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Anyone else out there -Not- a Huge Jaco Fan??

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#61
sevenyearsdown said:
I have actually been getting into some jazz lately (more listening than playing), and basically listen to the stuff that I like. I have no prior knowledge, or formal training as a musician - jazz or otherwise. For the most part I think people either like what they hear, or they don't. To tell someone who doesn't like a particular that they don't get the context of what the piece is all about just sounds elitist to me (no offense to anyone here). Maybe they just don't like the way the music sounds, right?
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You can like what you like - I was just saying that to get the most out of Jazz, you need to understand the context and performance protoculs, the history etc.

If you aren't prepared to put in the work fair enough, it's up to you - but you won't be getting the most out of it...:hmm:

I think nowadays, most people don't really "get" Jazz until they try to play it - which is unfortunate for audience figures - but usually when I go to Jazz gigs, I can recognise players in the audience and there are very few who aren't musicians...:(
 
#62
I once won tickets to see Al Di Meola (sp?). A friend and I went. It was very entertaining... for about 20 minutes. The dude has chops, he just didn't have taste (or, to be fair, taste that aligned with mine). "Fusion" jazz is, I think, a very acquired taste. I've not acquired it, nor am I seeking to do so.

I think the point I'm making, if there is one, is similar to what a lot of people are saying. Technical ability is one thing, but artistic sensibility can be very genre specific. Some players transcend it (Nels Cline anyone?), some we don't know, some just can't.
 
#63
I'm not a HUGE fan but I do recognize his contribution to bass playing. I can also get into "some" of his work. He definately has infuenced the way many players approach the bass including me to some degree. However, I don't regard him as the "end all be all" of bass players.
 
#64
gkbass13 said:
your post was ok (although you shouldve done a search first as jaco haters have always been rpesent on this site) until you decided to mix in your own personal feelings regarding skill and such. you may have a valid point wiht vic, but less and flea are just rock players...neither touch jaco. im pretyt sure even vic would say that he himself cant really touch jaco. it is more than just who can play faster or who can slap and yadda yadda....as your 3 examples seemed to lean towards slap friendly players(no mention of jeff berlin, oteil burbridge, stanley clark...etc)...jaco's brilliance and genius lays in his composing in addition to his playing and chops...understandable if it isnt your cup fo tea as far as musical tastes, but if thats the case, why comment on it at all.
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This is exactly what I wanted to say.
Personally I've never seen what good Les Claypool is at playing bass, but every time I try to say this, I get bombared by all the Claypool fans, saying he's the greatest, so that's why in my post I tried to be a bit understanding that perhaps Les Claypool might have some skill.
But then again, if someone can start an entire thread asking why Jaco is so widely appreciated, surely I can say I don't like Les Claypool no?
 
#65
I'm not reading the whole thread because this has been done MANY times before.

You're free to like and not like what you want, but sometimes you actually have to work to get music (or film or painting or writing...).

I heard Jaco for the first time when I was 15. I could tell he was an incredible player but I didn't understand the music. I put my copy of the first Jaco record away but 3 years later, I pulled it out again and REALLY liked it. Maybe because I had gained a little bit of knowledge and could hear what was going on with a little more clarity. The point is, not everything is going to be spoon-fed to you.

Even now. I've never understood what people see in Neil Young or the Grateful Dead, but once a year I make myself listen to the music and see if I can get something out of it. Because it seems like a LOT of people are getting something out their music.
 
#67
I think people say they like Jaco just for the sake of liking Jaco, as if it elevates them to supper music apriciation status.. I really can't stand to listen to him and for some reason the people that say they like them (that I know) I have never heard them say "Hey play that Jaco Song!".

I have just started getting into more Victor Wooten but not so much for the music but his intructional video's are amazing. Geddy Lee is my favorite and I drive all my friends nuts with it. Flee is un-real on the funk and it doesn't get much smoother and dynic than Terry Hale... Thats my opinion tho...
 
#68
j.a.e.r.i.p said:
I think that jaco's music is without a doubt not listener friendly. It took me a long time to reach a point where i could understand and appreciate jaco's music fully.
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best post in the thread.

It's not Cap'n Crunch, folks- don't expect it to be. Grow to the level of the music and you'll get it. Don't grow, and you won't.
 
#69
All of you folks who are annoyed because you have seen this subject a million times, try skipping over it. It's easy. No one is forcing you to open it.

Because of this thread, I gave some effort to finding youtube videos of Jaco doing some groove playing. And the guy could *SWING* some walking lines in support of a funky band. Yet again I just don't dig his tone - it rarely sounds like a BASS as I prefer to hear it.

And same as always, every single solo I could find put me to sleep or worse. I understand that jazz appreciation may take some work on the part of the listener (as several posters have stated) yet there is much jazz that instantly grabs me. I got into jazz-rock fusion in the '70s and '80s quite a bit, and I like a lot of be-bop type stuff, but it's not my main focus - obviously.

I always wonder if some of the people who cite Jaco as an influence do so for the appearance to others rather than because they really dig him.
 
#73
I only started listening to Jaco last year and Ive been playing for 21 years and Im 37. I grew up on rock. While I can say that alot of the music isnt my cup of tea, I am totally into what he was doing. Teen Town or Havona are incredible IMO. And if you listen to The Chicken, there is some good groovin going on there. You dont have to like the music and he might not be for everyone, just like Im sure alot of us might not like the bass players you list as influences. To each his own.
 
#74
LP75 said:
Because of this thread, I gave some effort to finding youtube videos of Jaco doing some groove playing. And the guy could *SWING* some walking lines in support of a funky band. Yet again I just don't dig his tone - it rarely sounds like a BASS as I prefer to hear it. .
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Maybe youtube is not the most ideal outlet for getting into Jaco's music. He was an eccentric musician and he did some very nutty improvisation live, cranking the distortion on his amp and getting some pretty grating tones. His self titled album is really a much better example of the man's tone.
 
#75
TMacATK said:
Maybe youtube is not the most ideal outlet for getting into Jaco's music. He was an eccentric musician and he did some very nutty improvisation live, cranking the distortion on his amp and getting some pretty grating tones. His self titled album is really a much better example of the man's tone.
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Right, but as stated earlier, I picked up some of his records years ago, listened to whatever I could find, and wasn't into his tone or solo style. With terms like "greatest bass player that ever lived" I had to check it out. I have heard him hold down a groove, yet even while grooving in the pocket, I don't care for the tone he used.

I went looking through youtube to find some of the songs people suggested earlier in the thread. The results were mostly the same as before - it's just not what I like about BASS.
 
#79
so, in that same vein, if the measure of a musician is in the complexity of the music, then B.B. King is a crappy player compared to say, Jimi Hendrix? Or Bob Dylan is not as good a songwriter as John Lennon? come on, and get off of your soapboxes, people. seriously. Its not as complicated to appreciate music as you are making it out to be. And, just because I don't prefer the sound of a certain genre of music, does not mean that its just "beyond my understanding."
 
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