The title immediately brings to mind one of Metheny’s most memorable collaborations, “This Is Not America,”recorded with David Bowie for the 1985 film The Falcon and the Snowman. More than 40 years later, Metheny may be revisiting that musical territory, and the timing is particularly interesting as the United States celebrates its 250th anniversary.

According to the Record Store Day release information, Is This America? includes a reworking of music associated with Metheny’s Bowie collaboration, along with “We Shall Overcome,” the historic civil rights anthem, and a new composition titled “Peace Universal.” Taken together, the selections suggest a project with something to say about America, its history, and its future.

There’s another interesting connection. Back in June, Metheny surprised fans with the digital single “America the Beautiful / The People United Will Never Be Defeated,” accompanied by a thought-provoking visualizer. The recording combined one of America’s best-known patriotic hymns with a Chilean protest anthem that became an international symbol of democracy and resistance. We wrote about that release when it arrived on June 26. Whether the recording will appear on Is This America? hasn’t been confirmed, but the thematic connection is hard to miss.

For collectors, there’s good news: Is This America? will be available on both vinyl and CD, rather than the vinyl-only format often associated with Record Store Day exclusives. The release is being issued through Uniquity Music and Green Hill Productions and will be available exclusively at participating independent record stores.

A complete track listing and recording personnel have not yet been announced. Still, the prospect of Metheny revisiting music from his past while reflecting on America today makes this one of the more intriguing jazz releases on the fall calendar.

Pat Metheny’s Is This America? arrives November 27, 2026, for Record Store Day Black Friday. Visit Record Store Day to find a participating independent record store near you.

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The GRP label was really rolling after MCA artists were moved to the label. That brought over Spyro Gyra (with the only Spyro Gyra release that said “featuring Jay Beckenstein”), Acoustic Alchemy, and Michael Brecker. I count eight GRP recordings in this top 20.

Of note, that Bob James recording, Grand Piano Canyon, was the birth of Fourplay with James, Lee Ritenour, Harvey Mason, and Nathan East on two tracks.

Also worth noting in the October 13 issue: George Benson debuted at #8 on Billboard’s Jazz Albums chart with Big Boss Band, his collaboration with the Count Basie Orchestra.

Top Contemporary Jazz Albums

Week of October 13, 1990

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Guest percussionist Marc Quiñones brought another dimension to the partnership. “That album didn’t have a Latin percussionist on it, so it was a little more dreamy,” Mounsey said of Local Color in the original promotional materials. On You Are Here, percussion became an integral part of the album’s rhythmic character.

Both musicians brought extensive experience to the project, including shared work on Steely Dan’s Gaucho. For Mounsey, the recording offered an opportunity to explore a question that had followed him through years of studio work: “For the past 20 years, with each technical step forward, I always ask myself, ‘What would it be like to take the sounds we use on pop hits, and use them in the jazz world?’”

At Mounsey’s Flying Monkey studio in New York, the pair developed compositions through extended improvisations, then used digital recording tools to shape their strongest passages into finished arrangements. Spontaneous playing and studio craftsmanship worked together.

The album’s international flavors even show up on the menu: “Clafouti,” “Platanos Maduros,” and “Peanut Soup” take their names from foods. Alongside them are the Brazilian-influenced “Fazendeiro” and Manolo Badrena’s “Viajar y Viajar.” Each partner also contributed a ballad: Mounsey’s “Still Life with Mockingbird” and Khan’s “Anhelante,” which shifts between free tempo and a steady pulse.

You Are Here captures two longtime collaborators finding fresh possibilities in their musical friendship, drawing on sounds and rhythms from around the world.

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