roceci Posted October 30, 2015 Share Posted October 30, 2015 Jaco was undoubtedly a great musician with regards to playing, performing & composing. Sometimes he thrills me, sometimes he bores me. Nothing more to it for me. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bilbo Posted October 30, 2015 Author Share Posted October 30, 2015 [quote name='NickD' timestamp='1446205423' post='2897674'] I don't think I can add anything to this thread, partly because I know nowt, and partly because all the expected posts are already in. I'd really like to know who your '3 others' are though? [/quote] Percy Jones, Jimmy Johnson and Bruford era Jeff Berlin. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bilbo Posted October 30, 2015 Author Share Posted October 30, 2015 [quote name='CamdenRob' timestamp='1446208170' post='2897708'] This is up there with never having watched Star Wars, but I have never heard anything Jaco has played on... Not out of any dislike for the man, just general disinterest has led to me not bothering to look him up on youtube etc. .. he's not alone, I've never heard anything by Geddy Lee either, which is a another name that keeps cropping up. One day I'll have to have a session going through all these names that get mentioned on BC [/quote] You should film that!! The first time I heard Jaco 2015!!! It would be fascinating to see your reaction this late in the day. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NickD Posted October 30, 2015 Share Posted October 30, 2015 [quote name='Bilbo' timestamp='1446231370' post='2898016'] Percy Jones, Jimmy Johnson and Bruford era Jeff Berlin. [/quote] Thanks. YouTube here I come! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
alyctes Posted October 31, 2015 Share Posted October 31, 2015 (edited) I bought a "best of" a while back. Weather Report and his solo stuff, mostly. A great player, clearly, but I didn't care about what he was playing. Today I heard Joni Mitchell's 'Don Juan's Reckless Daughter' for the first time - bought mostly because I hadn't heard much by Joni and knew Jaco played on it. Bloody hell. That's going to take some serious listening. His work on that makes all sorts of sense to me; maybe because my first instrument was cello. Edited October 31, 2015 by alyctes Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lo-E Posted October 31, 2015 Share Posted October 31, 2015 Hard to remember for sure, but I think it was Weather Report: Heavy Weather. Havona blew my mind. Bright Size Life and Hijiera are also early favorites. I still get a little misty when I hear Portrait of Tracy. It reminds me of how much we lost. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CamdenRob Posted October 31, 2015 Share Posted October 31, 2015 [quote name='Bilbo' timestamp='1446231517' post='2898018'] You should film that!! The first time I heard Jaco 2015!!! It would be fascinating to see your reaction this late in the day. [/quote] I'm definitely going to put some time aside to go through everyone mentiond here. I won't be filming it though... I have what is referred to as a "face for radio" Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
72deluxe Posted October 31, 2015 Share Posted October 31, 2015 A face for radio? Is it static? Budum tish! Thank you, thank you Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
paul_5 Posted October 31, 2015 Share Posted October 31, 2015 (edited) First time I heard Jaco was on a Weather Report Greatest Hits album. I didn't gel with a lot of it, but Birdland and Teentown were a real revelation to a player of only 3 or 4 years experience. Edited October 31, 2015 by paul_5 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
interpol52 Posted October 31, 2015 Share Posted October 31, 2015 I had a tab for Teen Town from Guitarist magazine (I think) in about 1997. I could play the notes and keep up,with the speed of it but I didn't really 'get it'. It took a lot of years before I truly appreciated Jaco. That said though, I don't like all of it. I like the parpy Jazz tone and Dry Cleaner... gives me something new every time I listen to it, and there aren't that many things in life that do that. So to use a film analogy, I have never seen a Star Wars film or any kind of Star Trek film or TV show. I do realise how important they are though to modern day film. Jaco and James Jamerson are that to bass in music in my opinion. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DarkHeart Posted October 31, 2015 Share Posted October 31, 2015 first time I heard him was the last time I heard him... not my cup of tea whatsoever Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
blamelouis Posted November 1, 2015 Share Posted November 1, 2015 [quote name='DarkHeart' timestamp='1446332805' post='2898699'] first time I heard him was the last time I heard him... not my cup of tea whatsoever [/quote] Check out his work with Joni Mitchell he really was the Yeboah of bass . Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Old Man Riva Posted November 1, 2015 Share Posted November 1, 2015 [quote name='blamelouis' timestamp='1446376745' post='2898830'] Check out his work with Joni Mitchell he really was the Yeboah of bass .[/quote] From a Leeds point of view wouldn't he be the Duncan McKenzie of bass? - touched by genius but wholly unfulfilled. [quote name='roceci' timestamp='1446220833' post='2897890'] Jaco was undoubtedly a great musician with regards to playing, performing & composing. Sometimes he thrills me, sometimes he bores me.[/quote] That's it for me too. I was lucky enough to see him twice with Weather Report and it was one of the most inspiring things as a teenager, music-wise. As I got older and got into other things he'd done I found that there was more of his stuff that didn't do anything for me than did. And I know this will sound irrational (and it's obviously not his fault) but the one thing thing that has detracted from his legacy for me are the clones he spawned - completely cheesed off with seeing players throwing in harmonics for harmonics' sake and playing near the bridge with the bridge p/up on the Jazz honking like a demented duck, with little to no empathy for the music they are supposedly contributing to. It's great to be inspired by someone/thing but to rip it off completely isn't what he'd have wanted his legacy to be, I reckon. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
blamelouis Posted November 1, 2015 Share Posted November 1, 2015 [quote name='Old Man Riva' timestamp='1446392429' post='2899006'] From a Leeds point of view wouldn't he be the Duncan McKenzie of bass? - touched by genius but wholly unfulfilled. That's it for me too. I was lucky enough to see him twice with Weather Report and it was one of the most inspiring things as a teenager, music-wise. As I got older and got into other things he'd done I found that there was more of his stuff that didn't do anything for me than did. And I know this will sound irrational (and it's obviously not his fault) but the one thing thing that has detracted from his legacy for me are the clones he spawned - completely cheesed off with seeing players throwing in harmonics for harmonics' sake and playing near the bridge with the bridge p/up on the Jazz honking like a demented duck, with little to no empathy for the music they are supposedly contributing to. It's great to be inspired by someone/thing but to rip it off completely isn't what he'd have wanted his legacy to be, I reckon. [/quote] Duncan ? Showing your age there lol ! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MoonBassAlpha Posted November 2, 2015 Share Posted November 2, 2015 I was aware of the tune Birdland, I think it may have been used as a theme tune on the radio or telly. It wasn't until some guy in a music shop showed me how it was played that it made me realize that this bassist had some technique I'd never seen or heard anyone else using before. I'd kind of assumed it was some piccolo bass thing like Stanley Clarke used, not false harmonics. It also made me realize it's very difficult to make it sound any good without a bridge pickup in the mix (I had a Guild B301F at the time) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
drTStingray Posted November 2, 2015 Share Posted November 2, 2015 (edited) Birdland was the first time I heard Jaco and I presumed the initial melody was one of Zawinul's keyboard parts - I was somewhat blown away when I saw Weather Report live and realised it was false harmonics. The thing about Jaco's playing was it being a fusion of contemporary R and B bass style with jazz and rock. But fundamentally an R and B groove. You would not need in the 70s to delve far into R and B or bands like the Crusaders, Herbie Hancock etc to find an upfront bass style (less thump, more zing or pop) characterised by an aggressive but pleasant playing style and phenomenal groove. Remember this was the 70s when you could actually buy music where the bass could be felt and heard - the antithesis of the 60s - so not much place for flatwound strings (although early Stingrays came with them - but the EQ could make them as cutting as you needed). Jaco stood apart owing to his broader musicianship and composition skills, along with developing his own take on R and B and disco style grooves, and a specific sound (although Alphonso Johnson was not far from the sound around the time of Black Market etc). Like others, I find some of his music rather inaccessible, but still marvel at the likes of Teen Town, A Remark You Made; Elegamt People. Suffice to say Jacos was one of THE bass sounds to have (amongst others) back in the late 70s - still is for me - the 70s/80s was a golden age of and for bass players as far as I'm concerned!! Edited November 2, 2015 by drTStingray Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
louisthebass Posted November 3, 2015 Share Posted November 3, 2015 (edited) [quote name='Low End Bee' timestamp='1367400495' post='2065046'] Pastorius is great in that he divides opinion. At least you won't sit on the fence after hearing him. [/quote] True - if there's one thing JP wasn't, was mediocre.. Edited November 3, 2015 by louisthebass Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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