Search - Jaco Pastorius :: Curtain Call

Jaco at his best!

10/20/1998

(5 out of 5 stars)

"If you are a fan of Jaco Pastorius, do not take the time to read this review, just buy the CD now! This album could not possibly disappoint any Jaco fan or jazz lover. Curtain Call features a healthy, happy Jaco nimbly accompanied by Jon Davis on keys and Brian Melvin on drums. The sound quality on the CD is so crisp and warm you can hear every harmonic chime, every fleet-fingered run, and every bassy bomb. With the exception of The Birthday Concert, I have never heard Jaco in better form, every cut of this disc is a treasure. My personal highlights are the incredible Kuru, Speak Like a Child/Invitation, John and Mary, and the harmonic blizzard of Okonkore Trompa. To hear Jaco in a jazz-only context this is your best option. It is hard to believe that less than a year later he died destitute and alone, but this album is a fitting tribute to the skill, joy, and love of music posessed by the world's greatest bassist."

Inspired Jaco. great sound

02/11/2008

(5 out of 5 stars)

"unlike the Live in NYC series this sounds wonderful especially Jaco.

every little nuance can be heard and he plays terrific and inspired.

AMG hits it on the nail:



Dubbed "the last live American performance of Jaco Pastorius" (liner notes), the posthumously released Curtain Call is the most refreshing of Pastorius' post-big-band live recordings. Sparked by superb sound quality and enthusiastic, energetic performances, the CD features the only available live recordings by Pastorius of "John and Mary," Herbie Hancock's "Speak Like a Child," and Miles Davis' "So What!," plus the often recorded favorites "Invitation," "Continuum," and "Teen Town." The refreshing aspect, aside from some rarely recorded live material, is the personnel and the absence of guitar. Brian "Whitey" Melvin (drums) and Jon Davis (keys) recorded with Pastorius on three of Melvin's studio dates, but never live. Pastorius is at his most lucid in years thanks to Melvin's spiritual guidance, and Davis and Melvin seem to be playing expressly for Pastorius here. Without having to compete with a guitarist, a rejuvenated Pastorius has center stage, start to finish, his prominence and clarity reaching new heights on the final three compositions, "Mercy, Mercy," "So What!" and "Teen Town." Truly awesome. ~ David Ross Smith, All Music Guide"