Better Days Ahead - Pat Metheny - Played by Lot2learn

[nateinunderaminute]

you know you mention in the description that you are limited b/c of your comfortability...to be honest i like you're more subdued improvisational approach to this tune! well done roger!!!

[Lot2learn]

@nateinunderaminute Thanks Nate!

[kjazzvid]

Excellent choice in adapting this tune to piano lead - sounds great! Although I haven't actually tried playing this one yet, I know from experience in playing other Metheny tunes that it is probably much more difficult than he (Metheny) makes it sound. Great videos, BTW!

[douglong77]

Lyle Mays has always been in my top Five best mentors! Great work! TY

[Demoras]

Man, I love this tune so much. It really puts me at ease, making me think there are indeed better days ahead :)

[Dattoma]

Im learning this song on piano. It's really hard to improvise if you use 1 scale per chord. Which scales/modes you recommend for this song?

[Kerpaltheballer]

do all your written pdf sheets have the solos as well?

[Lot2learn]

@Kerpaltheballer Yes. The PDF contains every note played by me on the piano in the video above.

[lilchris26]

nice, maybe a bit advanced for me but I may give it a go,If you dont push your self you never advance(hopefully)

[Lot2learn]

@lilchris26 Good attitude! Yes it's a tricky tune, but you can do it! Start at a very slow tempo and just a few measures at a time. That worked for me.

Cheers.

-L2L

[lilchris26]

@lilchris26 Thanks for replying to me. I found mangoldproget's letter from home 1st and while I can play the beggining part I am struggling to see which notes he plays,and playing by ear isn't one of my strong points then I found your vids. I changed to playing piano style just as a result of youtube,just love all the help you guys give on here.

[TheWoWRevelation]

One of my music teachers played this to me today! awesome!

[Lot2learn]

@TheWoWRevelation Thanks!

[Keyboardman88]

Maybe it's because I'm into playing keyboard...but I like your rendition of this song better than the original. I think that by slowing it down a little gives it more feeling and definition.

Rob

[Lot2learn]

Thanks for your comment Rob.

[localpm]

Gr8t!!

[Lot2learn]

@localpm thank you Paul.

[almatazz]

wonderful. I bougt the pdf.file. great work. thanks for sharing your knowledge Mr. Friedman.

[Lot2learn]

Thanks Alex, I'm glad you found the files on my web site useful to your jazz studies.

Regards,

L2L

[Fretfreak83]

Nice work! This tune is definitely not for beginners. Lotta changes in there. I can tell you've done your homework...Pat Metheny is not easy to duplicate....nice work!

[Lot2learn]

@Fretfreak83 Thanks. This was definitely one of the more difficult tunes I have learned - but so great and so much fun to play!

[trivediu]

Hi there, excellent job! Even more so in that I can almost hear Pat's and Lyle's style in your phrasing of the head. How did you make the drums....what software are you using for the drums? Thanks!

[Lot2learn]

Thanks. Band in a box software.

[freemusic1979]

great pianist...play Pat is difficult...play Pat very well is very dufficult...I'd like to have the same range of chords and melodies...I'll try...Enjoy my clips if u want and congratulations for your skills !

[Lot2learn]

Thanks for your comment.

[MAnuciao79]

THIS IS WHAT I EXACTELY WAS LOOKING FOR

100Points°

Greetings from germany

[spunky221]

this is excellent. I have always loved this song and now I can learn how to play it. Thank you!

[2Shlow]

I think that this is a Michel Petrucciani tune, though others including Metheny may have played it, too.

[santibanks]

its metheny's tune. He wrote it in 1979 in fulton- missouri (which was the working title of the tune).

Performed it a lot live (and some people covered it). Recorded it in 1989 with letter from home.

[xGoranx]

ohh excelente muy bueno!!, ya quiero mi teclado nuevo para comenzar a tocar este tremendo tema de bossa.

[dlneto]

Very nice improv!! Way to go !!

Congrats.

David

[FeetsAndButts]

I admire your courage my friend.

Metheny is a long time favorite and although I have some decent piano skills his music on paper is so hard.

the way he puts things together sounds awesome but reading it is almost to the point of not making sense.

It's hard music.

Very good work there on that one.

[john1117]

Fantastic You choose a great Metheny song. Now if I could only slow it down a bit so I could copy your moves! More Metheny please!

John

[Lot2learn]

Thanks for the comment John. I'd love to do some more Metheny. ;-)

[GozTheGreat]

Great job.

[Lot2learn]

Thank you.

[cinthyaa]

Smooth!

[chaton06000]

you do like this 9+ pattern on the altered 7ths don't you :-D haha great feeling and melody, nice ;)

[Lot2learn]

Thanks. ;-)

[ColinMitchellMusic]

Wow -what a great discovery on Youtube finding you! I love the way you play this Metheny tune. You have a really lovely approach to playing this tune!

[Lot2learn]

Thanks for your comment Colin.

[pozzifab]

a very big job,thankyou from my heart...

[Lot2learn]

Grazie.

[blskywtwtr]

That's terrific, Roger - so glad I stumbled across it. You've mastered the tune and the technology gracefully.

Nice!

[Lot2learn]

Thanks much for the comment.

[loueve3]

That was so cool to hear on piano Roger. I just Love the chord changes in Better Days Ahead to begin with, and what I loved even more was how you manuvered thru the changes. Great job! - Lou

[Lot2learn]

Thanks Lou.

[jgpanta]

What a great effort. Great job. You have captured the spirit of the whole song. I play this on an acoustic grand piano....very difficult to play without a base line and a beat....it's nice to hear and see a version with all these features.

[orangefunk]

Nice version L2L! Hope my video helped (even if it was a half step difference!!)

[leoblack97]

una de las mejores versiones que escuche del tema, no te miento pero si te digo que la escucho 50 veces al dia creo que me quedo corto, gracias y segui subiendo material de esta calidad para poder seguir olvidando inminente y drastico cambio climatico.

[phunkfarm]

Roger comping at 2:08...delicious!

[Lot2learn]

Thank you...;-)

[sshawnuff]

You carry the optimistic feel throughout and even give it a boost. I love it.

[sergiocontrabajoloco]

Hi Roger!

I didn't know you was playing Metheny too! Well done (Band in a box? this time the drum is not so good I feel, hard to play this kind of boosa-jazz for a programme), this tune is good, every Metheny composition is good I think, I play "Question & Answer" with my trio (well, we try to play it...). Congratulation, you're working hard on Youtube man! "Salutations" from France! Serge

[Lot2learn]

Merci boucoup Serge.

[RCV1963]

Very good you rock..if your a Lyle fan there is video out on you tube of a young Lyle playing with Woody Herman's Band - playing a Chic Corea tune La Fiesta. Please give it a listen... That band sounds REAL good on that video, and Lyle plays so nice.

Thanks for your videos.. keep them comming... Roy

[vertigonick]

hehe. are u gonna upload this one with annotations?

[philipcwelch]

Bravo!! Better Days Ahead You made believer out of me!

[Lot2learn]

Thanks, Philip.

[goerg1980]

Great Roger!!! Very well played. It´s not easy to play this, I tried this song with my band but never played in public. Lyle Mays is my favourite piano player. About the tempo, have you realized that the live version begins with the drumm much faster in the first seconds?. I´ll send you an asnswer video playing James, maybe you do your fine job with this song also.

[featureG]

Ive had good and bad flying dreams over the years. The bad ones are always someone chasing me. Now I can relax and allow "Better Days Ahead" to help me soar. Thanks Lot2Learn, your always an inspiration !

[Lot2learn]

I appreciate your comment Don.

-L2L

[7notemode]

Playing with an optimistic tone is difficult to do. You have done it beautifully, with just the right balance of serenity and energy. It doesn't swing but instead flows. Great post! *****

[JC10255]

This song - my goodness - this song, man oh man. Giant Steps pales in comparison. Playing over "Better Days" has represented, to me, one of those "swinging with three bats" kind of songs since I started playing it at age 15 when "Letter From Home" first came out. You sound real nice, Roger. I may have to "lift" some things you just did on this and implant them into my own playing over this toon. Hope you don't mind:) :)

[Vayshen]

Agreed. Complex is a better word to fit my comment actually, dunno why I couldn't come up with it at the time.

[Lot2learn]

Yeah, like in bar 11 where he does these chromatic II-V's over the bar line and then resolving onto beat 3. He also has some interesting subs and then of course cutting off the last bar of the song so it is only 23 bars. Great stuff.

[Lot2learn]

I meant bar 6 and 7 in above comment. ;-)

[Vayshen]

Man most stuff Metheny writes is great but difficult! =) Complex structure and all that.

Odd panning btw, too much right channel?

♪♪♪♪♪

[cbmuzik]

not really. I can play alot of Pat Metheny's music. Pat sticks to one scale he loves like alot of musicians, and anyone who plays music enough and sinks into a scale they love gets what Pat is doing usually. Lyle is really the guy who orchestrates that "difficult" sound because Pat alone is more standard with a complex solo style. Lyle is the headcruncher. Listen to any of his solo albums. But I like the job Lot2Learn has done with this song. He actually makes it easy to follow.

[Lot2learn]

Thanks CB. Yeah Lyle's playing on this tune blows me away, especially on the live album.

[cbmuzik]

who are you KIDDING!! Lyle's composition on that live set is str8 NUTS! I always tell folks if you REALLY want to understand the "true" Pat sound, listen to a Lyle album. Even their last dvd/album The Way Up is enough to make you cry alone on the emotional delivery. But honestly Lot2Learn, me and my brother are HUGE fans of your work! We just stare...heh. Please keep playing and growing. We love you and your dedication to music.

[florbo73]

Wow, it's one of my favorite song of Metheny, it's very difficult to improvise on this structure, the changes move frequently... beautiful impro, 5 stelle!

[PianistaItaliano]

Yes Roger,you right, this song is fantastic, I love it, and you play it wonderfull. Great Sound,and the end is a nice surprise, like oxygen for the soul :)

Thanks for posting such a great composition.

[ibechane]

That was great - thanks for that!