Grapthar's Song of the Day: Jaco Pastorius - 'Donna Lee'

Jaco Pastorius - Donna Lee

I shared a Jaco tune the other day

but I figured this would be a good choice for today. Jaco is, of course, a legend in the jazz world, and one of the most influential bass players of all time. He was born in 1951 in Pennsylvania, and began playing drums at a young age. However, at age 13, he broke his wrist, and was forced to get surgery that stopped him from playing drums anymore. He then picked up upright bass, and got into jazz music, eventually moving to the electric bass. Jaco developed his own style on this instrument, often using a fretless bass, and creating incredible sounds with harmonics that really helped propel the bass guitar to new places.

Listen to Donna Lee by Jaco Pastorius here.

This song is a jazz/bebop standard,

which is generally credited to Charlie Parker, though Miles Davis also claims it is his. The song is known for its fast tempo, and unique chord changes, and was generally performed with a trio or quartet. Jaco took the song in a different direction, and with his incredible skill, created a unique arrangement on his bass. Instead of providing just the bass part, he plays through the melody lines, and adds some of his own flair throughout. The congas on the track were performed by Don Alias, and are the only other instrument used, giving the track and interesting timbre.