Album: Pat Metheny, Unity Band (Nonesuch)

A partial return to top form for the widdly-diddly axe-meister.

The USP is that Unity Band represents Metheny's first group with a saxophonist for 300 years or so and Chris Potter is well up to the standard of his predecessor, the late Michael Brecker. With regular drummer Antony Sanchez perfectly matched to new bassist Ben Williams, there's an easy loping pulse to the best tunes (all Pat's own). Trouble is, there's also guitar-synth crime and the dread "Orchestrion".