Offrampby Pat Metheny Group

Pat Metheny Group's 1982 release 'Offramp' is their 3rd LP (a Grammy Award winner!). It also is the debut of accomplished jazz bassist Steve Rodby and percussionist Nano Vasconcelos. The CD goes in a different direction than their first 2 CD's; leaning more toward textured synth & rhythms rather than their traditional jazz roots.It's not necessarily a bad thing, but takes a while to get used to. For example, "Are You Going With Me" is a haunting 7 minute piece that goes nowhere rythymically, but builds with textured guitar synths and keboards. "James" is a beautiful song (a tribute to James Taylor) that graces the beauty of PMG's first 2 CD's. All in all, this is a good CD, but for me doesn't measure up to "American Garage" or "Pat Metheny Group". Still buy it!