NEW RELEASES : *** PAT METHENY “Secret Story” <i> Geffen</i>

Metheny describes this album as “a culmination of everything I’ve done up to this point, with the exception of straight-ahead jazz, which I didn’t want to address here.”

True and not so true. It certainly is the most imaginative and adventurous recording Metheny has ever made--one that overflows with influences, from world-beat to pop and classical genres, and that is powerfully supported by Jeremy Lubbock’s superb orchestrations, played by the London Orchestra. But there also are a few respectable jazz moments as well. Metheny’s soloing on everything from soft acoustic ballads to hyperactive electronic fusion is first-rate.

The bottom line, however, is that this is a program structured on ideas. Almost every track is based on a conceptual notion: unusual rhythms on “Finding and Believing” and “Cathedral in a Suitcase”; world-music influences on “Above the Treetops” and “As a Flower Blossoms”; multiple tonal centers on “Sunlight” and “Facing West”; rich orchestral writing on “Not to Be Forgotten (Our Final Hour).”

The most impressive works are splendid examples of the guitarist-composer’s desire to expand his creative envelope.

New albums are rated on a scale of one star (poor) to four (excellent).