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| Artists: Pat Metheny, Brad Mehldau
Label: Nonesuch
Category: Music
List Price: $18.98
Buy New: $9.78
You Save: $9.20 (48%)
New (26) Used (7) from $8.10
Avg. Customer Rating:  29 reviews
Sales Rank: 15536
Media: Audio CD
Discs: 1
Shipping Weight (lbs): 0.2
Dimensions (in): 5.6 x 5 x 0.5
MPN: 104188
UPC: 075597999402
EAN: 0075597999402
ASIN: B000MRNTKO
Release Date: March 13, 2007
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
Shipping: International shipping available
Condition: In cardboard sleeve, sealed, new
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| Customer Reviews:
 Gets Better With Age April 11, 2007
5 out of 7 found this review helpful
I've always liked Pat Metheny's music; for some reason I always thing of surfing Trestles when I hear his music. I don't have any compelling intellectual or philosophical reasons for recommending this album - I simply like the music.
I also got the other Metheny/Mehldau album at the same time. Good stuff.Metheny / Mehldau
Depends on what you expect...3 1/2 stars April 11, 2007
0 out of 2 found this review helpful
I read several stunning reviews, before this cd even hit the stores where I live. Having been a long time avid fan of Pat Metheny and the Brad Mehldau Trio, I must admit I was a little disappointed after listening to the cd. Obviously, since these are the guys playing, it is good! However, it being a Quartet edition, I had expected something a little more "explosive" than the last release. I had expected something more in the line of the tune "Ring of Life" from their last album (which is a great tune, also featuring the Quartet).
This one is very mellow, I find, but ofcourse their playing is really good.
AN EXTREMELY STRONG FOLLOW UP April 3, 2007
10 out of 10 found this review helpful
From the opening drum kick this is a significantlty more dynamic and impressive recording than the first collaboration, and that was a lovely pastoral recollection of the joys of Bill Evans and Jim Hall. For this one, Mehldau's full band jumps in and they rock harder throughout this disc than any of Metheny's stripped down Group ensembles. That's a very good thing for Metheny. Anything that opens him up beyond the closed ranks of Rodby and Mays pays significant dividends to his outlook. For Mehldau, to work with a protean guitarist like Metheny gives him an edge that sometimes lies subsurface in his own recordings.
This is more akin to what you might here from the Scandinavians, most specifically the irrepressible EST. Thus, you'll find that as terrifically as this is recorded, the music flies and rocks and pushes all the principles in more adventuresome dynamics than are standard fare for them. Without question, this is a stand out disc in Metheny's impressive body of work and should be on any jazz devotee's i-pod, cd spinner, whatever. This is a keeper. Small wonders abound as well. The usual geeky use of the 42-string harp guitar, which most times is a tech-head diversion of little significant contribution, is here put to great employ in the service of the cuts on which it appears. There may be a point to all that after all.
I am still waiting for Metheny to get on the download bandwagon, as Live he is a different beast altogether. And last year's Quartet with the Sanchez's and Christian McBride in Wilmington was possibly the best concert of his I have ever seen, warts and all. Who knows maybe he'd even more time to stay home? Anyway, we'll dream on and celebrate this effort. 5 stars and superb all the way.
A Satisfying and Accessible Collaboration March 23, 2007
6 out of 6 found this review helpful
I've been a Pat Metheny fan for a long time and have seen him play in many different configurations. While I prefer his group recordings best - the richness and texture it brings to the music cannot be matched - I found Quartet to be a very enjoyable and worthwhile recording.
I approached this album with a little trepidation because I found Metheny and Mehldau's duet album from last year to be a little too sparse and laid back for my tastes. Fortunately, the addition of bassist Larry Grenadier and drummer Jeff Ballard to the mix this time around gives the album a fuller sound. The songs are all very good but there are three or four that stand out in particular: "A Night Away" was co-written by Metheny and Mehldau and is a very lively number with a catchy melody and some great solos. "The Sound of Water" is a duet with features the unique and unmistakable sound of Metheny's 42 string Picasso guitar interwoven with some solid comping by Mehldau. "Towards the Light" is a number that would easily fit within The Pat Metheny Group's discography and features an imaginative pairing of Mehldau's piano and Metheny's signature guitar synth sound. Secret Beach is another amazing tune; it starts out as a slow, languid ballad and after some inspired soloing, Metheny turns it on its ear by belting out another amazing guitar synth solo.
While I still prefer the signature sound of The Pat Metheny Group, there is no denying that Quartet is a solid effort by two very gifted musicians with some great songs and memorable solos.
Even better than the first one! March 22, 2007
23 out of 28 found this review helpful
These two guys are very clever. Putting their incredible musical capabilities to one side for a minute, they are obviously good businessmen as well. It would seem to me that while the first set of songs they put out last year on the Metheny / Mehldau CD were pretty good, they definitely saved the best till last. I'm guessing it's also going to work out better for them to have the two sets on separate albums when it seems they could've easily put everything out on a double CD last year.
Not that I'm complaining. Good music is always worth paying a little extra for in my humble view and there is good music aplenty on this CD. There are more songs in the quartet format here than in the last one, hence the title I suppose, and Larry Grenadier and Jeff Ballard more than step up to the plate. While Mehldau sticks to playing piano, Metheny gives us 42-string guitar, acoustic guitar and guitar synth (which works better on this CD than on the last one, I would say).
Each song says something different to me and touches me in different ways. I have no favourites. This is a solid set of 11 modern jazz songs. Metheny writes 7 of them, Mehldau writes 3 and one of the songs is co-written by them both. The more I play it, the more I love it.
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