JACO PASTORIUS MODERN ELECTRIC BASS by Jaco Pastorius REVISED EDITION with Jerry Jemmott : Interview and text Jesy Jemmott Revised edition transcriptions Lincoln Goines ‘Additional transcriptions and introduction Matk Egan Initial transcriptions Jerry Jemmott and Kjell Benner Produced by Manbattan Music Editor Dan Thress Cover design and Layout Jack Waltcip Music engraving Bob Sherwin Cover/Inside photographs. Ebet Roberts CD TRACKING INFORMATION 1 nvoduction 20 Example 17 2 Interview 21 Example 18 3 Brample 1 22 ample 19 4 example 2 23. Example 20 5 Fxample 3 24 Example 21 cr ASssiG Genrer S mance ge enter 4 "22, av. Padovani Le Liourat Sxample a Example a 13127 VITROLLES 8 Beample 2 ape 23 19127 VITROLLES peample 7 sample ‘ 10 Example 8 29 Example 25 é Fax: 04 42 89 9071 11 Example 9 30 Example 26 iret 408 698 638 000 19 12 Example 10 31 Example 27 13, Example 11 32, Example 25 Vi Example 12 33 “Naima 15. Hxample 13 Bi mterview 16 Example 14 35. Txample 29 17 Example 15 36 "Rena 18 Example 16 37 “Funky Blues” 19 Interview 38 "Amenca PUBLISHED BY MANHATTAN MUSIC, ING.™ © 1991 MANHATTAN MUSIC, INC. All Rights Controlled and Administered by CPP Media Group, a division of CPP/Belwin, INC. AAll Rights Reserved. International Copyright Secured Made in U.S.A. DISTRIBUTED BY. CPP MEDIA 15800 N.W. 48TH AVENUE MIAMI, FL 33014 ANY USE OR COPYING OF THIS MATERIAL IN WHOLE OR IN PART IS PROHIBITED BY LAW:FOREWORD the interview portion of the video tape, faco Pastortus: Modern Electric Bass, more accessi- ble to the serious musician who wishes to learn the art of eleetti¢ bass playing and impro- visation. Through the many examples and solos in the book, you will begin 10 understand the impor tance of thinking, moré than feeling, in the creation of music. Then you will ultimately b¢ able to under- stand and interpret what you feel, in addition to learning or re-learning how to play the electric bass ina very musical way T he goal of this bdo is t make the contents of The playing of random potes, *wiggliag your fingers, doesn't require much thought, whereas the playing of specific patterns does. Just because 4 phrase or pat- tein was created with @ sixteenth-note feeling doesn’t mean that you have (© practice it at a fast speed. Proceed at your own speed, always using a metronome while practi¢ing the material Knowledge of theory, Hammony, chord and séale con- struction and use of the universal number system of scale steps is a must to facilitate the rapid and ther ough learning of your instrument. A brief review is provided for the purpose of memorizing patterns by scale degree or ¢hord quality, interval sequence, etc ‘This number system speeds learning, execution and transposition t0 other keys and rhythms, in addition to providing a focus for ideas while improvising when gecompanying and soloing, D9 yourself a favor! Rewrite the examples from the tape and include at the top of each note its scale clégree and chord quality. You will be amazed at how much deeper your understanding hwill become when this is done: Transcribe the examples ane! solos your self, always looking, for some kind of pattern. ‘This is exeellent for ear training, Your goal should be to think fast, as opposed to playing fast: Memorize the patterns by always asking yourself, “what's the pattem, how! many times, what is the sequence, whieh direction (ascending or déscending), what's next?” Whea you pick up your instrument, always play soimething specific, such as a ehorel ar arpeggio, part olf@ scale, song, etc. In other words, have something inmind (ell yourself what 19 do) and execute it flaw lebsly, but slowly at first! Good luck! Make it happen! —Jerry Jemmott INTRODUCTION has the genius and talent to revolutionize the fapproach to an instrument — Jaco was one of those special individuals, T was fortunate to have been able to study and play with Jaco both in Miami and on tour with the Gil Evans Orehesira. The energy and fecling with which he approached the music along with his viru: i t's very rare for a musician to come along that osity and sound, is what was so inspiring to all of us. Keep in mind when you're practicing these cx ciges that its the feeling and exergy you put into them that really brings the musi¢ to life. Use these ideas along with your own imagination to develop your own siyle of playing. ‘ThanksJaco, your mus —Mark Egan lives(on im the universe,BRIEF REVIE festern music is based on the chromatic scale degree), whole-step, whole-step, half-step to the 4th VY fout of which the major seale is formed. The three consecutive whole steps to the 7th Imajor scale is constructed with the following and a half-step to the octave to complete the formula; in ascending order; root (Ist scale Modal scales are derived from the major scale, but start ent modes with their relative chords and their major farting points and construction, on different degrees, using the same pattern of whole — scale st and half-steps as the major scale. Below are the differ Ionian 1 1-2-3-4-5-6-7-8 SR-W-W-H-W-W-W-H. Dorian HI 2-3-4-5-6-7-8-2-—R-W-H-W-W-W-H-W Phrgian MT 3-4-5-6-7-8-2-3R-H-W-W-W-H-W-W Lydian IV 4-5-6-7-8-2.3-4 R-W-W-W-H-W-W-W Mixolydian V 5-6-7-8-2-3-4-5—R-W-W-H-W-WLW Aeolian VL 6-7-8-2-3-4-5-6 R-W-H-W-W-HW-W Locrian VIL 7-8-2-3-4-5-6-7RH-W-W-H-W-W-W Chords are built on every other note of a major scale Write out the scales, modes and chord construc such as 1-3-5-7-9-11-13-15 of 2-4-6-8-10-12-14-16, tions in reverse order. When transposing to other Notes above the first octave ate the same as the notes keys, don't forget to give the proper accidental which in the first octave, except that they are an octave _ will agree with the scale formula you ar higher, so that 8=1, 9=2, 10=3, 11=4, etc using, Chord construction for ascending 7th chords: Major root—major 3rd—minor 3rd—major 3rd. Minor root—minor 3rd—major 3rd—minor 3rd Dominant root—major 3rd—minor 3rd—minor 3rd. Diminished root—minor 3rd—minor 3rd—minor 3rd HalfDiminished root—minor 3rd—minor 3rd—major 3rd Augmented root—major 3rd—major 3rd—minor 3rd. If the distance between the root and the third scale third), then the chord of scale is minor degree is two whole-steps (major 3rd), the scale or Diminished chords employ all minor thirds and chord quality is major. If the distance between the the scale construction is W-H-W-H-W-H-W or H-W-H- root and the third is one and a half-steps (minor —W-H-W-H-W-H. © ~Let harmonic ring, x —Play as dead note. (© ~ Open diamonds indicate natural ha | — Filled notes denote standard notes. they occur indicates finger placement 1D —Strings used are shown below staff Numbers used are Jaco’s left hand fingeringConian Cs degree) + $ a 2 ¢ “ 1 a 3 4 o ay Dorian (2nd degree) gp 2 63 ‘ o ap Pheygian (Brel degree) 5h 4 © Lydian (ath Degree) SS 1 2 3 o ay o ap o ap 4 . a be 6 7 ay bo be 4 . a» be 6 b ay bd be do cm © 1c qc Ao prs Pa 1 Sis cI anC Lyelan 2544 Melodie e SS Ee — a an Fie SS Fn jp td fe Lorian #2 48 Meletiod — re SSS SS Fie 1 2 bs 4 bs bo . ) ay ab) 3= — be 1 » bs bs 46 Ge ay) Diminished erry 1. € (hal step/iwhole-step> se 2m HIS ay as tbe —_ pot qo Wholetone rani ee bd SS —————— A: Doe o a)Example 1—Finger spacing—one finger per fret ‘The chromatic scale is one of the hardest things to play on the bas all the notes are through correct finger spacing, Play this scale and all other scales in the following man s. Playing it will help teach you where ner: beginning on your low E string, play through one octave and back down; then go through the entire middle and upper register and back down again slowly. Example 2—Major scale exercise in one-stretch position, using 16th-notes This exercise utilizes a descending four-note pattern going down the scale in 2ndsExample 4—Major scale in consecutive 3rds and 2nds ‘The numbers at the top of each note represent the degrees used in this pattern, Memorizing the numbers will allow you to “run” the pattern through different keys Intervals: 13.4679 M12 9976431 (rte Leer Example 5—Major scale in broken 3rds This is the “normal” way of playing the scale in 3rds. It is a slower ascent than Jaco’s "3rd-2nd” pattern used in example 4 4 52 Example 6—Ascending major scale in 2nds—descending in 3rds—followed by ascend- ing and descending in 3rds scale in 2nds, Notice the pattern used in the first bar, consisting of arpeggios (rds), moving down th ng major seale in 2nds, The last note of Notice how the fourth note of this four-note pattern serves as a pickup, so that the feeling is 4-1-2-3, 4-1 aan ascen beat 1, bar to, is the beginning of another series of note patterns utilizing descending 7th chord 2-3, ete fouf eft. o Hmoni a E i frites f j 143 a Example 7—Major scale in ths Scale intervals are used to create sound patterns, and to gain awareness of skipping strings and harmonic propulsion John Scofield, Kenwood Dennard and Jaco Pastorius aExample 8—“Jam in E” Thinking ahead with specific ideas is the only way to achieve this level of improvisational clarity and direc- tion SH 2 deere x a So ey Sar fir Sythe . t oie PES Ret eet geapgst opt Petal abih ape Pel Pesearere Etre rea rrae Sage iT eed iBetis tet et Serr = 3 t rR Seperate S gitte Seer Oy ayhy = = doturt E Pou CeeExample 9—Arpeggios—fingerboard memorization After you've found where the notes are on the fingerboard—play this exercise without looking to help with memorization of the fingerboard. [With the exception of the octave, the 3rd finger can be substituted for the éth when playing examples 9 and 10.) Example 10—Arpeggios—ascending chromatically This is the same pattern as example 9—moving up the chromatic scale 12Example 11—Double stops This next example is a very musical approach to playing double stops via spelling out a chord and harmoniz: ing the major scale. “tes : ae Example 12—“The Real Deal” i ‘This next example is based on the ability to create ideas based upon different types of scales, broken arpeg. agios, chords and song fragments, all played in pattems utilizing rhythmic groupings. oy Teepe tet cereale seinen tT 30 ae? ‘ree ae ED fof Hehe be habeas: Fiat aa SoS Sere ahee fer rEreeten Te pe f ree ire meres 13c Fatt Be Walt Example 13—Major 7th arpeggios Here's a good exercise: arpeagiate up the chord, down on the 1, upon the HL, dows oa the 1, etc Feely | o> 14Example 14—Whole tone scale—alternating fingers ry going down the scale in seconds on the downbeat (1-e-an-a)—up the scale in seconds on the offbeat {e-an-a-l)—down a ‘on the downbeats corte Example 15—Alternating fingers with different numbers ‘This example shows the division of the beat into five parts—five notes down the scale and up a flatted 5th to the next scale note, a 2nd from the previous starting note LS)Example 16—Duet The use of modes, fingering patterns, rhythm and chords all become clear when which it is conceived and executed makes for an exciting sensation for the mind non paper. The speed at ” — max soe tN £ 4 re = eee! ten, eeet eeeFeeer el seeer,wees tee otal Etter andthe A 234352 niet tt —— ertbrter Sbpiefetee— ieettee, fee 23) Fie Be Be = eset ae Se Seri eee eee og aE ° a FaetTl 131 ee 124 s14 oh fStop ere rapa yt Lele S 1= ts be jeter oe Ee 412424 eee 12 234 the . , ff te _ ee oleate:od, AGA Ges fe leh 2 te 2 = t =e teP ye ¥f Ey fr a * eee Lirlnieg ent o Ree et = fe pe 19yo tL tern the Hee pp nt fig > part eet 20Example 17—Right hand raking with left hand muting Practice this example with multiple patterns on even strings. For example: second finger on E, first on A, second on D, first on G, first on E, third on A, second on D, third on G, ete Example 18—Two hand muting via scale in 3rds Be conscious of this very important technique when crossing strings re 4124 opie ltee Cee ferrrep eerrtete CerreeeeExample 19—Iwo hand muting—extended orgie SLM Seite ors oad Career i ee 39ee ee ‘atpeepr ten feepeeeretect Cee oa aay owe > 5 Cee Deal tee Peeteet etre fetter uF Example 20—String crossing via minor to major chords mething to think about for the left hand and something to do with the right. Try playing this as an ise based on a particular string attack pattern, like in example 17 "1 AbATAIL = raaee Fe oat pee esce £ H patatt ort tt _ widtert iE ieprerticriit fterpbaas Ee fe, Ea7#l, @ elt» . /. teoeerfiiifte F abe : ESS eee roe : — pl GeaTal = > Oe | Te Ere eee ee Gu Ausra pte = * ’ . Ptr te See a wrptittres, Bere itt 24Example 21—String crossing in 4ths Jaco is actually playing arpeggiated IV chord progressions—first in 4ths, then chromatically and again in 4ths. ry oes Sets of toe ey Etsus AST DT sus a C7sus FA? BAsus_ BAT AL & rete 25Example 22—“Barbary Coast” The choice of notes gives it that distinctive sound, Example 23—Tuning the bass with harmonics This technique insures accuracy in tuning the bass owing to the auchbility of the notes in this register. S|] “Portrait of Tracy” (Intro) This example uses harmonics to create a melody Example 24—False harmonics—overtone series This is the division of the string length in halves, quarters and eighths. Hold “A” Divide string in: 1/2 1/3 v4 with left hand wmExample 25—False harmonics—scale in 3rds Divide the string exactly one octave above the fingered note to achieve the harmonic sound qu fee a Example 26—False harmonics using scale patterns and arpeggios Follow the same instructions as in example 25. nove venient Example 27—False harmonics Again, follow the same instructions as i example 25, 27Natural bass harmonics E A DG = ° “DG C F (8a) BE A D (Sea) — G* ct FRB e —EADG e —BEAD ° — Gt ct rFRB e —E A D G(8vb) Same as lower octave e e e 28Example 28—Remembering “Tracy” SF akg ore [refer to key on page 3, for notation of lmarmontes| a Z oe % et — Sarr pf ada c a - . Sh 2 =? +i fi a ey, 29ote rip ce reget? ete pit epee Example 29—Jerry’s Time with B.B. King = aie ae teAeon ee ts Co aad Pane pve nareine This book and audio package is derived from Seek Featured are transcriptions of Joco’s exomples Coen eee eed Dee gees Stee En ele view with Jaco as well os ploying examples from the video. The recording condudes with a ecu Ree cea rN ere) oy $21.95 MMBKOOOSAT (PPO644) WITH CASSETTE Cc media Pree een ern Pato)