Dream Box

20-time Grammy winner Pat Metheny returns with his most personal record to date – Dream Box – out 16 June, 2023.

“Dream Box is an unusual recording for me,” says Pat. “A compilation of tracks recorded across a few years.

While on tour this past year (2022), I discovered a forgotten folder on my drive. I often make quick recordings of things; a new tune, a new (or old) guitar, a standard tune, or just to try something out. I have a folder where I stash these things, truthfully, usually never to be heard again.

The only time I listen to my own stuff is while on the road. I often say I live on output, with little or no time for input. That changes on tour, where suddenly there seems to be more free hours in the day, albeit on a bus or in some far-flung hotel room. Occasionally, those moments offer a chance to rummage around in the files to see if anything interesting may lie there.

This past year was a particularly busy travel year for me, with about 160 performances worldwide. In the course of all that travel, I found myself returning to that discovered folder again and again. From those listening sessions, I was surprised to find this program emerging as a coherent whole. I found that I had unintentionally gotten to a destination I had not planned for, and I am excited to share what I found there.

These nine tracks were my favourites and added up to something unique for me. I never played anything more than once. These are really moments in time, and in fact, I have almost no memory of having recorded most of them. They just kind of showed up.

Music exists for me in an elusive state, often at its best when discovered apart from any particular intention. I hope folks might find some dreams of their own in this music.”