Bright Size Life

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Bright Size Life
Pat Metheny - Bright Size Life.jpg
Studio album by
Pat Metheny
ReleasedJanuary 3, 1976 (January 3, 1976)
RecordedDecember 1975
StudioTonstudio Bauer, Ludwigsburg, Germany
GenreJazz, Jazz Fusion, Americana
Length37:06
LabelECM
ProducerManfred Eicher
Pat Metheny chronology
Bright Size Life
(1976) 		Watercolors
(1977)
Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic4.5/5 stars[1]
The Rolling Stone Jazz Record Guide4/5 stars[2]
Encyclopedia of Popular Music4/5 stars[3]
The Penguin Guide to Jazz Recordings3/4 stars[4]

Bright Size Life is Pat Metheny's debut album, released in 1976 on ECM, when Metheny was 21. The album features Jaco Pastorius on bass and Bob Moses on drums.[5]

In 2021, the album was deemed "culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant" by the Library of Congress and selected for preservation in the National Recording Registry.[6]

Production and reception[]

The songs for Bright Size Life were written when Metheny was living in Boston and teaching at the Berklee School of Music. Metheny's mentor, the vibraphonist Gary Burton, helped Metheny arrange the songs and accompanied him to the recording session in Germany. Despite that, Burton never received a producer credit on the release.[7]

Metheny has described the album as being "moderately successful" when it was released, selling around 900 copies, but that it wasn't until 10–15 years later that it received wider recognition.[8]

In 2005, the first track was included on the Progressions: 100 Years Of Jazz Guitar compilation on Columbia Records.[9] In 2011, the first track was included on the Jazz: The Smithsonian Anthology compilation.[10] In August 2020, the album was included in the jazzwise list of 100 Jazz Albums That Shook the World.[11]

Track listing[]

All music is composed by Pat Metheny, except where noted.

Side one:
No.TitleLength
1."Bright Size Life"4:45
2."Sirabhorn"5:29
3."Unity Village"3:40
4."Missouri Uncompromised"4:21
Side two:
No.TitleWriter(s)Length
5."Midwestern Nights Dream" 6:00
6."Unquity Road" 3:35
7."Omaha Celebration" 4:18
8."Round Trip/Broadway Blues"Ornette Coleman4:58

Personnel[]

Charts[]

Album – Billboard

Year Chart Position
1976 Billboard Jazz Albums 28

References[]

  1. ^ Ginell, Richard S. (2011). "Bright Size Life – Pat Metheny | AllMusic". allmusic.com. Retrieved 18 July 2011.
  2. ^ Swenson, J., ed. (1985). The Rolling Stone Jazz Record Guide. USA: Random House/Rolling Stone. p. 139. ISBN 0-394-72643-X.
  3. ^ Larkin, Colin (2007). Encyclopedia of Popular Music (4th ed.). Oxford University Press. ISBN 978-0195313734.
  4. ^ Cook, Richard; Morton, Brian (2008). The Penguin Guide to Jazz Recordings (9th ed.). Penguin. p. 993. ISBN 978-0-141-03401-0.
  5. ^ "Bright Sized Life". AllMusic.com. Retrieved 22 September 2020.
  6. ^ "National Recording Registry Adds 'Rhythm Nation' Among 25 New Selections". Library of Congress, Washington, D.C. 20540 USA. Retrieved 2021-03-25.
  7. ^ Burton, Gary (30 May 2019). "Gary Burton: Vibraphone Legend Talks Corea, Metheny and Berklee". YouTube. Retrieved 22 September 2020.
  8. ^ Metheny, Pat (8 July 2013). "Pat Metheny Looks Back at Bright Size Life". YouTube. Retrieved 22 September 2020.
  9. ^ "Progressions: 100 Years of Jazz Guitar". AllMusic.com. Retrieved 22 September 2020.
  10. ^ "The Smithsonian Collection of Classic Jazz". AllMusic.com. Retrieved 22 September 2020.
  11. ^ "The 100 Jazz Albums That Shook The World". jazzwise.com. Retrieved 22 September 2020.
Retrieved from ""