Pat Metheny
New Chautauqua

Once upon a time, there was a minstrel named Moses Metheny. It was the year 1850 in the dusty mid-western America between Kansas, Oklahoma, and Missouri. Moses enjoyed traveling from town to town with some companions, playing for small audiences at local gatherings, and sometimes offering music lessons to those who wished for them. One fine day, however, Moses decided to put down roots and, together with a sparse community, founded Lee's Summit. The landscape is that of the prairies, the historical site of Indian reserves. The Native Americans would give a nickname to that noisy community: Chautauqua. In the Indian language, it signifies wandering musician.

It was Pat's grandfather (son of Moses), Harrison, who died in 1982, who defined his grandson in this way. Watching him travel so often for concerts, he declared, "you are like a modern Chautauqua." From here, Pat, at that time twenty-three years old, drew the inspiration for a very personal album, with country accents and references to his homeland and origins. In perfect solitude, Pat would record, in just three days, one of his most intimate and reflective works, with a clear reference to the atmospheres and the calm of the places of his childhood. "New Chautauqua" is entirely played by Pat, including the bass, and it is a very acoustic, harmonic album imbued with long electric guitar soliloquies.

In the style of this work are enclosed the rhythmic use of the acoustic guitar, typical of Pat, and an interesting fusion of country and jazz genres. In reality, in every track, besides the overdubbing, particular tunings (2 strings out of 6 have a higher octave) and anomalous techniques play a decisive role, which I will not delve into, but they produce a distinctive and refined sound.

The atmosphere of the opening track "New Chautauqua" is cheerful and refreshing, where the country style produces a sunny and playful effect. More melancholic, yet fascinating for its rhythmic changes, is "Country Poem" where the melodic use of basses in arpeggios is highlighted. A mysterious arpeggio, acoustic soliloquy, and an impressive duration (over 10 minutes) characterize "Long-Ago Child", decidedly the least digestible track of the album. "Hermitage" is as light as it is oblique in its melancholic progression and is of good melodic and acoustic value.
An absolute masterpiece is "Sueno Con Mexico", where one can savor the incredible bass use by Pat, admire the excellent triple overdub work, enjoy the freshness and depth of the arpeggio, and perceive the joy of the "open and charming" sound of Metheny's solos. Fantastic. The melody is overwhelming, reminiscent of country in the central part, and shows a richness of sound, with truly remarkable creative skill peaks, throughout the track's duration. Historic. The tender touches that form "diaphonic notes" executed on the high frets at the end of the track are caressing.

"Daybreak" closes an album with magical aspects. This piece is a crescendo. It begins with a bare, acoustic sound that gradually gains depth, enriches in melody, and transitions from jazz until it merges with country, appearing completely renewed compared to the initial part. Here, too, the work of triple recording is indeed very enjoyable.

The album was born in a decidedly fertile period for the artist from Lee's Summit, who would produce the excellent "American Garage" with his group in the same year. Content-wise, it is not a massive work, but it undoubtedly contains a chapter of Metheny's music that should not be overlooked. A note about the cover chosen with producer Eicher: it dominates a mid-west highway, a metaphor for travel and wandering the world. Like a modern Chautauqua.