1981 · Album
Word Of Mouth
Recorded 1981 · Warner Bros. Records · Produced by Jaco Pastorius
Jaco's Big Band Vision Takes Shape
Word of Mouth shows Jaco thinking bigger than the bass solo—he wanted to lead.
Word of Mouth arrives in 1981 as Jaco Pastorius's second solo album, and it's something different from what you might expect. By this point, Jaco was deep into Weather Report, the jazz fusion powerhouse, so this record exists in a strange pocket—not quite a diversion from that gig, not quite his main thing. What makes it interesting is that Jaco stopped thinking like a sideman and started thinking like a bandleader. He assembled a big band and recorded material that would become the foundation for actual touring dates the next year.
The album itself is energetic and playful in ways his first solo record wasn't quite as bold about. Jaco brings in a lot of voices—horns, percussion, keyboards—and the whole thing has this driving, almost pop-influenced energy that sits pretty far from Weather Report's cooler spaces. Tracks like the title track and others show off his arranging instincts and his ability to write hooks that stick. It's not subtle or restrained; Jaco's clearly having fun, and the band sounds like they are too. The bass still dominates at points, because of course it does, but he's learned how to share space.
Catalog-wise, this is for listeners who already dig Jaco and want to see him expand beyond the Weather Report context. It's not his most celebrated work—that would be his debut—and it's definitely rougher around the edges than his best stuff. But if you've heard him and want proof that he thought about music beyond solo virtuosity and fusion frameworks, it's essential. The big band recordings that followed showed where this thinking led, so Word of Mouth is worth hearing as a snapshot of Jaco's ambitions widening.
Who's playing
Jaco Pastoriuselectric bass guitar
Herbie Hancockkeyboard, piano
Michael Breckersaxophone
Tom Scottsaxophone
Wayne Shortersaxophone
Chuck Findleytrumpet
Don Aliaspercussion
Robert Thomas, Jr.percussion
Howard Johnsontuba
Othello Molineauxsteelpan
Toots Thielemansharmonica
Where next?
More by Jaco Pastorius
All 11 albums →
The musicians on this record
Future Shock 1983
Herbie Hancock
plays keyboard here
plays keyboard here
Etcetera 1980
Wayne Shorter
plays saxophone here
plays saxophone here
Modern Times 1984
Michael Brecker
plays saxophone here
plays saxophone here
Affinity 1978
Toots Thielemans
plays harmonica here
plays harmonica here
