I’m a resident of the Stanley Clarke camp when it comes to electric jazz bass. Clarke’s contributions to Return to Forever were that band’s primary saving grace in my book. Plus he gave Sam Rivers some serious competition for the mantle of coolest coifed afro in the Seventies. I’ve only had dalliances with the discography of Jaco. A completely solo disc culled from Italian gigs nabbed in 92’ served as a faulty indoctrination and I quickly lost interest. Over the years though the curiosity kept creeping back and eyeing this disc in a used bin recently I handed over half a sawbuck to take it home. It’s part of a seven volume set and a bit unusual in that Jaco opts for a fretted axe. The tune choices are fairly telling of the date’s age and the trio’s decision to open with the antiquated “Wipe Out” doesn’t help the case for a cutting edge designation. Art Pepper’s “Straight Life,” rendered surprisingly straight, leads into more pop cover fare like “I Shot the Sheriff” and “Dear Prudence.” On the latter Hiram Bullock squashes his notes with a wah-wah pedal, squirting them out like squiggles of ochre acrylic squeezed from tumescent paint tube. The guitarist even accesses his inner arena rock child for the groove staple “Ode to Billie Joe” coaxing out hard crunching power chords at the conclusion while drummer Kenwood Dennard lays down a fair share of healthy funk. “Continuum” becomes a bit lost in sparkly echo-etched riffing and turgid noodling. “Three Views of a Secret” proves a snoozer too as both Jaco and Bullock switch to corny organ-style keyboards. But the Meters’ “Cissy Strut” is another matter, the prime conduit for his percolating fingerings as he plays Porter Jr. to Bullock’s Nocentelli. The cover photo is a kepper too, picturing Pastorius with aquamarine Rasta cap and tye dye tunic, sporting his usual look of smug constipation. Creative blockage gets piped through his contorted countenance leaving his cerebrum and fingers free to conspire in crafting those furiously fibrillating runs. Sure it’s sloppy and overly bombastic in spots, but I’m betting that’s just how Jaco was the majority of the time in person. This after all was a man whose insufferable ego could easily occupy its own zip code.
Derek: now we're talking (although while I may have the complete series on Big World, I can't say that this presents my man in the best light). So much better things for you, my man. After all, I'm one of the few of us that will stick my neck out for some shredding! Now, Bivins, where are those Holdworth bootlegs?
Posted by: Jay at August 18, 2004 7:55 PMDamn - one too many of Chicago's finest - I meant Holdsworth!
Posted by: Jay at August 18, 2004 8:01 PMKeep trying, Collins. I remain Holdsworthless.
Posted by: Jason at August 19, 2004 5:04 AMI hear you, Jay. So does that mean you prefer Pastorius to my main man Clarke? Been reading that those Big World discs arent’ exactly the wheat of the Jaco harvest. Loose consensus seems to contend that Vols. 4 & 5 are the best ones in the series. Would you agree? What’s the choicest stuff outside his Weather Report orbit?
Finally remembered the name of that solo disc- it’s called HONESTLY. Thom Jurek’s got a typically ecstatic write-up over @ AMG. Favorite pull-quote: “[Jaco’s] was clearly the watermark to beat — musically, technically, and emotionally — and probably still is.”
Don’t recall it being THAT good, but the looping stuff is pretty nifty.
Favorite pull-quote:
Creative blockage gets piped through his contorted countenance leaving his cerebrum and fingers free to conspire in crafting those furiously fibrillating runs.
Good thing the c and f keys are so closely placed.
Posted by: Tractor Pull at August 19, 2004 5:44 PMsho' nuff TP, otherwise I might've pulled a tendon ;)
Posted by: derek at August 19, 2004 6:32 PMSorry chaps for the drunken enthusiasm last night(yet I still say Bivster is missing out). Regarding this Big World series, I think that it is at best a curiosity, at worse, a tarnish (one of many since his unfortunate passing) on a man with incredible talents.
Jaco's recordings were often uneven in my opinion (a lot of fluff and self-indulgence at times). The posthumous has done little to help and in my opinion, has hurt his legacy a great deal. As for recommendations, I dig the first record and his infamous Holiday For Pans release. His second Warner disc, Word Of Mouth, has some adventurous moments, but rarely congeals as it should have (given his illness, the results seem fitting in hindsight). If you really want to check him out, start with the first record or the EXCELLENT Japan Only Live Disc - Twins. The Early Years box set is suppossed to be good, but I cannot justify $45 for a two CD set. Oh, and the Punk Jazz overview on Rhino looks tasty (although I have all of it already so I didn't pick it up).
As for the Weather Report work and his many sideman appearances, the compositions and arrangments are the reflection of the times - cheesy synths, syrupy tunes about love and all of that crap - you get the pitcure. Specifically, the band (with Jaco) was at its peak on Night Passage and Heavy Weather is also decent (hard to miss "Teen Town" or "Havona").
As for solo work, Joni Mitchell's Hejira is an essential record on so many levels. Ditto Don Juan's Reckless Daughter and Mingus. The Bright Size Life record with Metheny is fantastic as well. Lots off odds and ends.
That's about it. . . Oh, Honestly and those other releases on Jazzpoint are pretty crappy (but stangely I can't let them go - kind of like The Hands of Caravaggio - heh heh).
Posted by: Jay at August 19, 2004 7:50 PMJesus - "at worse". Send me back to journalism school.
Anyway, Derek, I like Clarke with Corea but his solo stuff is pretty dismal. Although Holdsworth did guest on one of his records, so he can't be all that bad. Wait a minute, shall we start singing "Musicmagic"? - wretched stuff.
Posted by: Jay at August 19, 2004 7:55 PMJay, thanks for the recs. I’ll comb the racks this weekend & pick one of those out. Just to clarify, Jaco doesn’t play thunder broom on PANS, right?
I’d concede that a lot of Clarke’s later solo work suffers from the Jamaladeen Syndrome- especially the stuff with sappy vocals- but I still spin the first three discs, & fusion ain’t usually my bag. The brother had C-H-O-P-S (still does for all I know) & the ‘fro speaks volumes of cred for itself. He and George Duke sure could lock on a groove.
Digging the new pull-no-punches side of the Collins music critique machine ;)
Funny that Clarke should come up...I just bought Return To Forever's Hymn Of The Seventh Galaxy and Romantic Warrior not three days ago (and got a twofer of Considered Dead and The Erosion Of Sanity by Gorguts on the same trip!). I've been enjoying the RTF discs quite a bit - Corea might be tight in the grip of one of the worst cults on Earth, but he was a hell of a prog-rocker back in the day. (And, of course, his electronic noise work on Miles's Black Beauty is unassailable.)
Don't know much about Jaco, because I don't like Weather Report. They really needed a guitar player.
Posted by: phil at August 20, 2004 9:03 AMNo prob, Derek. Why, yes, there is some tHUNDER bROOM (nice watt reference) on HFP. It is tough to find, but alas, you know where to find me if you are curious.
RE: Clarke. I was a little harsh. I just let my School Days vinyl go recently, but there are a couple of tracks on there that are worthwhile, especially that cut where Gadd lays down one of the most solid drum patterns of his career ("Quiet Afternoon"). Some quality piccolo bass too. But come on, the second (or was it thrid phase) of Return To Forever was wretched - not even Farrell could save the day. Too bad Corea is back with the Electric Band - what the hell is his problem? Where is Origin?
Yes, pull no punches, hmmm. I dunno - this is all off the record, right?
Posted by: Jay at August 20, 2004 10:18 AMPhil, I absolutely agree with you about "Black Beauty" which I love (& I love "Live at Fillmore East" with its TWO whacked keyboardists even more) but can you really prefer that Return to Forever crap to the two or three best Weather Report recordings?!
Sometimes I don't know about you, man.
Posted by: walto at August 20, 2004 12:14 PMI just feel like Weather Report is too pretty, too soft at the center, for me. The Return To Forever stuff I like (which was just that four-album stretch from Hymn... through Romantic Warrior) has more speed and power - like I said above, I hear 'em as prog-rock. For me, it's all about the screaming lead guitar.
Posted by: Phil Freeman at August 20, 2004 1:01 PMFWIW, I'll take "Mysterious Traveler" over any of those. I hear the chibbidy-chibbidy-chibbidy guitar (and bass and piano) lines, but not so much the power or the screaming.
And I especially hear the forever parts. They repeat on me.
:>}
Posted by: walto at August 20, 2004 1:13 PMMysterious Traveler is the only Weather Report disc I still own - I used to have four or five. And if you like it, I recommend checking out ex-Miles guitarist Mike Stern's These Times, from last year. A lot of it sounds very close in style to "Nubian Sundance."
Posted by: Phil Freeman at August 20, 2004 4:09 PM.................................................. © 2003 - 2006 bagatellen ..................................................