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MarcNebo Jun 17 2022 at 11:38 PM	Last night I listened to Gary Burton’s 1976 record Passengers on my headphones. Excellent band with Pat, both Steve Swallow and Eberhard Weber on bass and Danny Gottlieb on drums. With Swallow’s special electric bass and Weber on his special acoustic acoustic bass there are some really incredible sounds happening. Pat wrote three of the six songs on the record. The same year Pat released Bright Size Life and one of the songs from Passengers, Midwestern Nights Dream. This was Pat’s first Gary Burton record where he was the only guitarist. On the two previous records Pat played the 12-string electric guitar and Mick Goodrich was the other guitarist. Check out Passengers, it sounds more like a Pat record with Gary Burton. Nice transition to Bright Size Life.
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MarcNebo Jun 25 2022 at 10:13 PM	facing west : Well put, I still am having a difficult time describing the music. I am not much of a movie guy, but I want to say it sounds like a soundtrack to a Tarantino or similar type of movie. Even the basses (Weber and Swallow sound different than Passengers. I need to listen to it again, maybe at 2:00AM. Next listen will be Dreams So Real (second part of Burton/Metheny trilogy. I believe it is Carla Bley compositions.
facing west Jun 25 2022 at 10:03 AM	Listened to Ring for the first time in a very long while. Almost felt like a first listen. It really feels like a quintessential 2am record. Unfinished Sympathy is an interesting tune. I agree, Marc, it’s a little difficult to tell where Mick Goodrick ends and Pat starts. They seem to have one voice. But I’m assuming Mick is taking virtually all the lead parts. It feels like Pat is the kid in the back who might have something to say. But, you know, he’s paying his dues and learning from some of the best. Even at a subtle level, it feels like the ECM sound is evolving. As Bob noted, Jan Erik Kongshaug engineered Passengers and hundreds of other great ECM records. The engineer on Ring is Martin Wieland. Small thing, but JEK brought something to the table. Thinking about engineers got me curious about Pat’s main guy, Rob Eaton. Pretty interesting when I looked him up. Rob is the guitarist in the Grateful Dead cover band Dark Star Orchestra? I didn’t know that.
molesoulsandal Jun 23 2022 at 4:33 PM	have always loved passengers. i think i’ve mentioned on here B4 that my personal favorite ’pat solo’ of all time, so far, is his playing on midwestern night’s dream on this album. fer me, it just says it all about PM.
MarcNebo Jun 23 2022 at 11:56 AM	facing west, I received the Gary Burton Quintet with Eberhard Weber record Ring (1974). It’s really a sextet with Burton, Pat, Mick Goodrich, Steve Swallow, Bob Moses and Eberhard Weber. I listened to it last night and was blown away by how unusual it was for both a Gary Burton and ECM record. It was very difficult trying to tell if I was hearing Pat or Mick playing. Pat didn’t have his unmistakable sound yet. I was able to hear his 12 string electric guitar on one track. Three songs were written by Michael Gibbs, one each by Carla Bley, Mick Goodrich and Eberhard Weber. I am having a hard time trying to describe the music, kind of Jazz, Fusion, Avant Garde hybrid. Spooky at times and sounds like a soundtrack for a Mystery movie. Like I said I am having a hard time trying to describe what I heard. If you have heard Ring, help me out with your review.
facing west Jun 22 2022 at 10:38 AM	This album may be a bit of a buried treasure. Weber gives it a mysterious vibe. It’s a great showcase for Weber, Swallow and Gottlieb. Midwestern Night’s Dream could make the cut of essential Metheny tracks. The album has a ’70s vibe, but still sounds progressive and up-to-the-moment. I imagine that for anyone who came across this album in the ’70s, it was like looking into the future.
BobSmith1 Jun 19 2022 at 6:41 PM	MarcNebo--Passengers is indeed a great, interesting record and it’s also my all time favorite ECM cover. The great Jan Erik Kongshaug engineered. I still have my vinyl version that I bought back in the day.
MarcNebo Jun 19 2022 at 11:51 AM	Last week I bought Ring, the first Gary Burton record with Pat from 1974. I should be receiving it this week. Will review it here. Pat was only nineteen at that time.
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