Book Description
A fitting tribute to the troubled genius who revolutionized electric bass playing and bridged the gaps between jazz, RandB, rock and funk. From his early days in RandB club bands through his international stardom with fusion group Weather Report and on to his solo career and tragic death at age 35, this book portrays the life and music of Jaco Pastorius, the self-proclaimed "world's greatest bass player." This special anniversary edition features new interviews with Jaco's childhood friends, prominent bass players of Jaco's era and afterward, and girlfriend Teresa Nagell, who was with Jaco in the last few years of his life. Some incidents from the first edition have been further researched and expanded to become full chapters. Exclusive to this edition, the CD features newly revealed music tracks from Jaco's early years along with spoken testimonials from Jaco's friends and colleagues. The book also contains new, never-before-seen photos acquired from the Pastorius estate.
Customer Reviews:
Entertaining, but is it accurate?.......2007-07-19
First off, the title is great. There is no doubt that Jaco is one of the most (if not the most) gifted bass players of all time. The book documents his life as a young boy who picked up the bass (after he could not play drums any longer because he broke his arm), his career and his later years when he suffered from mental illness and died at 33. I bring up the question of accuracy as it has been raised by others as well.
One criticism about the book has been that it sensationalizes Jaco's destructive behaviour and takes away from his legacy. This is a point made by Metheny (who was a friend and a fellow musician) in the liner notes of Jaco's debut album. Also I have asked the opinion of (via a short e-mail) Jaco's second wife. Her website that details some minor inaccuracies that exist in the first edition.
That being said the book is well written and gives insight into Jaco's life. Milkowski (who is a music journalist) portrays Jaco as an extremely gifted, hard working and narcisisstic man who self destructs at the end due to bipolar disease. The clues to Jaco's illness are evident from his early years. He plays tirelessly and at times seldom sleeps. At the end of his life he self destructs due to a number of reasons including refusal comply with treatment for his illness,drugs and drinking.
One has to wonder what it says about our society that no one helped Jaco when he was clearly suffering towards the end. I posted the same question to Jaco's wife and her answer was that one has to be willing to accept help.
Mental illness is still misunderstood my most of the world. People who suffer from it can be hard to deal with and be around. I hope that if the same scenario plays out today, with better understanding of mental illness, the outcome would be different. But I am not an optimist.
David.......2006-11-02
This book is a well done biography worth reading. Unfortunately it focuses mostly on the sensationalism of Jaco's life. Looking back what you remember is story after story of his out of control behavior, and attempts to explain it by blaming the negative people in his life. I would have liked to have heard more of his successes. It is an excellent book for musicians, but even better for anyone in the field of mental health.
This extrodinary man had serious mental health problems. It seems the only time he had a chance was when he was arrested and put in Bellevue psychiatric hospital. Unfortunately he always convinced friends to get him out. Even the author admits to this mistake.
This without a doubt one of the saddest books I have ever read especially since I know and love his music and talent. But also because had he lasted another 10 years, new drugs may have helped.
However there were too many hangers on and bad influences. It reminds me of the old Rodney Dangerfield joke in which he states,"I appeal to people who can do me absolutely no good."
In this book there is plenty of blame to go around.
A different type of read.......2006-08-21
This book reads at times like a hagiography of Jaco. Yeah, Jaco's flaws are enumerated, but there is an obvious worship of Jaco by the author. Having said that, it is still a good book. It is a very thorough biography. It is a little different, in that it helps to have a knowledge of the intricacies of music, e.g., specific chord changes are mentioned. Yo, I took piano, so I don't know a D chord from a G chord on a guitar. Still, I enjoyed the book and learned a lot.
The 40 minute CD that comes with the book, is a real nice bonus by the author. Thanks.
An Outstanding Biography.......2006-08-09
I remember Jaco Pastorius through several great concerts with Weather Report and a sizzling show with Word of Mouth at the Cleveland Agora.
For those who had the chance to appreciate his music live or for so many that are grooving to Jaco many years after his death, the updated biography - with a CD that includes additional material - by Bill Milkowski is the best way to piece together the complicated rise and fall of the brilliant musician.
Milkowski has exhaustive interviews with musicians, family members, media, friends and lovers that are split in chapters to coincide with his years as a musician with a dream, the height of musical achievement and then leaving Weather Report, and the controversial years after leaving the group that found Jaco spiralling out of control personally and musically.
That Jaco was a musical genius cannot be denied. The book will leave you wondering why Jaco - as with too many artists - took his gift and tossed it into the abyss of "what could have been."
jaco lives.......2005-12-24
Well i would like to state that this book is a great read but also to tell you all the my father acually grew up in Ft. Lauderdal a few house down from where him, and was a close friend of his until my dad was drafted into the army. When he came back he lost contact. So he was the one who first told me about him, so i decided to pick up this book. I recommed it to anyone who want to learn about this master of the bass.
Product Description
Note-for-note transcriptions with tab of Jaco's brilliant bass work on 16 songs: Amerika Birdland Blackbird The Chicken Chromatic Fantasy Come On, Come Over Continuum Donna Lee Invitation Liberty City Opus Pocus Portrait of Tracy River People Soul Intro Teen Town Word of Mouth.
Customer Reviews:
Jaco - note for note!!.......2007-02-01
I grew up playing bass. When I first started, all I wanted to do was to be able to play like Jaco. This book lays out very clearly all of the notes Jaco played on these recordings and alows you to (slowly for me) start hammering out the different licks and tricks and grooves. I appreciate this book much more as an older and more mature bass player, because I can now actually pull off many of the songs with Jaco's technique very nicely. Playing Jaco's material with any kind of finesse is not easy. So what this book so amazingly offers is the notes, the hard work and practice to get it right is up to you.
I'll admit that I will NEVER be 1 tenth the talent Jaco was, but..........2006-05-18
OK, first off, I'm a Fender Precision Bass player, and have been perfoming since 1971. So, needless to say, whatever Jaco played is/sounds brilliant, and I've rather dilligently tried to rip off/"play" some of his riffs - HA-ha...Anyway, MY favorite "Jaco Moment" is that ASTOUNDING (Cameron Crowe would probably say "incindiary") bass solo, right after the first verse of Ian Hunter's "All American Alien Boy." In just two lines, Jaco does things with his bass (a Fender Jazz Bass) that most "lead" guitarists I've heard/played with/for, just could NOT play with such finesse and speed. Ok, OK, WHY WASN'T THAT SOLO INCLUDED IN THIS BOOK?
concordia bass player.......2003-07-17
i absolutely love this book!!! if you are into analysis, and checking out what jaco actually played from the beginning to the end this is a good book. i'm am actually learning these peices in the book, and i would say that there is no other way better to learn how and why he does what he does, than actually going over and playing what he did, note for note.
Customer Reviews:
Incredible wealth of exercises. 1/2 the price of the video!.......2004-03-06
First of all, I'm not a die-hard Jaco fan. Hell, he isn't even in my personal top 10 list. So my reason for giving this 5 stars is not "because it's Jaco"; it's because this package contains a WEALTH of bass knowledge and exercises designed for the non-beginner, jam packed into a 36 page book and single CD.
The contents of this book/CD package were directly taken from the video edition of the same title. But the book/CD stands alone as a separate product; you DO NOT need the video to make sense of it. In fact after I bought this, it was still years before I got to see the video.
The book starts off with a quick review of the scales and modes, and the rest consists of transcriptions of all the exercises and solo pieces found on the CD. One thing that sets some of these excercises apart from other books is that they're fun and musical, not boring and mechanical. You may have learned all your scales and modes before, but these exercises have you practicing and playing them in new ways and in new position. Jaco also covers the use of chords, harmonics, playing in odd beat divisions, and plays a few solo songs that really put it all together with groove. All of the exercises are GREAT for helping you think-out-side-the-box.
Aside from the exercises, the CD also contains some of the band-performed music found on the video and interview clips. Jaco talks about subjects like the importance of reading sheet music (a good reason why this book contains no tablature), how he became a bass player, and playing different musical styles.
Considering this book/CD set has pretty much everything from the video and costs half as much, I'd actually recommend this product over the video itself.
Insight into Jaco's Technique from the man himself!.......2003-01-26
This instructional book gives many exercises from Jaco himself. It has a cd that comes with it that helps out. It covers harmonics (has a chart) and ways to improve your left hand speed, precision, and clarity. The book itself is clear enough that you can use it to teach yourself. Though the book goes with the video (of the same name) so it's good to get both. Also, on the cd is a jam session with jaco and an interview. All in all it's a great value and no jaco collection is complete without it.
Book Description
Oil makes the world go round. Follow the fascinating story-from the fields of Kuwait to the streets of Venezuela and beyond...
An analysis of the role that oil plays in the U.S. and how it has affected our foreign policy, this book traces the evolution of the industry, including such defining moments as the invention of the automobile and the discovery of oil in Saudi Arabia. Discussing politics, economics, and science, this book offers comprehensive, up-to-date information on the substance that was left to us by the dinosaurs-and that drives our industrialized world.
Customer Reviews:
Iraq War is Linked to Oil.......2007-09-16
Some of the critics of this book blast because it links wars to the struggle for continuing supplies of oil. Finally someone from the Bush administration agrees. Here's quotes from Alan Greenspan's new book, "The Age of Turbulence: Adventures in a New World:"
"Whatever their publicized angst over Saddam Hussein's 'weapons of mass destruction,' American and British authorities were also concerned about violence in an area that harbors a resource indispensable for the functioning of the world economy," Greenspan wrote.
"I'm saddened that it is politically inconvenient to acknowledge what everyone knows: The Iraq war is largely about oil," added Greenspan, who for decades had been one of the most respected U.S. voices on fiscal policies.
Not a bad piece of work, if you're a college sophomore.......2006-03-09
The book began with petroleum facts and figures, which were informative enough (but which can be easily obtained for free online), but then morphed into a populist op-ed piece, a series of insinuations based on anecdotes and contextually questionable quotes. Clearly, the authors spent a lot of time looking for quotes and figures which backed their preconceived political point of view.
If you are a left wing ideologue, or a believer in conspiracy theories, you'll love the book. But then again, you won't need to buy it because you'll already believe everything the authors say.
If you're a hard right winger, you'll be flummoxed and probably toss it after you finish the statistics.
If on the other hand, you prefer to think critically and are willing to try and understand complex issues (including perhaps even more than a single perspective!), you'll probably dismiss this as lightweight ideology from folks who really, really want to believe that oil companies are all intrinsicaly evil.
For example, the authors strongly imply, and steer the reader towards believing, that the Afghan war was all about a pipeline. Really? Show me some analysis. How much oil or gas revenues will the pipeline generate? How much net profit? How much of that then goes to the IRS? Then consider what the cost of the war has been. Does the assertion make any economic sense? It does not. If you then believe, as the authors must, that the US government is sufficiently immoral so as to cause at least some Americans and innocents to die because of a pipeline, then why didn't the wicked US oil barons instead just say "Kuwait caused 9/11" send in the troops, and take tiny Kuwait and its oil fields (immensely more profitable and less risky than a single Afghan pipeline) for a fraction of the time and cost of the Afghanistan war? Or better still, why not just embezzle a few billion off the US budget, hand it out to your Big Oil pals, and forget about war altogether? And why did the UN support the Afghan war, and many countries send troops in? Because Bush and/or the oil companies hoodwinked the entire world? Or were all these countries participating in the pipeline conspiracy too? But then the cut to the IRS starts getting smaller. All decent questions that the authors might have addressed, but they were silent on the implications of their conspiracy theories. They clearly did not wish to reseach alternative explanations.
Or, if you believe the old populist saw that refineries are intentionally shut down to drive up prices, then you have to believe that whatever the refineries might then make from higher profits will more than offset days or weeks of zero daily revenue. And you also need an explanation for falling prices. From 1984 to recent years, oil prices, gasoline prices, and oil share prices languished; many oil companies went bankrupt, hundreds of thousands of employees lost their jobs. Do the authors believe that the evil CEO's took a 20 year break from bad deeds, and sacrificed company performance so the US could enjoy cheaper fuels? Yet the authors' conspiracy theories offer no support for mechanisms behind falling price environments. Presumably they think that the market can drive down the price of gasoline, but if the price goes up, there must be evil afoot. They don't seem to understand the nature of commodities.
Perhaps there is more going on in the oil industry than meets the eye, but the authors of this book have very little grasp on the realities of the business, and in the end their one-sided collection of speculations caused me to dismiss their credibility. It's a shame that uninformed readers take this for a reference work. If you really do want to learn how the industry works, you can do much better than this.
Excellent overview and history.......2005-09-17
I'm just a few chapters into this book, but I was enjoying it enough so that I wanted to make a brief comment. I'll probably write a more thorough review later.
This book presents the history of oil, and how it came to dominate the politics and policy of the entire world in just the last century. There is some interesting history in that the authors discuss how the oil industry actually originated in Romania. By the time of the first oil well in the U.S. in 1859, Romania was already mining 1000 metric tons of oil per year by means of open pit mines, since this was before effective drilling began.
Until then mostly all there was was oil seeps with oil coming up from the ground, and the occasional farmer using the gloppy stuff to lubricate an axel or two, and it was used in patent medicines. But there was no real industrial or widespread use even in heating or lighting, with whale oil being the main product there. Then because of some strange coincidences involving several people who were brought together, the first American oil well was sunk, and the rest, as they say, is history.
I notice one person here panned the book because of its perceived liberal bias, but it's really only a slight liberal bias in that sense. And the authors do mention that the evidence about Bush's "secret oil report" that supposedly influenced the discussion to invade Iraq that's discussed was only reported by a European newspaper. They don't claim it's actual fact.
But anyone who believes that the U.S.'s need for oil at least to some extent drives political policy is living in a very naive, political cloud-cuckoo land.
So overall, a good book on the subject and one that I learned a good deal from.
Overshadowed by political bias..........2004-10-26
The first half of the book was great, very informative and written fairly and accurately. But as soon as the subject turned to modern day political issues, the overwhelming prejudice of the blatantly liberal authors began to shine through. It would have been such a great book if it could have presented non-partisan views on the politics of oil, but instead the authors couldn't resist pushing their anti-Bush agenda for the entire second half of the book.
Their arguments were totally one-sided and they conveniently omitted many important facts and arguments about the reasons for the current administrations' energy policies. I was very disappointed in that aspect of the book; and although the rest of the material was well presented, it was hard to not question the motives behind each explanation and wonder what else they weren't telling me.
An excellent reader on a perplexing topic.......2003-12-03
This book serves as an excellent guide to understanding the source for a host of national and international conflicts. The organization of the text is exceptionally useful, allowing you to breeze over parts that you may not be interested in (for me, this was the scientific aspect of oil development) and quickly understand the more engaging material (such as international relations and energy politics). An excellent basic guide that should be a must for all high school and college students interested in political science. It doesn't get a five stars from me because, at times, the material is almost too basic, but that's what this book series is all about. Excellent for a comprehensive review that covers the bredth, not necessarilly the depth, of the topic.
Customer Reviews:
It's all we got.......2007-01-05
Milkowski does not do justice to the artist or person of Jaco. This seems a greater let down being that he actually hung with the guy quite a bit. There is so much to Jaco's story that seems to have been glanced over. Being as though I anticipated this so much probably contributes to my lack of enthusiasm for it. Could have been much better. It is just the only book on him.
You Can't Put it Down.......2000-02-12
Jaco was a genius trapped on this planet! He inspired me to keep going even though his talent may never be reached by a common man. Sad and Amazing!
Jaco was my hero.......1999-12-15
I couldn't believe it when I finally found a book about Jaco. Where have I been? I was thinking of writing my master's thesis about Jaco a couple of years ago. But how could I top this book. What a great read. I read it in 2 days. I couldn't put it down. Of course when you love someone's music, and are amazed and saddened by someone's life like Jaco's, it's not hard completely diving into the book and not coming up for air. I wish someone would option this book for a movie. It's a great, yet tragic tale.
If you thought you knew about Jaco tragic life,you MUST read.......1999-08-04
I thought I pretty much had an idea about Jaco's tragic life,but after reading this book I learned so much more.I do not read alot of books but this book kept my interest from beginning to end.If you play the bass you must read this book so you can understand how much you owe Jaco,if you do not play bass[which I do not]but have a love for music and are interested in look at rare individual you must read this book.Jaco like so many b4 him[Jimi,Janis,Brain Jones etc]had that special flare and magic and just tried to live to much oof life,in Jaco's case a mental disorder as well as drugs did not help.So from 1 lover of music [I play drums] to all who are in that catergory,please read this book.
Jaco will always be "The Greatest"!.......1999-06-11
I picked up this book out of curiousity after buying Jaco's solo album. I heard of him and I wanted to read about him. This book has changed my views on the music industry and performing and has ultimately made me a better musician. Jaco single handedly revolutionaized the electric bass to unimaginable proportions. No bass player should ever go without a Jaco album and no musician should go without reading this book. Informative, tragic and educational. I love this book and have have read it through four times. Jaco and his music will live in my heart forever.
Average customer rating:
- Sooooo bad
- Peter Dees is Back!
- Jaco does it again
- Awesome
- Great second novel
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Live Shot
Charles Jaco
Manufacturer: Ballantine Books
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Mass Market Paperback
 Contemporary
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ASIN: 0345421868
Release Date: 1999-12-07 |
Book Description
Journalist Peter Dees lives where most people die: in war zones and killing fields from Africa to Panama, Bosnia to the Middle East. Now Dees is about to walk into a firefight one short boat ride from Key West.
In Cuba, Fidel is dying. The natives are restless. And a ruthlessly powerful man has kicked off a dirty little war on both sides of the Gulf Stream. With a good friend dead, a fierce Cuban beauty at his side, and hot links reaching to every corner of the world's information superhighway, Dees is running wired through a minefield of fanatics, spies, and killers. What's at stake is the ultimate live shot: of a nuclear device--exploding in America's backyard. . . .
Customer Reviews:
Sooooo bad.......2001-02-17
This book is such a cluttered, disjointed and impossible melange of events that I frequently thought it must be an intentional parody.
The author should watch out his facts, too -- there is no set of "civilian" GPS satellites.
Peter Dees is Back!.......2000-03-03
Live Shot is extraordinary and Peter Dees is the Man! More than a worthy successor to Dead Air. The writing is swift, concise and sharp as a machete. Anyone who is at all interested in how journalists really work should not pass this series up. Mr. Jaco has been there and back. With Cuba in the news of late, it is timely and and locales are authentic. Way to go, Mr. Jaco! More Dees, please.
Jaco does it again.......2000-01-26
I loved DEAD AIR, and LIVE SHOT, Jaco's second, doesn't disappoint. The action is fast paced,the plot seemingly stolen from the day's news, the characters well-drawn and believable, and then there are those luscious locales.
This one truly is hard to put down, you'll want to devour it cover to cover. By all means, buy LIVE SHOT. Just make sure you have a comfortable place to read it, lest you find yourself, long after the mail carrier has left, wrapping paper still at your feet, leaning on your front door, licking your fingers as you read page after page after page after.....
Awesome.......1999-12-20
Jaco quickly earned the status of my current favorite author with Dead Air, did not disappoint with this second book. The story moves faster than the Miami Grand Prix, even faster than the Health Department buries a pfiesteria outbreak! Jaco writes like an insider who understands the behind-the-scenes politics of what makes the news. The story is a timely, accurate and crisp capture of the cadence and culture of the American-Caribbean pulse. Watch the news and you will agree! The local facts are expertly researched but the characters must be superhuman to survive Jaco's rapid pace and twists. To the experienced Jaco fan, (except for those totally clueless - like my friend, Bob) the ultimate villain is evident upon introduction with confirmation all along the way. Only first timers are surprised when the identity is finally revealed. And true to a Jaco story, the strong, brilliant, sexy heroine is nuts for Peter Dees, the Superman hero. Except that Superman had limits. Autobiographical fantasy? Maybe. What makes this a great story is that Jaco really is just a regular guy with a great brain, current knowledge and wonderful talent. Everyone I know loved this book.
Great second novel.......1999-12-17
I just finished this book and it was a great second adventure for Peter Dees. This time around the action takes place in South Florida and Cuba, locales that are near to my heart. The characters are believable and you feel like you're in the middle of the fray. Jaco is an excellent journalist and becoming an engrossing and readable action author. I couldn't put the book down and neither will you. It's fast paced and current with it's Florida-Cuba connection and full of action and mystery. If you choose to add this book to your holiday reading list you won't be disappointed.
Book Description
Explore the technical brilliance and musical genius of the greatest electric bassist the world has ever known. This book features highly detailed analysis of 12 of Jaco's epic bass solos from the songs: Amerika o Bright Size Life o Chromatic Fantasy o Continuum o Days of Wine and Roses o Donna Lee - Havona - Port of Entry - Portrait of Tracy - Punk Jazz - Slang - (Used to Be A) Cha Cha.
Customer Reviews:
Dr. Malone Did His Homework.......2007-08-17
This is a carefully and beautifully written book. I was among those who were stunned in 1976 when Jaco's debut CD was released, and I absorbed as much of his playing as I could at that time. Today, this book continues to help me, and it can only add to your insight, appreciation, and ability to play in the tradition of the late, great Jaco Pastorius.
good collection, should be revised.......2007-05-12
i like this book, especially the brief analysis of each solo, but i would urge anyone using it to learn licks to take the book as a "suggestion", get some transcribing software, and do your own transcriptions, or at least do some note checking. there are plenty of mistakes in these books, i have seen, and sometimes it can obscure the logic of certain licks and how they must've been executed. i am thinking specifically of the bright size life solo. these books are fine for casual study, though.
Essential to your "Jaco" library.......2004-10-28
This is one of the finest selections I have for Jaco's written music. The markings and notations are well defined, but beyond the exquisite job done with the transcriptions the analysis that accompanies each piece is some of the real meat and potatoes that interested me. Malone points out what Jaco did stylistically and with note selection that gave him that elusive characteristic "signature sound" that only the truly great musicians had. The title was very clear. This book deals with the "solos" of Jaco and NOT his legendary "grooves". Dr. Malone rightly places Jaco among the musical geniuses of all time and affords the credit due to this master of music and the electric bass. This book will satisfy and should be on the shelf of every true Jaco afficianado.
Book Description
Exact transcriptions with tab of this jazz-fusion legend's incredible work on 14 tracks: Barbary Coast - Birdland - Black Market - Cannonball - Harlequin - Havona - Palladium - Port of Entry - Punk Jazz - A Remark You Made - River People - Slang - Speechless - Teen Town.
Customer Reviews:
Get some insider information.......2004-03-16
Okay, first--you have to have skills needed to not only read music and tab, but the dexterity and articulation needed to tackle material other than the most basic bass lines. Secondly, you will need the CD's or source material needed to pick up on the nuances that Jaco employs through dynamics, touch and feeling. Thirdly -- you will need time. Acquaint yourself with the music then start hitting the book.
Not wanting to play anything note for note like some sort of automotron, I choose rather to go for the feel. Afterall, can one really achieve each individual percussive attack or note? I hope not! If you can then buy an old beater Fender Fretless, drop in .9mf Cap, make sure the pickups supply the necessary Low, Mids and Trebs... change your roto-sounds weekly pick up an acoustic 360 amp and go for it. If not... go for the feel.
The selections are good and cover a wide range of material and styles. It is enjoyable to get inside the music a bit.
Product Description
Learn the trademark grooves and solos of the man who revolutionized bass guitar. This book/CD pack will help you take a closer look at Jaco's rich body of work through the structural, theoretical, and harmonic analysis of these classic recordings: Birdland Bright Size Life Come On, Come Over Continuum Donna Lee God Must Be a Boogie Man Kuru Liberty City Night Passage Palladium Port of Entry Portrait of Tracy Rockin' in Rhythm Talk to Me Teen Town.
Customer Reviews:
It surely isn't "step by step"..........2006-04-15
First thing that I find irritating is that the only song fully transcribed is "Portrait of Tracy", but this can be forgived since the aim of the book is to get the techniques Jaco used. But then, on "Portrait of Tracy" there is just transcription (accurate, though) but there is no in-depth approach to techniques which are VERY hard to apply.
If you want to continue studying Jaco stuff, I recommend this book to start with and later get something that's more into transcriptions
Accurate, but where's the meat?!.......2004-09-01
Is the notation and tab accurate? Yup, but who cares, there's a million tab sites you can get that from. What I was hopping for was a break down on his right hand positioning and technique as well as his left hand. On tunes like Portrait of Tracy, where there are multiple lines going on at once, technique is very important. All of Towey's Commentary seemed bent on deifying Jaco. That's useless, Jaco's music Deify's itself. Give me adaquate information on how to place my hands in order to play the material!
Good Instuctional.......2004-02-27
Okay, first--you have to have skills needed to not only read music and tab, but the dexterity and articulation needed to tackle material other than the most basic rock lines. Secondly, you will need the CD's or source material needed to pick up on the nuances that Jaco employs through dynamics, touch and feeling. Thirdly -- you will need time. Acquaint yourself with the music then start hitting the book. Not wanting to play anything note for note like some sort of automotron, I choose rather to go for the feel. Afterall, can one really achieve each individual percussive attack or note? I hope not! If you can then buy an old beater Fender Fretless, drop in .9mf Cap, make sure the pickups supply the necessary Low, Mids and Trebs... change your roto-sounds weekly pick up an acoustic 360 amp and go for it. If not... go for the feel. The selections are good and cover a wide range of material and styles. It is enjoyable to get inside the music a bit.
concordia student.......2003-07-17
i guess i was looking for a little more when i had bought this book and cd. it is really nice to have the cd right along with you in order to hear what the music is supposed to sound like, but i was looking for more girth, although this is still a very good book, with some words on the reasoning about the music.
Very helpful, but has an obvious flaw.......2003-05-12
As a bassist and longtime Jaco fan, I wanted to get deeper into his playing, so I got this book. I must say it is obviously very helpful to see his lines written out. My ear is not that great, so fast passages are very hard to pick out by ear. But, even his slower lines have many nuances that escape the ear. Now, the CD offers slowed down versions of some of the lines, which is great. But why not ALL of them? I mean, lines as complex as Donna Lee or Teen Town do not appear as slower versions on the CD, and that is a major bummer. In fact, the whole point of the CD in my opinion would be to have these slower versions to aid your practice. For the normal speed versions, I could just buy the albums, I really don't need them here. But, that is my only gripe. If you play the bass, and you would like an overview of Jaco's major contributions to the electric bass, this book will do just fine. There are other books that actually transcribe whole songs, but this one includes a couple of choruses of each and the bass solo if there is one. I think this is good enough, as with that much material one gets a clear idea of Jaco's concept for the song. I don't really need a transcription of his 12th chorus of the same tune, with 2 or 3 I get a clear enough idea of his style and technique. Enough so that I could eventually incorporate his ideas into my own playing. If you want complete transcriptions, look elsewhere, as this book's only complete song is "Portrait of Tracy." But to learn Jaco's style and techniques, as the title clearly states, this one is great.
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- Mukiwa: A White Boy in Africa
- Deep Storm: A Novel
- The Whore's Child: Stories
- The Well of Eternity
- White Lies
- Earth System Science From Biogeochemical Cycles to Global Changes
- Biology, Sixth Edition
- The Fantastic Menagerie Tarot Kit: Based on the Incredible Animal Illustrations of JJ Grandville
- The Trumps: Three Generations That Built an Empire
- Instant-Answer Guide to Business Writing: An A-Z Source for Today's Business Writer
Modern Electric Bass, Jaco Pastorius
Jaco Pastorius
The Essential Jaco Pastorius
Joni Mitchell - Shadows and Light
Thesaurus Of Scales And Melodic Patterns (Text)
