“Pat Metheny: Stories Beyond Words” – reflection 7 – by Bill Bruford & Kevin Fellezs
One of the most fun things about the process of moving a completed book into production is selecting, inviting, and then including the reflections of people whose comments will appear on the book jacket. These quotations will also be among those to appear on the University of Chicago Press’s catalog and in its publicity.
I choose people whose judgement I trust deeply as musicians, writers, musical thinkers, and readers. There have been four so far; here are the first two. I’m really thrilled to have these voices on the jacket.
These are from drummer and scholar Bill Bruford and from the director of Columbia University‘s Center For Jazz Studies, scholar Kevin Fellesz. I feel honored and proud that they agreed to read the manuscript and then share their thoughts and reactions on my new book. These are also the first reactions I’ve had from anybody about the completed book, following more than three years of work on it:
“Pat Metheny performances have quickened the soul of the academic, the layman and the musician for many years. He has been so much a part of the furniture for so long, one needs a book like this as a reminder of his considerable contribution to American cultural life. Written in a breezy, inclusive style, this book should be on the shelf of anyone who enjoys Pat’s music and would like to know why; anyone who wants to know more about his process and methodologies; and anyone who simply wants to know how to listen more closely.” – Bill Bruford
“Bob Gluck gives Pat Metheny fans – and that includes this reader – a series of listening guides that deepens our appreciation of Metheny’s music. Outlining the innovative approaches Metheny utilizes to produce the music we cherish. Gluck compels us to re-listen to the music we thought we already knew with newly expanded ears. Gluck’s remarkable book traces Metheny’s musical ideas that have shaped his music, enabling us to enjoy the guitarist’s myriad accomplishments in a deeply connective, heartfelt way. This book is for more than just Metheny’s many fans, however – it is for anyone who wants to think about and, perhaps more importantly, feel music more deeply, more intensely, and more profoundly.” – Kevin Fellezs, author of “Listen but Don’t Ask Question: Hawaiian Slack Key Guitar Across the TransPacific”
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