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Jaco Gear Article

#5
Guild approached him with the Pilot, and while working with Guild, he told them about the Hartke speakers. Guild became the first distributors for Hartke, and Jaco did play a fretless Pilot on occasion. Guild was working on a video release to dealers (I was a Guild dealer from '77-'88) with Jaco, Jerry Jemmott, and a third bassist I don't recall, although I want to it was Jeff Andrews. They never did finish it, Guild was sold again, and Sam Ash/ Samson took over Hartke distribution.
 
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#7
devnulljp said:
There's a pic of him with the Pilot, which IIRC is an ad for Hartke, so I wouldn't be at all surprised if it was just a prop bass for the photo shoot.
Click to expand...
I remember seeing that ad in Guitar Player...looked totally out-of-character for Jaco.
Also, from back in the day-
Darryl Jones, too, sported a blue Pilot bass in his Guitar Player feature.
 
#8
JTE said:
Guild approached him with the Pilot, and while working with Guild, he told them about the Hartke speakers. Guild became the first distributors for Hartke, and Jaco did play a fretless Pilot on occasion. Guild was working on a video release to dealers (I was a Guild dealer from '77-'88) with Jaco, Jerry Jemmott, and a third bassist I don't recall, although I want to it was Jeff Andrews. They never did finish it, Guild was sold again, and Sam Ash/ Samson took over Hartke distribution.
Click to expand...

Larry Hartke is the floor manager at the Sam Ash store in NY, I believe he has in the store Jaco's original Hartke cabinet.
 
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#12
Guild had really bad luck endorsing artists. If you look back at their Ads, most people were never "popular" artists - and if they were, it is impossible to find real life pictures of the artists with Guild products... ie. Jaco and the Pilot bass, Johnny Smith and George Benson with the Artist Award, the most successful may have been Slash and the double-neck Crossroads. I've been watching some old Blood, Sweat and Tears videos to see if I can actually see Jim Fielder actually playing a Quantum Bass Amp, but amps are usually hard to spot, even with distinct bi-colored grilles. And who was Allan Montoya?
 
#13
So there is an interview on the "Jaco" site between his son and Larry Hartke of aluminum speaker cone fame, and they reference the Guild/Hartke & Pilot Bass Ad. Johnny stated "Actually, I was always a little confused when I saw that ad with my Dad holding a Guild bass." and asked "He was playing his Fender jazz in New York during the period you knew him wasn’t he?". Larry replied "Jaco did like the pilot bass that Guild made for him, and he did play it live a lot during that period." Unfortunately for us, cameras still used film, and not everyone had a camera in their backpocket - so I have not come across a single image of Jaco playing a Pilot bass, except of course the Ad. If there would have been a Jaco Signature Guild bass, that was the one in the Ad, would the requirements be that it had to be a Black, PJ, Passive V/T/Blend, foot headstock, fretless? And would a Guild import that matched those descriptions qualify to be called a Jaco Bass (similar to Epiphone having the Zakk Wylde series of guitars)? Would other Guild basses like the cake server headstock, active electronics or 5-string fretted with a modern graphic paint job be able to be called a Jaco Bass? (like this one: GUILD Pilot Bass SB604 Jaco Pastorius 1983 With Hard Case | eBay)
 
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#15
b0rn2w0rsh1p said:
Guild had really bad luck endorsing artists. If you look back at their Ads, most people were never "popular" artists - and if they were, it is impossible to find real life pictures of the artists with Guild products... ie. Jaco and the Pilot bass, Johnny Smith and George Benson with the Artist Award, the most successful may have been Slash and the double-neck Crossroads. I've been watching some old Blood, Sweat and Tears videos to see if I can actually see Jim Fielder actually playing a Quantum Bass Amp, but amps are usually hard to spot, even with distinct bi-colored grilles. And who was Allan Montoya?
Click to expand...

The only 4 I can think of off the top of my head are Kim Thayil (Soundgarden), Bob Weir (I think), Slash playing their acoustics on G'N'R Lies, and Jerry Peek with the Steve Morse Band.

C/S,
Rev J
 
#16
Also, Mike Mills of R.E.M.
mikemills.jpg
 
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#18
John Denver sold more Guild guitars than all the other endorsers combined.

Robben Ford got a Starfire IV when he took Larry Carlton's place in the LA Express. He and Carlton went looking for a Gibson ES-335 together , but the Starfire won. Then there's Lesh and Casidy with the Starfire basses.

But Guild always had marketing problems, no matter who owned them, but especially at the time of the extensive Pilot promotions, they dropped the ball. The video that was advertised but never released was a problem. I found out about it when a customer came in to ask about it, and I hadn't heard anything about it as a dealer. Besides Jaco and Daryl Jones, the only other endorser I recall seeing ads with was Alec John Such before he got fired from Bon Jovi. Not the best marketing.
 

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