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Mike Metheny

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For the former baseball catcher and manager, see Mike Matheny.

Mike Metheny (/məˈθiːni/ mə-THEE-nee; b. August 28, 1949, Lee's Summit, Missouri) is an American jazz flugelhornist and music journalist. He is the brother of the jazz guitarist and composer Pat Metheny. Metheny studied music education at the University of Missouri and Northeast Missouri State University, then played trumpet in the Army Field Band (1971–74). Following his time in the army, he became an adjunct lecturer and "assistant to the head of the trumpet department" at the Berklee College of Music (1976–83).[1][2]

Career

Metheny has released several full-length albums, the first in 1982. He produced two records with major labels, in 1986 and 1987, to mixed reviews.[3] Since 2000, Metheny's albums have been produced by his own record company, 3 Valve Music.[4]

Metheny has largely pursued a career in music journalism since the early 1990s.[5] Metheny was the editor for Kansas City's Jazz Ambassador Magazine (JAM) from 1994 to 2003 and has also contributed to KC Magazine, Jazziz, and The DaCapo Jazz & Blues Lover's Guide to the U.S.[6]

Commenting on Metheny's move from Boston to Missouri, and his transition to music journalism, the Boston Globe wrote in 1991, "Mike Metheny seemed on the verge of national recognition. He had a sweet sound, a gift for melody and three records under his name, two of them on a major label. Then he stopped."[7] Metheny himself jokes that his career as a journalist is "an occupation that pays less than being a jazz musician".[7] As a music journalist, Metheny has written for several Midwest jazz magazines and contributed liner notes to numerous CDs, including Super-Singer: A Tribute to Johnny Carson by Marilyn Maye. From 1994 to 2003, he was the editor of the non-profit Jazz Ambassador magazine, which covers jazz performances in the Kansas City area. He continues to perform, primarily in Kansas and Missouri, and with a particular emphasis on the electronic valve instrument (EVI), a trumpet synthesizer that he has featured in his recordings and which was given to him by his brother Pat as a present.[3]

In 2007, Mike and Pat set up the Metheny Music Foundation of which Mike serves as the chairman. The foundation was founded to "preserve, promote, and perpetuate an informed appreciation for all styles of music, honoring the history of the Metheny family through four generations and the rich musical heritage of the city of Lee's Summit, the state of Missouri, and the surrounding region."[8]

And in 2016 the anthology Old Friends Are the Best Friends: the Letters of John McKee and Mike Metheny was published by Mike Metheny. The book's Foreword was written by Pat Metheny.

Relationship with Pat Metheny

Mike Metheny is known as the older[9] brother of the guitarist and composer Pat Metheny. As the Los Angeles Times has pointed out, "Most of fluegelhornist Mike Metheny's career has been spent in the large shadow cast by his younger brother, guitarist Pat."[3] Pat Metheny's greater level of success has not been lost on his brother. As Mike Metheny pointed out in a 1987 interview, at the height of his own music career, "there's a dramatic distinction between where [Pat] is and where I am... Pat is definitely in a class by himself".[10] Notwithstanding, the Boston Globe writes that there is "not even an iota of intra-familial rivalry" between the pair.[2]

Discography

  • Blue Jay Sessions (Headfirst, 1982)
  • Day In-Night Out (Impulse!, 1986) U.S. Top Jazz Albums #18[11]
  • Kaleidoscope (MCA, 1987) U.S. Top Jazz Albums #6[11]
  • From Then 'Til Now (Altenburgh 1989)[12]
  • Street of Dreams (Altenburgh, 1995)[12]
  • Close Enough for Love (3 Valve, 2001)
  • KC Potpourri (3 Valve, 2003)
  • Back to Basics (3 Valve, 2004)
  • 60.1 (3 Valve, 2010)
  • Old Wine/New Bossa: Selected Tracks (3 Valve, 2011)
  • A Kansas City Trumpet Summit (3 Valve, 2013)
  • Twelve for the Road (3 Valve, 2015)

As guest artist

  • 1988 MCA Jazz Sampler: Spring into Summer Jazz Sampler '88, Various Artists
  • 1991 Dreams Come True, Various Artists (flugelhorn)
  • 1992 Secret Story, Pat Metheny (flugelhorn)
  • 1992 I Didn't Know About You, Karrin Allyson (flugelhorn)
  • 1995 Azure-Té, Karrin Allyson (flugelhorn)
  • 1996 Collage, Karrin Allyson (flugelhorn)
  • 1996 You Must Believe in Music, Gary Sivils (composer, EVI, liner notes, producer)
  • 1997 There Will Never Be Another You, Rick Holland (liner notes)
  • 1998 Odahoda, Interstring (liner notes)
  • 1998 Special Request, Ida McBeth (liner notes)
  • 2001 The Soundtrek Sessions, PBT Trio (EVI, cornet)
  • 2002 A Simpler Christmas Time, The Leonard Brothers (flugelhorn)
  • 2003 Jazz Trek: A Special Collection, Various Artists (flugelhorn)
  • 2005 The Best of Kansas City Jazz: Volume 1, Various Artists (EVI)
  • 2005 Live at KEXP, Vol. 1, Various Artists
  • 2007 The Best of Kansas City Jazz: Volume 2, Various Artists (flugelhorn)
  • 2007 The Flood and the Rainbow, Paul Hofmann (flugelhorn)
  • 2007 Sound Advice, Andy Gravish (liner notes)
  • 2011 Tunnel Vision: A Collection of New Music, University of Missouri Concert Jazz Band (flugelhorn)

References

  1. ^ Scott Yanow, Mike Metheny at Allmusic
  2. ^ a b Ernie Santosuosso (18 January 1981). "A Pat and Mike Story About Two Jazzmen". Boston Globe. Retrieved 14 August 2010.
  3. ^ a b c Don Heckman (14 June 1988). "Jazz Reviews : Mike Metheny's Quest for Greater Visibility". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved 14 August 2010.
  4. ^ http://www.mikemetheny.com/recordings.html
  5. ^ Bob Young (23 October 1997). "Trumpeter Metheny all 'Ryled' up for the Hub". Boston Herald. Retrieved 14 August 2010.
  6. ^ "Musicians: Mike Metheny". allaboutjazz.com. All About Jazz. Retrieved 23 September 2015.
  7. ^ a b Fernando Gonzalez (15 November 1991). "Writing Another Chapter in Mike Metheny's Life". Boston Globe. Retrieved 14 August 2010.
  8. ^ "Metheny Music Foundation Mission Statement". methenymusicfoundation.com. Retrieved 23 September 2015.
  9. ^ http://hepcat1950.com/pmiv92bg.html
  10. ^ Carolyn Mcmaster (16 August 1987). "Jazzman Mike Metheny Brings Brass to Town". Lawrence Journal-World. Retrieved 14 August 2010.
  11. ^ a b Billboard, Allmusic.com
  12. ^ a b http://www.altenburgh.com/artists.html
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