid on acoustic bass, Pat Metheny on electric and acoustic guitar, Bob Tamagni and Tommy Ruskin on drums, and Mitch Coodley on electric guitar. CD

A record full of rich tones and cascadingly lyrical lines – and a set that features the wonderful pairing of John Abercrombie's guitar and the piano of Richie Beirach! Beirach seems to ground Abercrombie even more than usual – still letting John have those atmospheric qualities in his notes, but with a sense of flow and focus that we really appreciate – energy that might also come from the work of George Mraz on bass, and Peter Donald on drums. Tunes are simple and elegant, but say a hell of a lot with a little – and the album's maybe as perfect a summation of the ECM approach to guitar at its best as some of the early Pat Metheny albums. Titles include "Arcade", "Nightlake", "Neptune", "Alchemy", and "Paramour". LP, Vinyl record album

Features Michael Brecker on tenor sax, Pat Metheny on guitar, Herbie Hancock on piano, Charlie Haden on bass, and Jack DeJohnette on drums – plus guest vocals from James Taylor. CD

With Michael Brecker on tenor sax, Pat Metheny on guitar, Larry Goldings on organ, and Elvin Jones, Bill Steward, and Jeff Tain Watts on drums. CD

A great little project from funk maestro Lance Ferguson – one that has Ferguson working with a group of musicians and singers to really recast some great tracks from the past! The approach here is maybe a bit like the way that Bluey and Incognito might transform a classic tune on some of their albums from years past – but the scope is wider here, as the group takes on a nice range of material from artists as diverse as Azymuth, Chic, Pat Metheny, and Kool & The Gang! There's as much an instrumental focus on the record as a vocal one, depending on the tune –a nd titles include great remakes of "Summer Madness", "Hot Dog", "New Morning", "Sueno Con Mexico", "Why", "Far Beyond", and "Estrelar". LP, Vinyl record album

Marc Johnson on bass – with both Bill Frisell and Pat Metheny on guitars, and Joey Baron on drums. CD

Features Joshua Redman on tenor, Pat Metheny on guitar, Charlie Haden on bass, and Billy Higgins on drums! CD

Some of the earliest recordings of Brazilian percussionist Nana Vasconcelos – an artist who'd go on to have a huge history in jazz, including famous work with Pat Metheny on ECM! This set has Nana very much in his roots – playing first on a stunning solo percussion track that mixes melodic sounds on cuica with a whole host of other percussion instruments – then joining in this sublime improvisation with guitarist Agustin Pereyra Lucena – another favorite player of ours, and one who normally never records in such a stripped down mode! The mixture of percussion and guitar is fantastic – full of fresh ideas, and a great showcase for Lucena – who then takes off on two shorter solo tracks too. Titles include "Concerto Pra Mae Bio", "Improvisacao", "Tempo Feliz", and "Conversa Do Poeta". CD

Some of the earliest recordings of Brazilian percussionist Nana Vasconcelos – an artist who'd go on to have a huge history in jazz, including famous work with Pat Metheny on ECM! This set has Nana very much in his roots – playing first on a stunning solo percussion track that mixes melodic sounds on cuica with a whole host of other percussion instruments – then joining in this sublime improvisation with guitarist Agustin Pereyra Lucena – another favorite player of ours, and one who normally never records in such a stripped down mode! The mixture of percussion and guitar is fantastic – full of fresh ideas, and a great showcase for Lucena – who then takes off on two shorter solo tracks too. Titles include "Concerto Pra Mae Bio", "Improvisacao", "Tempo Feliz", and "Conversa Do Poeta". LP, Vinyl record album

Includes tracks by Louis Armstrong, Miles Davis, Dave Brubeck, Thelonious Monk, Pat Metheny, Sarah Vaughan, Joe Henderson, and Diana Krall. CD

Incredible jazz from the German scene of the 70s – two years' of recordings from this important festival – one that presents all the "new jazz" promised in its name, but in a range that moves effortlessly between free jazz, modal moments, funky fusion, and even some groovy big band work too! Performers are a range from all over the European scene – and are represented here in a significant selection of material from each act – very well-recorded, and presented in this beautiful box set, along with a booklet of notes and photos as well. The scope of sounds is fantastic – and long performances include an set of improvisations from the trio of Peter Brotzmann, Fred Van Hove, and Han Bennink; two long electric tracks from Jasper Van't Hof's Pork Pie group, with Charlie Mariano on a range of reeds and Philip Catherine on guitar; four long improvisations from the SOS group of John Surman, Mike Osborne, and Alan Skidmore – plying in a great mix of reeds and electronics; there's also two long improvisations between pianist Misha Mengelberg and drummer Han Bennink; Gary Burton's quintet with Pat Metheny and Mick Goodrick on guitars perform three improvisations for over 75 minutes of music; the Gustav Brom Big Band step out on some very groovy tracks; saxophonist Eero Koivistonen blows with his quartet that includes Olli Avhenlahti on electric piano; reedman Jiri Stivin and guitarist Rudolph Dasek play a number of improvisations; bassist Barre Phillips and flautist Kryzstof Zgraja perform two long improvisations; the Polish Jazz Summit features Tomasz Stanko on trumpet, Zbigniew Namyslowski on alto, Zbigniew Siefert on violin, and Adam Makowicz on Fender Rhodes; and trumpeter Franz Kogelmann and soprano saxophonist Steve Lacy head a quintet with a bit of electronics! There's a few more surprises, too – and the whole thing is a fantastic presentation of these lost sounds. CD

Covers from the Cure, Eric Clapton, Buddy Guy, Body Count, Seal and Jeff Beck, Nigel Kennedy, the Pretenders, PM Dawn, Belly, Living Colour, Pat Metheny, and more. CD

Charlie Haden on bass joined by Bela Fleck on banjo, Jerry Douglas on dobro, Stuart Duncan on fiddle, Russ Barenberg on guitar and mandolin, Bryan Sutton, John Leventhal, and Pat Metheny on guitar, Buddy Greene on harmonica, Sam Bush on mandolin, Buck White on piano, Elvis Costello, Jack Black, Josh Haden, Rachel Haden, Rosanna Cash, and Vince Gill on vocals, Tanya Haden on vocals and vocals, Ricky Skaggs on vocals, guitar, mandolin and banjo, Dan Tyminski on vocals and mandolin, and Bruce Hornsby on piano and vocals. CD

Warmer and richer than some of Nascimento's other recent albums – and a compelling batch of tunes that shows he's as strong as ever! The album's awash in a soaring, almost spiritual sound – as befits the title – but it's also got some interesting jazzy moments, and a breezy, honest presentation that pushes past the pretension that could mar the record. A surprisingly highlight is a remake of "Cantaloupe Island", done scatting Nascimento-style – with guest piano by composer Herbie Hancock, and guitar by Pat Metheny. Other tracks include "Boa Noite", "A Lagrima E O Rio", "Outro Lugar", "Beleza E Cancao", "Casa Aberta", and "A Reminina Voz Do Cantor". CD

4 track promotional sampler featuring Redman with Christian McBride, Pat Metheny, Charlie Haden, and Mike LeDonne. Includes a long live recording of "The Deserving Many". CD

The Blue Note debut of alto saxophonist Logan Richardson – an up-and-coming player you might know from a few previous records, or his work with Jason Moran, Gerald Clayton, or the Next Collective! This set may well surpass all those other projects, though – as Richardson's really emerging as a visionary in his own right – leading a creative quintet here that features strong piano and Fender Rhodes from Moran, guitars from Pat Metheny, and drums from Nasheet Waits – a lineup that might well intimidate a weaker player, but which really seems to set Richardson on fire! The presence of both Metheny and Moran is great – and gives the music this electric vibe that also retains an edge – one that makes for a nice counterpart to Logan's lines on alto, and which seems to underscore some of their darker qualities too. Production and performance are pretty straightforward, which is a further strength of the set – and titles are mostly originals – save for a version of Bruno Mars' "Locked Out Of Heaven". Original tracks include "Time", "Alone", "Imagine", "Creeper", "Mind Free", and "In Your Next Life". CD

Laidback and warmly chromatic work from Gary Burton – playing vibes in a group that also has Pat Metheny on guitar, Steve Swallow on bass, Eberhard Weber on acoustic bass, and Dan Gottlieb on drums. Titles include "Sea Journey", "Nacada", "The Whopper", and "Yellow Fields". LP, Vinyl record album

A reall beautiful album from bassist Charlie Haden – one of his larger concept records, but one that's delivered with a nicely stripped-down vibe – in a moody late night spirit that really fits the title and the vintage image of Havana on the cover! At some level, the record's a love letter to the city that's special to Haden – but it also embraces some of the richer Latin currents he explored in other projects – not with a full ensemble, but with subtle touches from Gonzalo Rubalcaba on piano and Ignacio Berroa on percussion in the core trio – augmented at points with tenor from David Sanchez and Joe Lovano, a bit of guitar from Pat Metheny on one track, and violin from Federico Britos Ruiz on a few more. Title sinclude "Transparence", "El Ciego", "Yo Sin Ti", "Noche De Ronda", "En La Orilla Del Mundo", "No Te Empenes Mas", and "Tres Palabras". CD

Charlie Haden on bass joined by Bela Fleck on banjo, Jerry Douglas on dobro, Stuart Duncan on fiddle, Russ Barenberg on guitar and mandolin, Bryan Sutton, John Leventhal, and Pat Metheny on guitar, Buddy Greene on harmonica, Sam Bush on mandolin, Buck White on piano, Elvis Costello, Jack Black, Josh Haden, Rachel Haden, Rosanna Cash, and Vince Gill on vocals, Tanya Haden on vocals and vocals, Ricky Skaggs on vocals, guitar, mandolin and banjo, Dan Tyminski on vocals and mandolin, and Bruce Hornsby on piano and vocals. CD

Life! Liberty! Vengeance! A wild and very cool soundtrack for Tarantino's dual Blacksploitation/Spaghetti Western homage Django Unchained – featuring bits from some of our favorite Italian western composers mixed up with classic and contemporary funky soul and hip hop! It's the kind of soundtrack that could only happen for Quentin Tarantino – with rare and hard-to-find compositions by Luis Bacalov, Ennio Morricone, Riz Ortolani and Jerry Goldsmith on one hand – along with a few seemingly antithetical new compositions on the other – including a track penned by star Jamie Foxx for Rick Ross, a James Brown "Payback" remix with a vocal from the 2Pac archive, plus ones by Anthony Hamilton, John Legend and others! Last but not least, it's got some great bits of film dialogue by Jamie Foxx, Christoph Waltz, Samuel L. Jackson and Leonardo DiCaprio. Titles include "Django" by Luis Bacalov, "The Braying Mule" by Ennio Morricone, "Nicaragua" by Jerry Goldsmith with Pat Metheny, "Day Of Anger" by Riz Ortolani, "Unchained (The Payback/Untouchable)" by James Brown with 2Pac, "Who Did That To You?" by John Legend, "100 Black Coffins" by Rick Ross, "Trinity (Titoli)" by Annibale E I Cantori Moderni and many more. CD

A quintet session – features Jack Dejohnette on drums, Charlie Haden on bass, Kenny Kirkland on keys, Path Metheny on guitar, and Brecker on tenor sax. CD