Bassist Jaco Pastorius was a musical innovator, a celebrated master and an audacious free spirit, who proved an inspiring—and challenging—force to all who played music with him. KNKX’s Michael Stein tells us more.(script by Trent Kelly)
(Music: “Portrait of Tracy,” Jaco Pastorious)
Jaco Pastorius was a competitive, athletic kid … raised on the beaches of Florida in the late 1950s and early '60s. Originally a drummer, a football injury in high school led to him switching to the bass guitar. He was enthralled by the instrument—and in various groups over the next few years (including on cruise ships in the Caribbean), the artist that many call “The Best Bassist in the World” began to evolve.
(Music: “6_4 Jam,” Jaco Pastorious)
His 1976 debut album, “Jaco Pastorius,” showcased his unique style with help from his growing circle of friends—like Herbie Hancock. It was also around this time that he joined Weather Report, the seminal group that helped usher in a new fusion of jazz, rock, and funk. In 1977, Weather Report made one of the biggest crossover hits of the decade: “Birdland.”
(Music: “Birdland,” Weather Report)
“Birdland” owes a lot to Jaco’s "no rules" style of bass playing—primal, evocative, full of nuance and sensitivity—qualities that caught the ear of a folk-music icon looking to move her sound in far more free-wheeling directions: Joni Mitchell.
(Music: “Refuge of the Road,” Joni Mitchell)
Joni Mitchell had grown dissatisfied with the studio musicians she’d been working with, yearning especially for a bass player who could break out of the mold of merely holding down the bottom end. She and Jaco proved an inspired pairing, creating three albums together over four years, including the classic “Hejira.”
(Music: “Hejira,” Joni Mitchell)
The music Jaco helped Joni Mitchell create is some of the best of both their careers, and she speaks of their work together with obvious love and appreciation. That sense of adventure, and expansiveness, is also present in his solo work, and his 1976 debut album is just one of the reasons that fans and fellow musicians call him “The Best Bass Player in the World.”
We remember, and appreciate, Jaco Pastorius on 88.5 KNKX.
