IMAGINARY DAY

Imaginary day
Follow Me
Into The Dream
A Story Within A Story
The Heat of the Day
Across The Sky
The Roots of Coincidence
Too Soon Tomorrow
The Awakening

PLAYERS: Pat Metheny (g), Lyle Mays (p, k), Steve Rodby (b), Paul Wertico (d), David Blamires (v), Mark Ledford (v) with Mino Cinelu (perc), David Samuels (perc), Glen Valez (perc), Don Alias (perc)

REFLECTIONS

LYLE: I distinctly remember turning to Pat, before we started writing the Imaginary Day material, and boldly challenging him with this bold pronouncement, "You know, we can do anything." What I meant, was that I had the confidence we (or at least I) could solve any compositional problem we could dream up. He bought into the bravado, and I think we generated an album of rich imagination and ambition.

Of course I feel that most PMG records are the most 3D around. Check out “The Awakening” on headphones for how deep into the mix you can pick out things. Things are placed almost geographically on a very large canvas. In addition the overall dynamic level and density has its own narrative flow. I'm very proud of that cut. You can also REALLY hear the Brubeck influence both in the two fisted chords at the end of the solo and then the ensemble afterwards. It's very related to “Blue Rondo” (with a bit of Wagner and other bits of the history of music I suppose).

Imaginary Day won the 1999 Grammy Award for Best Contemporary Jazz Performance. "Follow Me" was nominated for the 1999 Grammy Award for Best Pop Instrumental Performance. "The Roots Of Coincidence" won the 1999 Grammy Award for Best Rock Instrumental Performance.

DAVID BLAMIRES: I recall an exhilarating hour or so recording brass parts on Roots Of Coincidence at Right Track in NYC in ‘97. During the very cool, hypnotic interlude with ostinato synth arpeggios - with Steve’s beautiful stirring bowing - and around 6:17 there is brass pattern, that’s Mark Ledford and I playing trumpet and flugelhorn, and that section is so very Lyle. I was listening to some Stravinsky recently and I had a notion that some of Lyle’s haunting evocative interludes were inspired by Igor.