Jaco Pastorius
John Francis "Jaco" Pastorius III (/ˈdʒɑːkoʊ pæˈstɔːriəs/; December 1, 1951 – September 21, 1987)[1] was an American jazz bassist, composer, and producer. Widely regarded as one of the greatest and most influential bassists of all time,[2] Pastorius recorded albums as a solo artist, band leader, and as a member of the jazz fusion group Weather Report from 1976 to 1981. He also collaborated with numerous artists, including Pat Metheny and Joni Mitchell.[3][4]
Jaco Pastorius
John Francis Pastorius III
December 1, 1951
Norristown, Pennsylvania, U.S.
September 21, 1987 (aged 35)
Fort Lauderdale, Florida, U.S.
- Musician
- composer
- arranger
- producer
- Bass guitar
1966–1987
His bass style was influenced by funk and employed the use of fretless bass, lyrical solos, bass chords and innovative use of harmonics. As of 2017, he was the only one of seven bassists inducted into the DownBeat Jazz Hall of Fame to have been known for their work on the electric bass,[5] and he has been lauded as among the best bassists of all time.[6][7]
Pastorius suffered from drug addiction and mental health issues and, despite his widespread acclaim, over the latter part of his life he had problems holding down jobs due to his unreliability. In frequent financial difficulties, he was often homeless in the mid-1980s. He died in 1987 as a result of injuries sustained in a beating outside a South Florida after-hours nightclub.[3][8]
Since his death in 1987, his work has continued to be widely influential. He was elected to the DownBeat Hall of Fame in 1988 and was the subject of the 2014 documentary film Jaco.
Early life and education[edit]
Pastorius was born December 1, 1951, in Norristown, Pennsylvania,[1] the oldest of three boys born to Stephanie Catherine (née
Haapala; 1925-2001), who was of Finnish descent, and musician John Francis Pastorius Jr. (1922-2004), a singer and jazz drummer of German descent, who spent much of his time on the road. His family moved to Oakland Park near Fort Lauderdale when he was eight.[9] Early American abolitionist Francis Daniel Pastorius is his ancestor.[10]
The origin of Pastorius' nickname, "Jaco", is disputed. There is an interview with Jaco's father, Jack Pastorius, that took place in 2001 hosted by Bob Miles. Jack says that he was given the nickname during his service in the Navy. He later began calling Pastorius by this nickname in his early childhood. In the Robert Trujillo documentary Jaco, Pastorius' brother said that their mother came up with the nickname. It is also believed that the nickname was partially influenced by his love for sports as well as the umpire Jocko Conlan. In 1974, he began spelling it "Jaco" after it was misspelled by his neighbor, pianist Alex Darqui. His brother called him "Mowgli" after the wild boy in The Jungle Book because he was energetic and spent much of his time shirtless on the beach, climbing trees, running through the woods, and swimming in the ocean. He attended St. Clement's Catholic School in Wilton Manors, Florida and was an altar boy at St. Clement's Church. His confirmation name was Anthony. He was intensely competitive and excelled at baseball, basketball, and football. He played drums until he injured his wrist playing football when he was thirteen. The damage was severe enough to warrant corrective surgery and inhibited his ability to play the drums.[9]
By age 17, Pastorius began appreciating jazz and had saved enough money to buy an upright bass. Its deep, mellow tone appealed to him, though it strained his finances. He had difficulty maintaining the instrument, which he attributed to the humidity in Florida. When he woke one day to find it had cracked, he traded it for a 1962 Fender Jazz Bass.[11]
During his teens, he played bass guitar for Wayne Cochran and the C.C. Riders.[12]
In the early 1970s, Pastorius taught bass at the University of Miami, where he befriended jazz guitarist Pat Metheny, who was on the University of Miami's faculty. With Paul Bley and Bruce Ditmas, Pastorius and Metheny recorded an untitled album, Jaco in 1974.[13] Pastorius then played on Metheny's debut album, Bright Size Life (ECM, 1976).[14] He recorded his debut solo album, Jaco Pastorius (Epic, 1976), with Michael Brecker, Randy Brecker, Herbie Hancock, Hubert Laws, Sam & Dave, David Sanborn, and Wayne Shorter.[15]
Guest appearances[edit]
Pastorius appeared as a guest on many albums by other artists, including Ian Hunter of Mott the Hoople, and recorded a solo on the title track of his album All American Alien Boy in 1976. He can be heard on Airto Moreira's album I'm Fine, How Are You? (1977). His signature sound is prominent on Flora Purim's Everyday Everynight (1978), on which he played the bass melody for a Michel Colombier composition entitled "The Hope", and performed bass and vocals on one of his own compositions, entitled "Las Olas". Other recordings included work on four Joni Mitchell albums between 1976 and 1980 (Hejira; Don Juan's Reckless Daughter; Mingus; and Shadows and Light) and Al Di Meola's Land of the Midnight Sun, released in 1976. Near the end of his career, he worked often with guitarist Mike Stern, guitarist Biréli Lagrène, and drummer Brian Melvin.
Awards and honors[edit]
Pastorius received two Grammy Award nominations in 1977 for his self-titled debut album: one for Best Jazz Performance by a Group and one for Best Jazz Performance by a Soloist ("Donna Lee").[39] In 1978, he received a Grammy nomination for Best Jazz Performance by a Soloist for his work on Weather Report's album Heavy Weather.[40]
Bass Player magazine gave him second place on a list of the one hundred greatest bass players of all time, behind James Jamerson.[41] After his death in 1987, he was voted, by readers of Down Beat magazine, to its Hall of Fame, joining bassists Jimmy Blanton, Ray Brown, Ron Carter, Charles Mingus, Charlie Haden, and Milt Hinton.[42]
Marcus Miller said "Jaco's composing was as unique as his playing."[43]
Many musicians have composed songs in his honour, such as Pat Metheny's "Jaco" on the album Pat Metheny Group (1978),[44] "Mr. Pastorius" by Marcus Miller on Miles Davis's album Amandla, and Rod Argent's "Pastorius Mentioned" on his 1978 album Moving Home. Others who have dedicated compositions to him include Randy Brecker, Eliane Elias, Chuck Loeb, John McLaughlin, Bob Moses, Ana Popović, Dave Samuels, and the Yellowjackets.[9]
On December 2, 2007, the day after his birthday, a concert called "20th Anniversary Tribute to Jaco Pastorius" was held at Broward Center for the Performing Arts in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, with performances by the Jaco Pastorius Big Band and appearances by Randy Brecker, Dave Bargeron, Peter Erskine, Jimmy Haslip, Bob Mintzer, Gerald Veasley, Pastorius's sons John and Julius Pastorius, Pastorius's daughter Mary Pastorius, Ira Sullivan, Bobby Thomas Jr., and Dana Paul. Almost twenty years after his death, Fender released the Jaco Pastorius Jazz Bass, a fretless instrument in its Artist Series.
He has been called "arguably the most important and ground-breaking electric bassist in history" and "perhaps the most influential electric bassist today".[45][46]
William C. Banfield, director of Africana Studies, Music and Society at Berklee College, described Pastorius as one of the few original American virtuosos who defined a musical movement, in addition to Jimi Hendrix, Louis Armstrong, Thelonious Monk, Charlie Christian, Bud Powell, Charlie Parker, Dizzy Gillespie, John Coltrane, Sarah Vaughan, Bill Evans, Charles Mingus, and Wes Montgomery.[47]
Death[edit]
On September 11, 1987, Pastorius snuck onstage at a Santana concert at the Sunrise Musical Theater in Sunrise, Florida. After being ejected from the premises, he made his way to the Midnight Bottle Club in Wilton Manors.[48] After reportedly kicking in a glass door, having been refused entrance to the club, he became involved in a violent confrontation with Luc Havan, a club employee who was a martial arts expert.[8][49] Pastorius was hospitalized for multiple facial fractures and injuries to his right eye and left arm, and fell into a coma.[50] There were encouraging signs that he would come out of the coma and recover, but they soon faded. A brain hemorrhage a few days later led to brain death. He was taken off life support and died on September 21, 1987,[1][3] at the age of 35, at Broward General Medical Center in Fort Lauderdale.[48] His funeral was held at St. Clement's Catholic church, Wilton Manors, Florida. Pastorius was buried at Queen of Heaven Cemetery in North Lauderdale, Broward County, Florida.[51]
Havan faced a charge of second-degree murder. He pleaded guilty to manslaughter and was sentenced to twenty-two months in prison and five years' probation. After serving four months in prison, he was paroled for good behavior.[52]
Legacy[edit]
The legacy of Jaco Pastorius is one of the most impactful in the world of electric bass in jazz and in general for every genre, despite his flawed and controversial latter years, [53] although as time passed, his work began to be more appreciated by musicians. Known for his solo career with the self titled album Jaco Pastorius, the track "Donna Lee" is remembered as showcasing his incredible feel and speed on the electric bass,[54] a level of skill which had not been seen before. In his contributions to Weather Report, he is remembered for his incredibly precise and fast bass lines, played with flash and gusto.[54] The fact that he entered the music scene at the age of only 16 has inspired future musicians such as Victor Wooten and Kinga Głyk. Jaco's legacy, while having some aspects that many find to be negative, overwhelmingly shows his unmatched skill and trailblazing in the world of jazz and electric bass performance.[55]
His nephew is David Pastorius.