Pianist Brad Mehldau and guitarist Pat Metheny have teamed for a collaborative album, “Metheny Mehldau,” due Sept. 12 via Nonesuch. The 10-track set features a blend of each artist’s material, including some tracks recorded with Mehldau’s trio of bassist Larry Grenadier and drummer Jeff Ballard.
Mehldau and Metheny had never played together before hitting a New York studio last December. “Those days in December were some of the most creatively satisfying days I have ever had as a musician,” Metheny enthuses. “When it was all done and it was time to listen back to everything, I was taken aback by what I heard. It seemed like we always played together.”
The album opens with a new version of Mehldau’s “Unrequited,” which previously appeared on his album “Art of the Trio, Vol. 3: Songs,” as well as Metheny’s “Ring of Life,” which features Mehldau’s trio.
The artists are planning a tour beginning next March, but beforehand, Mehldau has solo and trio performances on tap through early December. As previously reported, Metheny will recreate his recording of Steve Reich’s “Electric Counterpoint” at an Oct. 21 concert at New York’s Carnegie Hall in honor of Reich’s 70th birthday.
Source billboard.com.
