Jaco Pastorius Truth, Liberty & Soul: Live in NYC Limited Edition Master Quality Reel To Reel (2 Reels)

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"There have been many guitar gods, but there's never been an electric bassist as deified as Jaco Pastorius." -Michael J. Agovino

This live album by Jaco Pastorius and the Word-of-Mouth Big Band, featuring harmonica virtuoso Toots Thielemans as special guest, was recorded on analog 24 tracks by the Record Plant mobile truck at Avery Fisher Hall in NYC on June 27, 1982 as part of George Wein's Kool Jazz Festival. The original 2-track master tapes were found recently and were used for this Deluxe edition. (Previous digital download versions were released from a digital remix of the 24 tracks.) What we have here is the direct copy of the original pure-analog 2-track mix.

The brightest star in the electric bass firmament, Jaco Pastorius burst onto the national scene in 1976 with his audacious self-titled album on Columbia Records, featuring a lineup of top jazz musicians. With his extraordinary fretless electric bass playing as the centerpiece, Jaco Pastorius created an immediate sensation with the public and the media. His signature approach employed Latin-influenced funk, lyrical solos on fretless bass, bass chords, and innovative use of harmonics. In Jaco's work with Weather Report and beyond, the self-described "greatest bass player in the world" (an assessment shared with virtually the entire music world) established a new identity and role for his instrument and became the torchbearer for a new way of playing both technically and conceptually. But behind it all was an ever present R&B and Latin-influenced groove and a screaming rock 'n' roll attitude that he refined and incorporated into sophisticated jazz harmonic structures.

In addition to his extraordinary virtuosity, Jaco was also developing into an accomplished and sophisticated composer and arranger, and those talents are gloriously on display on this album. He was inducted into the Down Beat Jazz Hall of Fame in 1988, one of only seven bassists so honored (and the only electric bassist). His legacy as a bass innovator continues to this day, more than thirty years after his untimely death in 1987.

The package includes two audiophile SM900 tapes recorded at 15 ips in CCIR (also available in NAB), on two balanced metal reels manufactured in Germany by Feinwerktechnik allgäu GmbH and an elegant booklet.

This is a historically significant album.

Based in Montreal and created by audiophile sound engineer René Laflamme and producer André Perry, all 2xHD Tapes are from the original analog master and transfer in analog domain using a Nagra-T tape recorder, modified with high-end tube playback electronics, wired from the playback head. In the high-end audio world, René has carved out a reputation for definition of excellence and uses his knowledge and unfailing instinct to match various audio components to create the best all-encompassing sound experience.

For the recording on this tape, the original 1/4" 15 ips NAB or CCIR master tapes were played on a Nagra-T tape recorder, modified wtih high-end tube playback electronics, wired with OCC silver cable from the playback head direct to a Nick Doshi tube head preamplifier. The Nagra T, with its four direct drive motors, two pinch rollers and a tape tension head, is one of the best transports ever made. A custom-built carbon fiber head block and a head damping electronic system permit 2xHD FUSION to obtain more transparency and better 3D imaging. This copy was recorded on a Nagra IV-S 1/4" at 15 ips.

** It is standard practice in all recording studios to keep the tape "tail out." This reduces "pre-echo" and it means that the tape should be placed on the right hand side of the recorder, re-wound and then played.