Jaco Pastorius Playing a Precision Bass?

[Mike Sorr]

I have a bottle of Jack Daniels riding on a bet here, so I'm hoping someone can help me out. I'm having an argument with a fellow bass playing friend who swears Jaco never used a Precision Bass on gigs, and I say he did. Maybe not that often, but it did happen. I'm sure I've seen a picture of him playing a beat up sunburst P Bass. I've scoured the internet for an image of Jaco with a P bass, but I can't find one. Am I crazy or did Jaco occasionally break out a Precision?

 

[xabicho]

According to the official website just Jazz Basses.

http://www.jacop.net/gear.html

 

[fakeneckplate'65]

You're thinking of his cousin, Paco...

I saw a video where he played a Jazz with a fretted P Bass neck, but, I've never noticed an actual Precision bass.

 

[Nickuczynski]

I have a biography written about him that has a single photograph of him playing a Precision but I can't find it on the internet. The book was written by Bill Milkowski.

 

[spaz21387]

I thought he used a p neck on jazzes sometimes for practice but broke out the fretless jazz for shows. He said something about the fatter neck challenging him more and the thinner neck made shows easier.

 

[Schlyder]

Maybe he'll share his bottle with you. I'm sure Jaco picked up and played a Pbass once in a blue moon.... and one photo of such occurrence may exist... But I would have to say that it would be hard to make the claim he gigged with a Pbass.

 

[thenazz]

Page 171 of the book "Jaco" by Bill Milkowski shows a picture of Jaco jamming with Albert Collins and Eddie Martinez and he's playing a P-bass. Enjoy your Jack.

 

[Mike Sorr]

Page 171 of the book "Jaco" by Bill Milkowski shows a picture of Jaco jamming with Albert Collins and Eddie Martinez and he's playing a P-bass. Enjoy your Jack.

That's the one I believe I saw. I figured he must have jammed on a P Bass just like every other bass player on the planet has at one time or another. It's the photo documentation that wins me the Jack. I have that book somewhere. This is going to be good. Cheers!

 

[Mike Sorr]

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[Stick_Player]

Nice pants, Jaco!

 

[jd-ns]

 

[OldDirtyBassist]

Anybody have an audio link to the blues grandstanding incident pictured above?

 

[G-MonRV5]

Looks like Albert Collins is doing his Derek Smalls impression...

 

[bass_case]

Does the bet require that he was playing his own gig, or someone else's?

Jaco frequently showed up at concerts in the Fort Lauderdale area and would pick up whatever bass was available and join in for the encore.

In the '80s I saw The Band in their later years playing a bar in downtown Ft. L. Great concert, and during the encore Jaco suddenly appeared, grabbed one of Danko's basses (may have been the Ampeg, can't recall) and started laying down a Jaco groove.

I saw him quite a few times, never saw him play anything but a Jazz.

 

[DiabolusInMusic]

There are pics of Jaco playing a Carvin LB-70, I am sure he played a Fender P at least once or twice.

The video everybody is thinking of with the fretted P neck on the jazz body is Modern Electric Bass, his instructional DVD.

 

[pnchad]

he played mine many times on my gigs

his brother-in-law was my drummer for several years so he'd sit in on my '76 P factory fretless - still have it

crap, I just realized. If I had a picture of JP playing my bass I could put it on EvilBay for $50k haha

 

[Mike Sorr]

he played mine many times on my gigs

his brother-in-law was my drummer for several years so he'd sit in on my '76 P factory fretless - still have it

crap, I just realized. If I had a picture of JP playing my bass I could put it on EvilBay for $50k haha

Back in the late 80s, early 90s there was a boutique bass store in Hackensack, NJ called "The Bass-Mint" and the store owner claimed that the sunburst Precision Bass in one of his display cases was once owned by Jaco. As I recall, this was fretted, but it was a long ass time ago so I could be mistaken. I have a feeling there are a few sunburst Fenders on the planet whose current owners claim Jaco ownership.

 

[jerry]

It's been awhile, but wasn't it a P-neck on a jazz bass they dug up for him when they did his instructional video?

 

[lfmn16]

Enjoy your Jack.

 

[Bigbri]

You're thinking of his cousin, Paco...

I saw a video where he played a Jazz with a fretted P Bass neck, but, I've never noticed an actual Precision bass.
There were 2 fretted basses. One that appears to be a 2 tone burst but could be a faded 3 tone. He uses this bass in the first 3 or 4 tunes on the Joni mitchell VH1 "Shadows and light tour." You cannot tell the difference between that and the bass of doom.
The second fretted was the one he used in his one and only (as far as I know) instructional video (vhs) I bought my copy when it came out and still have it.
At the beginning he is installing and filing the nut on a recent maple neck on what looks like to be the bass of doom body. There some vids on youtube where he is playing a Jay Dee bass as well.