The documentary, which had been in the works for several years and is now making the rounds at SXSW, Filmfest Munchen, the Athens International Film Festival, and the Asbury Park Film Festival, has already garnered critical acclaim and a couple of awards. It features old footage“The goal was to reach a person that doesn’t know him at all."
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The film is no walk
In Jaco, which is released on DVD November 27, a musical cavalcade is assembled to sing the praises of the man who is to jazz bass what Jimi Hendrix is to rock guitar, Charlie Parker to alto sax, or John Coltrane to tenor sax in jazz. Sting, Flea, Bootsy Collins, Geddy Lee, and Carlos Santana join Pastorius collaborators Joni Mitchell (who quips, “I like originals. Jaco was an original.”), Wayne Shorter, Peter Erskine and Bobby Thomas Jr., who mesmerized FLIFF premiere attendees with a solo performance on an exotic Swiss percussion instrument called the hang drum.
The process of making the film was at times challenging, and the role of Trujillo in cementing Jaco’s legacy cannot be understated. The idea for it sprang shortly after the artist’s passing and really started to come together when the eldest son met Trujillo nearly 20 years ago, growing ever closer to him over the years. “He had just gotten the gig with Ozzy [Osbourne], and he said to me, ‘You gotta do a movie on your dad, man. You have no idea how many people I meet that are huge fans. I’m talking the biggest stars in rock, the Fleas, Geddy Lees, all these guys. We all talk about your dad.’”“Besides anything he’s done with the project, he will always be my friend."
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Trujillo indeed laid the groundwork for what would solidify into the 117-minute music doc. “He would come to town a couple of times a year and say ‘I met so-and-so’ or introduce me to key people or tell me to go to a concert or keep on the people like Geddy who would want to sit for an interview for the documentary,” says Johnny. Apart from ponying up his own money, Trujillo also successfully spearheaded a PledgeMusic campaign that raised 161 percent of its targeted amount.
When asked what the famous bass player-cum-film producer has meant to him and his family, Johnny offers: “Besides anything he’s done with the project, he will always be my friend. When the first attempt with the previous director ended, we weren’t happy. To his credit, it wasn’t even an option — he knew that [bringing in another director] would mean more money would have to be invested, but there was never a question. He was like, ‘OK, you’re not happy? We’re going to keep going.’ We ended up going for another two years. Because of him being a good dude and being solid, the Jerry Jemmott interview came, which is basically a vein throughout the whole film, going in and out from the original instructional video. That would have never been there. The Joni Mitchell interview [and the music they made together in the mid- to late '70s] would have never been there — another huge get.”
The original soundtrack, also being issued November 27 (from which already two tracks have been released: Mass Mental’s “Come On, Come Over”), features Trujillo, Flea, and others, plus Rodrigo y Gabriela’s take on “Continuum,” and promises to be yet another aural feast for hungry Jaco-philes. Conceived by Johnny and Trujillo, the collection includes several of Jaco’s best solo compositions, like “Okonkole y Trompa," “Liberty City,” and “Portrait of Tracy,” along with Weather Report gems like the standard “Teen Town” and a live version of “River People."
On both the film and the soundtrack, Johnny also shares: “The goal was to reach a person that doesn’t know him at all. It’s a fine line between putting enough for the guy who knows everything and also making it palatable for someone who doesn’t know anything at all.”
One of the final scenes in the documentary shows a close-up of someone playing the Jaco standard “Continuum” on what looks to be Jaco's legendary “Bass of Doom.” Upon pan-out, the shot reveals that it's actually supremely prodigious Pastorius son Felix, eerily bridging the generational gap and bringing it all full circle.
Preorder Jaco: A Documentary Film on DVD ($19.99) & Blu-Ray ($24.99) here.