Steve Rodby
[ bass ]
I had the great privilege of having Lyle in my life for decades, as an inspiration and as my friend. As anyone who knew him and his music will agree, there will only be one Lyle, and we all will continue to appreciate his soulful brilliance, in so many ways.
Pat Metheny
[ guitar ]
Lyle was one of the greatest musicians I have ever known. Across more than 30 years, every moment we shared in music was special. From the first notes we played together, we had an immediate bond. His broad intelligence and musical wisdom informed every aspect of who he was in every way. I will miss him with all my heart.
Danny Gottlieb
[ drums ]
Lyle was one of the greatest musicians and most unique people I have ever known. He just got SO MUCH out of his time on the planet…always exploring, learning, all different areas of life, just like his playing... really such an inspiration to us all!
Mark Egan
[ bass ]
Lyle was a genius. He was the most driven person in a good way about really getting to the center of things and finding out every aspect of it and then mastering it. He was also one of the nicest people you would ever meet and a very evolved person.
Nana Vasconcelos
[ percussion & voice ]
I always considered Lyle a complete musician. He is one of the few musicians that if he adds just a little effort to trying anything he can be the best. His creative process flowed as I have rarely seen in my life.
Paul Wertico
[ drums ]
Lyle was truly one of the most talented people I ever knew, a true genius in every sense of the word, and there were so many incredible musical moments we shared, but he was also one of the nicest people too.
Bill Frisell
[ guitar ]
Lyle was extraordinary and inclusive in his process of putting music together. He was very methodical and clear with what he wanted but yet open to collaboration. His compositions were like the inner workings of a beautiful handmade watch in how he used melody and harmony.
Pedro Aznar
[ vocalist & multi-instrumentalist ]
Lyle was such an incredible talent and a sweet guy, he had an extraordinary intelligence and exquisite sensibility. I’ll miss him for the rest of my days.
Alex Acuña
[ drums & percussion ]
Lyle was a natural, gifted musician with his own sounds, compositions and his playing was also with great technique - composing and playing with a great heart and to me personally sounded very deep from his soul full of honesty.
Nancy Zeltsman
[ marimba ]
Lyle’s precocious pianistic and compositional skills made me imagine that, in another time, he would have been someone like Rachmaninoff. In our time, he was Lyle Mays! Lyle’s understanding of musical possibilities and the creativity, logic, and expression he brought was on par with the greatest musicians I’ve known.
Steve Houghton
[ drums ]
He knew so much about so many things as he was incredibly well read. He most enjoyed going over to Caltech and hanging out with the physicists, scientists, and scholars and was always trying to learn about much bigger things. His work has always been an example of careful planning, demos, research, and in–depth rehearsal. The results were always breathtaking.
Marc Johnson
[ bass ]
Lyle found a way to integrate synthesized sounds with acoustic instruments that for me, has never been duplicated. In the Pat Metheny Group, and in his own projects, Lyle has a unique place in the world.
David Blamires
[ vocalist & multi-instrumentalist ]
I don’t know if I’ve ever crossed paths with a musician of his gift. Anyone who has heard PMG or Lyle’s solo albums (oh wow, don’t get me started on Lyle’s solo stuff) will know and sense the transcendence of his musical gift.
Nando Lauria
[ vocalist & guitar ]
His level of intelligence was very high and it showed in everything he would put his mind to whether it be in music, architecture, computer programming, or creating games. Lyle’s music is full of love and you can feel he puts his heart into each and every note played.
Peter Erskine
[ drums ]
Lyle was one of those people whose brain and soul and spirit and creative energy is all just too big for his body to contain or for the rest of us to absorb. He was more than just a shooting star. Lyle Mays was a cosmos.
Cuong Vu
[ trumpet ]
With all of the brilliance and the rigorous attention to detail, his output was ALWAYS so soulful, musical, and poetic.
Pat Coil
[ piano & keyboards ]
When you listen to his music, the passion, emotion, intellect and beauty of Lyle is evident and transformative. Many times when musicians listen to other players and writers, it’s natural to do it on a critical and comparative level, and it’s easy to lose sight of what the music is saying. I’ve never known any musician who listens to Lyle’s music say anything other than how moving and transcendent it is. I’m grateful that we have all of the great music that he left us, and I feel he lives on through every recorded composition and solo.
Bob Sheppard
[ sax & woodwinds ]
Genius is a word often used gratuitously in our lexicon, but I think musicians that knew Lyle would all agree he is truly deserving of that adjective. Lyle was a quiet and humble force of nature with a uniquely personal musical vision.
Rachel Z
[ piano & keyboards ]
Lyle was one of my favorite keyboardists. He was also a genius pianist, orchestrator, and sound designer. His warm persona came out in his unique style of trio playing using piano AND lovely synth colors. His life force will live on not only in the music he left behind but also in the stars, the moon, the sun, the sounds of a rushing river, in all things beautiful...
Mike Richmond
[ bass ]
In our time together in Pat Metheny's band during the 1970's, I was impressed with how Lyle listened. Most listeners focus on the musician's solos, but how one comps behind others tells the real story. Lyle was supportive yet could push you in other directions as you were soloing. His extensive knowledge of harmony (a la Bill Evans), melodic sense, freedom of expression (a la Keith Jarrett) swinging eight notes, and strong groove were such a joy to hear and play with.
Fred Simon
[ piano & keyboards ]
A cornerstone of Lyle’s musical ethos was that while there may be many options, there is usually one best choice.
Steve Swallow
[ bass ]
Lyle’s phrases had a graceful, legato feel and shape to them that defied the piano’s membership in the percussion family. You could hear him breathe as he played.
Tiger Okoshi
[ trumpet ]
He was an advanced human being in many ways not only musically gifted. Musically: he had amazing relationships between ears in mind and hands, fingers and feet. His fingers were moving like Sergei Horowitz, individual fingers could create different expressions and dynamics. He didn’t need to look at the keys, he had a clear imaginary piano in his mind.
Noa
[ vocalist ]
Lyle played like an angel, his fingers wind and sunrise, his mind and heart, light, poetry, beauty and brilliance. So honored to have known him, played with him, laughed with him. The world a sadder place without him.
Paul McCandless
[ oboe, bass clarinet & sax ]
Lyle and I had a wonderful connection in the band of Eberhard Weber. It was a lot of fun and also really inspiring to see the heights of which these great players (including Lyle) would go in their improvisations. I was also a fan of Lyle with his work in the Pat Metheny Group and his compositions and piano playing which really struck a cord with me because of his references to classical, jazz and beyond kind of music.
Mike Metheny
[ trumpet ]
What made Lyle special for me was his versatility. It was clear that he’d absorbed many different genres, styles and influences. And the result was something that was not only unique, but was a brilliant blend that worked perfectly with the latest technology. Lyle was a great musician on all possible levels.
Joe Lovano
[ sax ]
Lyle was an amazing musician. He was incredible. He channeled a lot of things in his playing and writing that just came to him and unfolded. As a solo pianist he could have done so many things. He was an architect of the music.
Adam Nussbaum
[ drums ]
Lyle brought synths to another level in what he was doing in the Pat Metheny Group. He was always playing and developing stuff. Lyle really had a lot to do in creating the sound of that band.
Gregg Karukas
[ piano & keyboards ]
Such soulful, moving melodies and sophisticated harmonies, burning solos with no cliches, synth colors that set a standard. The impact he had on the whole PMG concept and many generations of keyboardists & musicians is massive.
Billy Drewes
[ sax ]
If you can create 10 seconds of true musical magic where you get chills that’s rare and incredible. Lyle was able to do that. He was able to create magic.
Antonio Sanchez
[ drums ]
He was an exceptionally bright person equipped with a different set of skills than most of us do. The way his brain worked was very advanced and unique. From musical concepts to programming to philosophy, there was only one Lyle.
Luke Howard
[ piano ]
Lyle’s music is a blueprint for how improvisation can meet composition, and a reminder that music exists to tell a story, to make us feel something.
Mark Walker
[ drums & percussion]
Lyle had a total command of his instrument, but never played to impress people. He was a true composer, just as much when he improvised. He always looked at music from a wider, more expansive perspective. Every note and rest performed by Lyle Mays holds a special place in my heart.
Grégoire Maret
[ harmonica ]
Lyle was a true genius. His understanding of harmony, melody, sounds, was so uniquely his. It’s hard to express with words what his music did for all us. One just has to listen to The Pat Metheny Group or his solo work to understand what I'm saying.