Jaco Pastorius

[musicbassman]

Ah - the wonderful Percy Jones. I think my ears fell off when I first heard this in 1980.

 

[prowla]

Good yes, but not name-uttered-with-hushed-intake-of-breath great AFAIK.

[leftybassman392]

Cripes! Is it that time of year again already?

Think I'll start another 'what's so great about The Beatles?' thread.

[Rich]

17 hours ago, FDC484950 said:

Well, it’d be a dull world if we all liked the same music. About the only thing you can say with such threads. 

This x1000 with knobs on.

[Davo-London]

I remember listening to listening to WR (Heavy Weather) from a cassette given to me by a school friend in 1978.  I had been playing bass for a year and the album knocked me sideways.  The effect was absolute.  I couldn't get over the phrasing and involvement of the bass as an equal instrument to keys and sax.  In contrast to Chris b, I only own Joni's Jaco albums.  I don't think of him as overplaying at all.  These are great albums.

There are musicians that overplay and I agree that it's annoying.  I too hate the ... it's the bassists turn or drummers turn for a 16 bar solo ... part of jazz.  But the uniqueness of WR is there are no solos, just music. 

That's not me being clever or intellectual - that's what I feel.

Lastly, I cannot stand Brad Mehldau's drummer.  Don't get it.  I'll never get it.  I've been accused of "not getting it" online even though I've played and listened to Jazz for 50 years.  Mentioning no names, the drummer in question changes the beat every bar and just hits lots of stuff regardless of whether it's an uptempo, mid tempo, slow, melodic, dischordant song.  The one constant in his playing is zero repetition.  It's like having a mosquito in the room.  A constant irritant.

Peace

Davo

Edited November 5, 2019 by Davo-London

[Frank Blank]

1 hour ago, Hellzero said:

Sorry @Frank Blank, I don't get it.

Sorry, an obscure quote from Mystery Science Theatre 3000, essentially I’m agreeing that Jaco demonstrated rather than played sometimes.

[prowla]

48 minutes ago, leftybassman392 said:

Cripes! Is it that time of year again already?

Think I'll start another 'what's so great about The Beatles?' thread.

So, what is so great about The Beatles?

[leftybassman392]

8 minutes ago, prowla said:

So, what is so great about The Beatles?

[TheGreek]

I can understand why JP isn't going to be everybody's Cappuccino but there is no denying his talent.

It isn't foot - tapping stuff but man some of the technical stuff he played is still amazing today...IMO he took playing bass to another level. 

[dmccombe7]

I can only watch people like Jaco, Jeff Berlin, Victor Wooten, Michael Manring in small dozes rather than a full album.

I really like Manrings material and have been almost tempted but decided i would just get bored with it and i couldn't play along with it cause i'm rubbish in comparison. 

So i just watch small clips on Youtube. 

Put them in a proper band and it changes it for me. I have several Brand X, Bruford etc type albums with some of these guys playing and it works far better for me

Dave

Edited November 5, 2019 by dmccombe7

[knirirr]

3 hours ago, jacko said:

 

I get the bass virtuoso comments though. I have about 2 feet of CD shelving taken up with bassists'  'solo' albums - jaco, marcus, wooten, clarke, lawson, entwhistle, Berlin, feraud, strandberg, hellborg, bona, nitti and so on. Very few of them have had a second playing and sit gathering dust because, for the most part, they're a boring as sin.  However, stick any one of these players in a decent band and they invariably shine. 

 

Does that happen to include any of Monk Montgomery's, e.g. "Bass Odyssey"?

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M4ZiFt6hSRQ

 

[NickD]

2 hours ago, prowla said:

So, what is so great about The Beatles?

Jaco wasn't in 'em!🤣

[la bam]

I did the same years ago. The album was so built up and hyped up, I thought it was a guaranteed future favourite.

It wasnt.

I think the problem is we forget how diverse bass playing can be. From jazz, Motown, soul, funk, groove, rock, pop, fun, serious, synth, backing roles, solo roles, lead roles, accompaniment etc.

The problem with this album in particular is its classed as just a 'bass' classic, without taking into account the style of the music. Which is correct, but not for everyone.

[Cosmo Valdemar]

3 hours ago, prowla said:

So, what is so great about The Beatles?

They were good, but far better when they were supporting someone else.
Their work with the great Tony Sheridan is sublime.

[Tony Goggle]

Overrated

[mikel]

3 hours ago, prowla said:

So, what is so great about The Beatles?

Everything. Obviously. Wake up.

[Monkey Steve]

I'm in the "I can appreciate his talent but the music's not for me" camp too.  It's not a type of music that I enjoy listening to, so the fact that it's got what is clearly very talented bass playing on it doesn't make me like it any more

[Hellzero]

2 hours ago, knirirr said:

 

Does that happen to include any of Monk Montgomery's, e.g. "Bass Odyssey"?

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M4ZiFt6hSRQ

 

Terrific album indeed by a terrific underrated electric bass player. The first electric bass player, in fact : always musical and so complex sometimes. Wes was great, but we too often forget  Monk and Buddy who were great musicians too. Right place, wrong time.

[jacko]

2 hours ago, knirirr said:

 

Does that happen to include any of Monk Montgomery's, e.g. "Bass Odyssey"?

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M4ZiFt6hSRQ

 

frayed knot.  I'll have a listen when i get home from work.

[Burns-bass]

7 hours ago, musicbassman said:

Ah - the wonderful Percy Jones. I think my ears fell off when I first heard this in 1980.

 

It made my wife leave the room so it still has a visceral impact!

[bearhart74]

2 hours ago, Cosmo Valdemar said:

They were good, but far better when they were supporting someone else.
Their work with the great Tony Sheridan is sublime.

But they kind of lost me when they ditched Stu Sutcliff.

[4000]

7 hours ago, musicbassman said:

Ah - the wonderful Percy Jones. I think my ears fell off when I first heard this in 1980.

 

There was a time I would have told myself I loved this, as I did with stuff like Weather Report. Unfortunately I’ve  realised over the years that it really does nothing for me, other than me being impressed by the bass playing. Andthese days that just isn’t enough. As with pretty much all of Jaco’s output (and a great deal of fusion generally), it just doesn’t move me in any way, shape or form. 

Unlike this, which really does:

 

[lowdown]

2 hours ago, Hellzero said:

Terrific album indeed by a terrific underrated electric bass player. The first electric bass player, in fact : always musical and so complex sometimes. Wes was great, but we too often forget  Monk and Buddy who were great musicians too. Right place, wrong time.

 

Some of the Monk Brothers material with Bobby Thomas on Drums is really terrific. 

Edited November 5, 2019 by lowdown

[Owen]

On 04/11/2019 at 13:43, Soledad said:

At least take a few minutes to listen to 'A Remark You Made' (and check one or 2 of the live recordings of that track as well). That is one of my lifetunes, I mean an everlasting fine thing.

In my own little bass world he's right there with Jamerson, and Bach.

Word.

For me, my main Jaco hit comes from his groove playing, where he places the notes. He was a groove monster. 

[blamelouis]

Jaco for me was the greatest and will never be bettered, mind you Hadrian Feraud comes close. 

What people don't appreciate enough though is the quality of his writing which had he lived,I think would have been his main contribution to music history.

Who loves you baby!!