Saying Jaco sucks is like a Beavis & Butthead opinion. Anybody who doesn't appreciate what he did for bass just doesn't have the ears to recognize it. Jaco's playing was/is top level, harmonically and rhythmically. That said, I don't own any of his recordings and never tried to learn any of his stuff. But the impact of his playing continues to influence the bass world, because he opened up a lot of possibilities on electric bass that nobody had articulated before.
Enjoy the benefits of a premium membership!
Upgrade Account
-
TalkBass has been independent since 1998. Add your voice.
Create a free account to reply to discussions, view embedded media, and browse with fewer display ads.
Join free Log in
Want zero display ads or expanded classifieds tools? Compare plans.
bassists who don't like jaco
- Thread starter Janas
- Start date
- Status
jaco is great. he has got skill. in fact, i would consider him to be a pioneer. but, most bassists i know would say something like every player has a bit of jaco in him. i kind of find that very bs. it was jamerson they were trying to refer to.
anyway, it doesn't matter if you hate jaco. it doesn't make you a lousy bassist. but, try to hear as much as possible. different styles and stuff.
anyway, it doesn't matter if you hate jaco. it doesn't make you a lousy bassist. but, try to hear as much as possible. different styles and stuff.
It never fails to amaze me how nasty and infantile people can be towards each other. Especially you younger cats. 
You have to remember each decade has events that make it historically different than the last, and I remember being into Stanley and I copped his stuff in '82, but when Jaco reached my ears, it was obvious that if you didn't understand harmony, you would have a hard time playing his stuff. It's been said "there's bass before Jaco and after Jaco." Don't diss the guy for obtaining success and "being an innovator." It's easy to downplay someone elses achievements, but watch the hypocrisy when you have none of your own.
Please stop being so nasty to each other, it saddens me to see such things. This site is a learning tool, not a device for infantile baiting.
You have to remember each decade has events that make it historically different than the last, and I remember being into Stanley and I copped his stuff in '82, but when Jaco reached my ears, it was obvious that if you didn't understand harmony, you would have a hard time playing his stuff. It's been said "there's bass before Jaco and after Jaco." Don't diss the guy for obtaining success and "being an innovator." It's easy to downplay someone elses achievements, but watch the hypocrisy when you have none of your own.
Please stop being so nasty to each other, it saddens me to see such things. This site is a learning tool, not a device for infantile baiting.
dhadleyray said:It never fails to amaze me how nasty and infantile people can be towards each other. Especially you younger cats.
You have to remember each decade has events that make it historically different than the last, and I remember being into Stanley and I copped his stuff in '82, but when Jaco reached my ears, it was obvious that if you didn't understand harmony, you would have a hard time playing his stuff. It's been said "there's bass before Jaco and after Jaco." Don't diss the guy for obtaining success and "being an innovator." It's easy to downplay someone elses achievements, but watch the hypocrisy when you have none of your own.
Please stop being so nasty to each other, it saddens me to see such things. This site is a learning tool, not a device for infantile baiting.
Very, very well said. I enjoy Jaco myself, particularly on Joni Mitchell's albums. His bass playing is both melodic and supportive at the same time. I also find his tone refreshing and different.
dhadleyray said:
Exactly. We try to balance the Freedom and the Moderation... and here in Bassists we mostly just ask the people be polite.
closed for review
Please hold off the flaming till youve finished reading my post.
Ok so ive been playing bass for a few years now and almost every bass player i have come across (both on TB and out in the real world) tell me that Jaco is the widely regarded as the best bass player of all time and the most influential.
naturally after hearing such praise i decided to check out some of his stuff off the weather report album. unfortunately i just dont see what all the fuss is about!
yes he is a solid player, has fantastic technique, originality and musical sensability. however, i have been listening to music my whole life and have heard at least a hundred bass players (some of who are complete "unknowns") who sound as good as or better than any of the Jaco recording I have listened to.
so am i missing something? are you guys listening to a different Jaco or a different album or is it that he is considered to be the best because he was a pioneer at the time?
this is not a flame on Jaco - i am in no position to criticise him, i just want to know what everyone else knows...
Ok so ive been playing bass for a few years now and almost every bass player i have come across (both on TB and out in the real world) tell me that Jaco is the widely regarded as the best bass player of all time and the most influential.
naturally after hearing such praise i decided to check out some of his stuff off the weather report album. unfortunately i just dont see what all the fuss is about!
yes he is a solid player, has fantastic technique, originality and musical sensability. however, i have been listening to music my whole life and have heard at least a hundred bass players (some of who are complete "unknowns") who sound as good as or better than any of the Jaco recording I have listened to.
so am i missing something? are you guys listening to a different Jaco or a different album or is it that he is considered to be the best because he was a pioneer at the time?
this is not a flame on Jaco - i am in no position to criticise him, i just want to know what everyone else knows...
try here. http://www.talkbass.com/forum/showthread.php?t=183836
also search the "Bassists" forum for "Jaco".... many have pondered similar questions.
also search the "Bassists" forum for "Jaco".... many have pondered similar questions.
I'm trying to figure out why jaco is so important. I really dislike weather report. I bought a best of jaco weather report cd about 3 years ago and just really havn't felt it. If you could choose ONE song from jaco thats either innovative or important in some other way, what would it be and why.
and i don't mean to be disrespectful about him as a player i just would like to have a better understanding of him
I dont think you have given Jaco or Weather Report a good lenough listen...
He is "so important" because he re-invented bass playing. No one was using harmonics and chords and 32nd note runs like he was at the time. Hell, how many players then or now do you see doing what he was doing?
I suggest listen to any Weather Report cd that has Jaco Playing bass and any of his CD's and block out everything but him, and then try and say "whats so important".
Now let the Jaco defender's commence...
He is "so important" because he re-invented bass playing. No one was using harmonics and chords and 32nd note runs like he was at the time. Hell, how many players then or now do you see doing what he was doing?
I suggest listen to any Weather Report cd that has Jaco Playing bass and any of his CD's and block out everything but him, and then try and say "whats so important".
Now let the Jaco defender's commence...
yea ive listned to the whole cd and let it sink in for a couple years. It's not that i don't think hes a great player, it's that i don't like what i hear. Aside from that i would though like to have your opinion on at least one song you find important or whats youor favorite.
i think with jaco, you need to realize that nobody has played bass like that before. granted, today, you can hear thousands of bassists play that way, so to you it may sound the same as everything you hear now, but i think you need to look at Jaco in a historical context. At least thats what i think...
portrait of tracy
Blackbird/Crisis (they come one after the other on the album and must be listened to in that order...or else)
Those are the 3 that always make me stop. that and Barbary Coast.
Blackbird/Crisis (they come one after the other on the album and must be listened to in that order...or else)
Those are the 3 that always make me stop. that and Barbary Coast.
Its like looking at hendrix, sure there are guitarists who can play technically better than him now, but he was the first. It takes a lot to come up with something like Hendrix or Jaco did for the first time. That's what makes them special.
try giving shadows and light a listen, jaco and joni mitchell...
really beautiful playing on that for sure...
i'm not a big weather report fan, kind of elevator to a degree now,
but then times were different.
he just brought the bass to the front, without stepping on anything...
such a great voice on the instrument...
d
really beautiful playing on that for sure...
i'm not a big weather report fan, kind of elevator to a degree now,
but then times were different.
he just brought the bass to the front, without stepping on anything...
such a great voice on the instrument...
d
Wow, this topic really DOES come up once a month!
Gopher, like it or not. Nobody really cares, to be honest. And I don't mean that in a bad way. Everyone has likes and dislikes, and more power to them.
Gopher, like it or not. Nobody really cares, to be honest. And I don't mean that in a bad way. Everyone has likes and dislikes, and more power to them.
ive been here for four years and this post hasn't been done once a month and i'd appreciate it if you kept your negative comments to yourself thank you.
elevator music thats exactly how it feels!~ but yea i see what you mean he did have somthing no one else had at that time and that does deserve extra credit. thanks for all you guy's help
JimmyM said:
I agree. I LOVE JACO! I really do, I follow him like crazy. That's also because I love the music. If you want to appreciate Jaco more. Listen to some songs Pre-Jaco. Pay attention to the bass... Then listen to Jaco. He made the bass what it is today!
I know a great bass player who cannot stand Jaco's music, but respects him for who he is, and still owns Jaco's self titled album. He's a lot like Hendrix, you don't have to like him.. but you can't help respect him for what he had accomplished.
- Status
