Search - Jaco Pastorius :: Heavy N Jazz

Decent recording, but non-essential

03/01/2002

(3 out of 5 stars)

"A series of "heavy" (refering the to the rock timbre of the trio), and one "lite jazz" tune, that paired guitarist Bireli Lagrene with bassist Jaco Pastorius. The group begins with "Broadway Blues", which as far as I can tell, Jaco did not record since he appeared on Pat Metheny's "Bright Size Life" ten years earlier. Lagrene's pleasant solo piece "Bluma" ends with a segue into "Smoke on the Water", bringing in the bass and drums. The group continues with a medley of tunes displaying the musicians' appreciation of Jimi Hendrix's music - a medley of Purple Haze/Third Stone from the Sun/Teen Town leads to Jaco's solo rendition of "Star Spangled Banner". None of this is especially essential - a better version of "Teen Town" appears on "Live it Italy", another Jazzpoint album recorded the same year (1986) that catalogues the Lagrene-Pastorius duo. "Honestly" appears as another chance for Jaco to display his solo chops, and anyone familiar with his repetoire will catch the cliches. "Reza" and "Invitation" offer interesting contrasts to the larger arrangements of his Word of Mouth band recordings. The lite jazz of "Jaco Reggae" seems rather out of place in the context of the rest of the song list.The recording quality is better than that of the "Live in New York" series, but there are several flaws. They are not particularly intrusive. Nevertheless, "Heavy 'n Jazz" does not feel as consistent as "Live in Italy". The trio grooves better in "Live", making it a better place to start if one is interested in the pairing of the two musicians."

A great trio concert, but monoaural with low bass.

smilingbassist | 11/16/1998

(3 out of 5 stars)

"Jaco Pastorius with Serge Bringolf (d), and Bireli Lagrene (g). One can admire the play, but not the sound quality. This is a concert from Italy, recorded in december -86. It shows many of the qualitys this trio had, despite some typhical guitar-show-off's a'la the 80's by Bireli. One of my favourites on this record are Reza, a more rocking tune instead of jazzy, but it shows a great fun from the trio. This record also contains a studio recorded muzak-like tune; Jaco Reggae. A record worth to buy, not only for bass fans, but also jazzcats, fusion fans and heavier rock fans."

A must for those who appricate good music

Tristan Westphal | Lawrence, KS. USA | 10/09/2003

(5 out of 5 stars)

"This is a perfect example of just how good jaco was and a must own for those who are in love with his music"