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bassists who don't like jaco

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#301
Brad Johnson said:
It seems that Jim was referring to a Jazztimes BEFORE Jaco's solo cd was released. That was a long time before anyone was downloading much besides porn;)
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Brad-
The Jazztimes' issue is from 2002 or so...right before Portrait Of Jaco was released.
I think the author was making the point that those 40-60 today like Jaco because they were there in the '70s when these records first came out...those older in the '70s possibly saw the EB as a fad or geared more for Rock-dom; those that maybe liked Weather Report as an Acoustic Jazz group may have even disowned them once they went electric with the bass & synth. Just speculation on my part.
Those too young or not born yet are listening to Jaco from a different perspective vs. those of us(now 40-60).

I think that was the point the writer was hinting at.
 
#303
JimK said:
Brad-
The Jazztimes' issue is from 2002 or so...right before Portrait Of Jaco was released.
I think the author was making the point that those 40-60 today like Jaco because they were there in the '70s when these records first came out...those older in the '70s possibly saw the EB as a fad or geared more for Rock-dom; those that maybe liked Weather Report as an Acoustic Jazz group may have even disowned them once they went electric with the bass & synth. Just speculation on my part.
Those too young or not born yet are listening to Jaco from a different perspective vs. those of us(now 40-60).

I think that was the point the writer was hinting at.
Click to expand...

But I think it's obvious from reading recent threads at TB, that what's happening is that people new to Jaco are downloading odd tracks that they can find for free on the net and picking up a 'skewed' perspective because of this.

Whereas those of us who grew up with Jaco's official album releases, know the whole story, as you say.

So the first part of what I was saying above, was an additional observation - not a contradiction. :)
 
#304
Bruce Lindfield said:
But I think it's obvious from reading recent threads at TB, that what's happening is that people new to Jaco are downloading odd tracks that they can find for free on the net and picking up a 'skewed' perspective because of this.

Whereas those of us who grew up with Jaco's official album releases, know the whole story, as you say. :)
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Yeah, I think that's it.
Also, you simply have the phenomenon of people hearing about someone's reputation before hearing the music itself. Unrealistically high expectations, etc. It's happened forever.
We old timers remember when Jaco was just a very brilliant kid from Florida with a used Fender bass who was trying exciting new things that inspired all of us. Now, before people hear a note that he played, they hear that he was Charlie Parker or Jimi Hendrix or Tarzan or Super-Shaman or whatever, and they're likely to be disappointed to some degree.
 
#305
dougjwray said:
Yeah, I think that's it.
Also, you simply have the phenomenon of people hearing about someone's reputation before hearing the music itself. Unrealistically high expectations, etc. It's happened forever.
We old timers remember when Jaco was just a very brilliant kid from Florida with a used Fender bass who was trying exciting new things that inspired all of us. Now, before people hear a note that he played, they hear that he was Charlie Parker or Jimi Hendrix or Tarzan or Super-Shaman or whatever, and they're likely to be disappointed to some degree.
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that's true, until they get lessons. i am 23, so i had a 'skewed' image of jaco and his work. initially, i didn't like his work and i didn't get what everyone was raving about. fast forward 6 months, i am having lessons, i know my theory, i can read and improvise over chord charts, and technical exercises are a foundation to my playing and practicing.

only NOW can i see what jaco was doing. he wasn't playing random notes, he was actually following the chord changes at speeds that i had never heard. to this day, jaco's is the definitive style when playing a sixteenth based groove.

i strongly believe that young people like me won't understand jaco or his music if they don't know the thoery behind it.
 
#306
JimK said:
Brad-
The Jazztimes' issue is from 2002 or so...right before Portrait Of Jaco was released.
I think the author was making the point that those 40-60 today like Jaco because they were there in the '70s when these records first came out...those older in the '70s possibly saw the EB as a fad or geared more for Rock-dom; those that maybe liked Weather Report as an Acoustic Jazz group may have even disowned them once they went electric with the bass & synth. Just speculation on my part.
Those too young or not born yet are listening to Jaco from a different perspective vs. those of us(now 40-60).

I think that was the point the writer was hinting at.
Click to expand...

My mistake. I was thinking about the earlier album.

My recollection of WR has never been as an acoustic jazz group, it included bass guitar on some cuts, along with Miroslav Vitous on acoustic on others. That was at the beginning of their popularity.
 
#307
Bruce Lindfield said:
I wasn't treating him like a troll - I was simply giving the answer to his question - which is that Jaco deteriorated towards the end of his short life due to an underlying medical condition - if you want to ignore that fact - that's fine for you - but I was actually trying to help somebody who asked a question ...:hmm:
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My point was that clearly people here were treating him like a troll... and you did mention "I don't get Jaco trolls". I don't think you have to be a troll to not get Jaco. Maybe there should be an FAQ that the subject of Jaco, like other religions, shouldn't be discussed here;)

The second part of that post was about why some people might treat him as a troll - so I was explaining why he was getting negative responses - as we do have regular vists from trolls, whose only intention seems to be to wind up Jaco fans...:hmm:
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And the problem lies in the people who can't or won't read the actual comments, not the people who come here new to Jaco. That was my point. He didn't say anything disrespectful about Jaco, yet look how some reacted. Why? Because about every month when these people are waiting for the "I don't get Jaco" "trolls", this happens. Like they're waiting to be offended.

Again - if you understand the sad nature of Jaco's demise - how it might affect the living members of his family (some of whom have actually visited TB) - than it may help those who are unaware, understand why it is a sensitive subject. :(
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There's no reason that this thread should've been a sensitive subject. Everyone will not love everything by Jaco. If that bothers anyone they probably should stay away from threads that don't start with "I love Jaco and please don't post antything to the contrary in this thread".

And I don't remember Fieldy dying tragically and leaving a young family bereft - run that by me again....:confused:
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My point with Fieldy is that people regularly trash him here... mercilessly. Aren't any of the regulars concerned that Fieldy's family might get wind of some of the harsh treatment?

People could've just explained Jaco's situation at the beginning of this thread without lashing out at the OP. If he actually were a troll I find it hard to believe the Pastorious family really gives a crap about what he "thinks".

So why do all the people who jumped on the OP? Other than this being the internet and all.
 
#309
I've tried my best to understand what people see in the guy but there's nothing about him that really speaks to me. Teen Town, yeah ok not bad prefer the Marcus Miller version though. Perhaps I'm missing something. I think I'm probably into the funk thing more than that fusion/jazz scene. I give up. Anyone else not really like him that much ?
 
#312
Nah. Anymore I just dislike anyone that dislikes Jaco, and feels the overwhelming need to post it here.

It's been what, maybe two weeks since the last one of these threads?

Pathetic.

Here, I'll give you the short version:

Half of what you know is electric bass today is because of the guy, the other half is because of James Jamerson.

Please tell me that you hate him too, so I can know right off the bat just how NOT sharp you are about what came before you in the world of bass guitar.

Oh, BTW, I'm pretty damn certain you probably think Flea is just the best thing since sliced bread.

Did you know he also INVENTED the bass guitar? REALLY. Yeah, it was just last week...

Somebody shoot me.
 
#317
Jaco's an acquired taste.

It's not so much the tunes he plays, but the sounds he makes. He's all about technique.

I'm probably going to get blasted for this, but only about 30% of his recording catalogue is truly listenable imo.

Some weather report.
More Joni Mitchell.
His solo stuff is very specialized and doesn't appeal to non-musicians for the most part. Musicians listen because he pushed the envelope on his instrument.

The fact that he took a couple of beater jazz basses and redifined the role of bass speakes volumes.

I think it's great that you're listening to peoples' covers of his music.

I found out about the blues by listening to the Stones and Hendrix.
 
#319
I felt the same way when I first heard him. Same thing with Miles Davis. Years later, when my ears had opened up and my tastes matured, I got it. Come back to it later.
 
#320
listen to his earlier stuff, before his life took a turn. alot of the live bootlegs that have come out since his death are not the best example of his playing. at the time, no one had done what he had done. everyone was talking about him. like hendrix. i also think you need to be a SERIOUS student of improvisation to appreciate much of what he did. try to take a few chorues on donna lee and see how well your stuff fits together and makes sense, then listen to his again. (also go transcribe some charlie parker and play it on bass to expand your improv vocabulary, i'm sure he did alot of stuff like that....)
 
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