Everyone is entitled to their own opinion but whether devotees or not, nearly all players agree that Jaco was unique, with an extraordinary ability to make his basslines fluid and significant, no matter what he was playing or who he was playing for.
As with any genius – as he surely was – his destiny ran close to insanity and sadly much of what has been written about him centres on that element, yet all that really matters in the grand scheme of things is what he brought to the world of bass playing.
Jaco started out as a drummer but barely into his teens he broke his left arm, lost the ability to play properly and was kicked out of the band he’d originally formed. At 15 he was invited back, but only if he could play bass, so he bought one. “I didn’t know where the notes were or anything, I just started grooving and I’ve never been out of work since,” he once recalled.
Interviews with Jaco were few and far between – he lived in an era when singers and lead guitarists commanded far more interest than mere bass players. It’s only now, years after the death of many a great bass player, that we are aware of the short-sightedness of this ‘frontman’ approach.