Imaginary Day

Imaginary Day is the ninth studio album by the Pat Metheny Group. It was released in 1997 by Warner Bros. Records. The album was strongly inspired by world music from Iran and Indonesia, and won the 1999 Grammy Award for Best Contemporary Jazz Album. The song "The Roots of Coincidence" won a Grammy Award for Best Rock Instrumental Performance; critic Richard Ginnell of AllMusic described the song as a dramatic departure for the group: "[an] out-and-out rock piece with thrash metal and techno-pop episodes joined by abrupt jump cuts."

Imaginary Day
Studio album by Pat Metheny Group
Released	October 7, 1997 (1997-10-07)
Recorded	Spring 1997
Studio	Right Track, New York City
Genre	Jazz fusion
Length	63:49
Label	Warner Bros.
Producer	Pat Metheny, Lyle Mays, Steve Rodby
Pat Metheny chronology
Beyond the Missouri Sky (Short Stories) (1997) Imaginary Day (1997) Like Minds (1998)

Professional ratings

Review scores
Source	Rating
AllMusic	[1]
The Encyclopedia of Popular Music	[2]
The Penguin Guide to Jazz Recordings	[3]

The album cover design by Stefan Sagmeister uses a simple pictographic substitution cipher for the name of the group and the title of the album.

Official DVD recorded live at the Mountain Winery, Saratoga, California, USA in July 1998, released in 2001.

This album was also made available on DVD-Audio 5.0 multichannel, surround sound.

History

This album marks the final appearance of longtime drummer Paul Wertico, who would leave in 2001 before the recording of Speaking of Now to work on other projects.

Track listing

No.	Title	Writer(s)	Length
1.	"Imaginary Day"		10:11
2.	"Follow Me"		5:56
3.	"Into the Dream"	Metheny	2:27
4.	"A Story Within the Story"		8:01
5.	"The Heat of the Day"		9:44
6.	"Across the Sky" ("Across the Sky" lasts for 4:46; hidden intro for "The Roots of Coincidence" directly follows)		5:13
7.	"The Roots of Coincidence"		7:48
8.	"Too Soon Tomorrow"	Metheny	5:45
9.	"The Awakening"		9:28

All tracks are written by Pat Metheny and Lyle Mays except where noted:

Personnel

• Pat Metheny – acoustic and electric guitars, guitar synthesizer, 42-string Pikasso guitar
• Lyle Mays – piano, keyboards
• Steve Rodby – acoustic and electric bass, cello
• Paul Wertico – drums
• David Blamires – vocals, electric guitar, baritone acoustic guitar, trumpet, mellophone, violin, recorder
• Mark Ledford – vocals, trumpet, flugelhorn, bass trumpet
• Dave Samuels – percussion
• Glen Velez – percussion
• Don Alias – percussion
• Mino Cinélu – percussion

Production

• Pat Metheny – producer
• Lyle Mays, Steve Rodby – co-producers
• David Oakes, Rob Eaton – associate producer
• Rob Eaton – recording, mixing
• Ted Jensen – mastering at Sterling Sound, New York City, USA
• Sagmaister inc. – design
• Latifa Azhar – photography

Certifications

Region	Certification	Certified units/sales
Poland (ZPAV)[4]	Gold	50,000*
* Sales figures based on certification alone.

Awards

Grammy Awards

Years	Winner	Title	Category
1999	Pat Metheny Group	"Imaginary Day"	Grammy Award for Best Contemporary Jazz Album
1999	Pat Metheny Group	"The Roots of Coincidence"	Grammy Award for Best Rock Instrumental Performance

See also

• Pikasso guitar