![]() ![]() The album sags under the weight of these overwrought smooth jazz impressionistic sound pieces. On tracks like “Another Life” and “The Gathering Sky”, Metheny’s band creates the same dense texture found on “As It Is” with none of the excitement or triumphant grandeur. Unfortunately, Speaking of Now fails to keep up this level of intensity and novelty. ![]() “Proof” shows Metheny at his Benson-esque best - riffing around a loose, almost bebop inspired rhythm, Metheny cuts loose, not in self-indulgent soloing, but rather in delightful and entertaining exploratory playing, impressive both for its speed as well as its sense of melody. There is a strong and vital connection between Metheny and Benson: Both approach jazz guitar playing with the same deft skill and subtle ear for harmony and song-structure that make them both legends. “Proof” continues the record’s meteoric rise, pushing the sound more towards the loose, exotic terrain of Miles Davis’s mid-sixties work or, more importantly, the freewheeling virtuosity of guitarist’s George Benson’s early recordings. “As It Is” is a rich tangle composed of Metheny’s understated guitar work and Lyle Mays’s stellar piano playing, all under the auspices of a highly structured and triumphant song structure. These tracks escape the usual pitfalls of smooth jazz that Metheny’s music is often susceptible to. On the first two tracks, “As It Is” and “Proof”, the Pat Metheny Group weaves a dense web of textural, atmospheric jazz that is positively thrilling. ![]() It disappoints because at first it seems so promising. ![]()
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