If you haven’t read Ben Ratliff’s interview with Pat Metheny in today’s New York Times, do it now.
Three samples:
– “The guitar for me is a translation device. It’s not a goal. And in some ways jazz isn’t a destination for me. For me, jazz is a vehicle that takes you to the true destination–a musical one that describes all kinds of stuff about the human condition and the way music works.”
– “Well, for me, let’s keep jazz as folk music. Let’s not make jazz classical music. Let’s keep it as street music, as people’s everyday-life music. Let’s see jazz musicians continue to use the materials, the tools, the spirit of the actual time that they’re living in, as what they build their lives as musicians around. It’s a clich