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Where were you when Jaco died?

#65
I was at a studio getting ready for a bass overdub session in L.A. for a band for whom I was producer/engineer. The bass player arrived with a look on his face I hadn't seen before. He then told me about Jaco. We decided to scratch the session (the band owned the studio) and we decided to mourn by watching Jaco videos. We were both pretty shaken.

Some background - I was a jazz major at the Univ of Miami from 1977 -1981. Jaco's presence was very much a part of my experience there. His death caused me to re-evaluate my career in Los Angeles. By this point I owned one bass, no amp, and a room full of synths and drum machines. I was a full fledged studio rat and barely touched the bass anymore. I realized that had to change.

I then bought an amp, started going to jam sessions, sold some of my synths, and eventually left L.A. and got serious about the bass again here in St. Louis.
 
#66
I was in college at the time.

I remember picking up a copy of Rolling Stone that was in the cafeteria.

Thumbing through the pages I saw the One page article reporting his death.

I was pretty sad since I blew-off a chance to see him in NY a few years earlier.
 
#68
bassybill said:
While it's true that we don't have to all like the same things, it's also the case that some people are so exceptional that they transcend mere personal opinion. And regardless of what anyone thinks of his mental health issues, as a bass player and musician, Jaco was certainly in that category. I'd like to think that anybody who considers themselves a fellow musician can respect and understand that.
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Not true at all.........Jaco transcends nothing in my book. I'm glad that he reached elevation for many, but ask someone who doesn't play bass or someone who enjoys listening to and buying music and chances are high they know nothing of him or what he did for his niche of bass playing. Again, I don't want to troll.....I just hate that after 25 years of playing bass I still feel that other players think I somehow "have" to like Jaco or "respect" him. I'll say it again, he threw his life away with drugs............I don't respect that...........people DO NOT have to suffer for their art........only other artists seem to agree while they try and figure out why their own art isn't at a level they want.........Jaco may be good at what he did, but I don't like it so I have nothing to gauge whether he was better than any other person. I respect those who like him though, you are a unwaivering bunch!!
 
#70
Just my .02....

Many people don't like Bach, or Stravinsky, but if they are aware of who they are (I have gone out with girls who thought Beethoven was only a dog from a movie), then even if they don't like their music, they are at least aware what these musicians mean to music.

Jaco may not be everybody's cup of tea - hell, I don't care for his live performance - but even if you don't like anything he has ever played I think it is unfair to diminish his role in the development of the bass guitar. Just like Jamerson, or Bruce before Jaco had pivotal roles in the transformation the bass has underwent in its brief history.

Like I said this is strictly IMO, but if you don't like Jaco, there is nothing inherently wrong with that.

But you probably never listened to his self titled debut. That was a masterpiece.
 
#72
emor said:
Nobody knew who Jamerson was (at least before SITSOM).
He must not have had much of an impact on the instrument either.
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he had impact on me.....the Bass world is waaaay more diverse that the few folks we hold high....Jaco supporters tend to "push" more than most, thats all.............I guess I'm not good at explaining......it's all good............and it's all IMHO ya know.......:bassist:
 
#78
I have been avoiding the Bassists forum like a plauge for the last few years,took shelter in the OT just because of this ridicilous Jaco,Wooten,Sheehan "shreds"/"sucks"/"rocks but you don't get it you suck" wars.

Yet my shelter has been possessed by this devil,been poisoned by this venomous snake...:atoz:

How hard can it be to answer a question that demans only a place as an answer and not adding stuff like "I never got him","I don't like him","He sucks","he rocks",he did it with 4 strings","which bass is best for metal","P or J?,"Stingray or Sterling?", "Fodera is overpriced", "Ampeg or GK?","all tube or solid state?" etc. etc. etc. etc. etc. etc. etc. ....................:bawl:
 

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