Still Life (Talking)

Still Life (Talking)
Studio album by Pat Metheny Group
Released	July 7, 1987
Recorded	March–April 1987 The Power Station, New York City
Genre	Crossover jazz, jazz fusion, Latin jazz, world fusion
Length	42:30
Label	Geffen GHS 24145
Producer	Pat Metheny
Pat Metheny Group chronology
The Falcon and the Snowman (1984) Still Life (Talking) (1987) Letter from Home (1989)
Pat Metheny chronology
Song X (1986) Still Life (Talking) (1987) Letter from Home (1989)

Professional ratings
Review scores
Source	Rating
Allmusic	[1]

Still Life (Talking) is an album by Pat Metheny Group, released in 1987 on Geffen Records. It was the group's first album to be released by the label. It features jazz fusion and crossover jazz, combining Brazilian jazz-influenced harmonies with jazz, folk and pop elements and, along with the previous First Circle (1984) and the following Letter from Home (1989), is considered part of the so-called 'Brazilian Trilogy'.

The track "Last Train Home" was used in a Christmas commercial by the Florida-based supermarket chain Publix, featuring relatives traveling to Florida by train for Christmas. Metheny jokingly refers to the piece as "The Publix Song" when performing in Florida, as the commercial aired every holiday season from 1987 to 1996. The NPR radio show "Radio Deluxe with John Pizzarelli" uses the tune as its closing theme. In 2015, the song served as the end theme of the anime adaptation JoJo's Bizarre Adventure during the second half of the show's Stardust Crusaders arc, and subsequently became the focus of Essential Collection Last Train Home, a JoJo-themed compilation album for Pat Metheny Group. The composition has also been featured during The Weather Channel's "Local on the 8s" playlist since roughly the late 1980s. "(It's Just) Talk" has also been featured on the local forecasts on The Weather Channel since about the same time. The retail bedding manufacturer Sleep Train Inc, which operates primarily in California, uses the track for their television commercials.

Track listing

All music composed by Pat Metheny, except where noted.

Personnel

• Pat Metheny – guitar, synth guitar, acoustic guitars, electric guitars
• Lyle Mays – piano, keyboards
• Steve Rodby – acoustic bass, electric bass
• Paul Wertico – drums
• Armando Marçal – percussion, background vocals
• Mark Ledford, David Blamires – vocals

The liberal amount of time allotted to the recording process, especially compared to the Group's previous record label ECM, represented an opportunity to expand the potential of the recording studio as a musical instrument. Metheny remarked that the creation of the opening track, "Minuano (Six-Eight)," sought to accomplish this goal, in addition to techniques such as attaching microphones on his guitars to create richer, deeper sounds.

Two particular songs on the album remain personal standouts to Metheny, namely, "So May It Secretly Begin" and, "Last Train Home," both of which he described as being melodically durable enough to be played in a wide variety of performance settings.

Charts

Album - Billboard

Awards

Grammy Awards

References