Pat Metheny-Watercolors (1977)

In 1977, guitarist Pat Metheny released his second solo album, which also marked the beginning of the Pat Metheny Group. The album was recorded with bassist Eberhard Weber, a fellow ECM label member, as well as his inseparable collaborators Lyle Mays on keyboards and Danny Gottlieb on drums. On this release, Pat Metheny's music already adopted his characteristic atmospheric jazz fusion style, with subtle hints of North American musical roots such as country and folk. Metheny's enormous creative capacity for crafting musical imagery and enchanting soundscapes is undeniable, but beyond that lies Lyle Mays's impressive talent for painting dreamlike, boundless canvases. Pieces of tremendous melancholy like "Legend of The Fountain" alternate with others of soft textures like "Icefire", accomplished country/jazz motifs with "Lakes", jazz fusion with "River Quay" or the beautiful musicality of the atmospheric "Sea Song", make up an ethereal journey of beautiful melodies, which, masterfully interpreted, is one of the great jazz fusion albums.