Search - Weather Report :: This Is Jazz 40: Jaco Years

Good music, but horrible, horrible mastering - stay away!!

10/03/2001

(1 out of 5 stars)

"I'm gonna make this short and sweet: I'm a huuuge Jaco fan and own at least 8 albums featuring his mindblowingly creative chops. But I need to warn the reader - DO NOT BUY THIS CD. On another site I just nominated this CD as THE WORST SOUNDING CD IN MY ENTIRE COLLECTION. That collection is currently at around 600 cds, so that's saying a lot. Frankly, the mastering on this CD is truly horrible . . almost unlistenable. Someone [messed] up big time and they decided to release this CD anyway. Go buy the original albums . . on vinyl if you can .. you'll thank me for it.And if you do make the mistake of buying this CD ("hey, it's [inexpensive], how can I go wrong?"), don't say I didn't warn you."

Jaco & Weather Report at their best!

C. J. | Australia | 12/01/1999

(5 out of 5 stars)

"For those who love Weather Report and Jaco Pastorious, this album is an absolute must. Although serious fans of Weather Report most likely have all the songs contained in their respective original albums, this compilation is worth having as indeed it represents the cream of Weather Report's work with Jaco at his best. The sleeve contains an autobiography of Jaco by James Isaacs. Though concise by necessity, it is surprisingly well written, and informative. Anyone new to Jaco or Weather Report is highly advised to get this album as it represents the best of both Jaco and the band."

A take on Jaco's songwriting.

Kelvin S. Yew | Singapore Singapore | 04/30/2000

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Interestingly enough, this album doesn't contain the WR standards whom we've become accustomed to, such as Palladium and Birdland. This CD chooses to emphasize Jaco's contribution to the WR as a songwriter, first and foremost, than as a bassist. Sadly though, this comprehensive work also semingly chronologically maps Jaco's decline as he wrestled with manic depression and eventually leaving them after disrupting several concerts. Jaco's talent in songwriting was long suspected to cause tension between him and Zawinul. As evidenced in Speechless, Zawinul included synth bass in his compositions, to Jaco's annoyance. Fans of Jaco need no introduction to his work. The classics are here... Havona, Three views of a Secret, Punk Jazz, and Teen Town (made famous again when more recently covered by Marcus Miller). Others who aspire to appreciate more of this artiste's contribution to WR as more than a bassist can do no wrong with this album. From the virtousity of Slang, the thick laden funk of Barbary Coast, to the sensitivity of A remark you made."