Teen Town (The Vocal Version)

I wrote these lyrics to this composition by Jaco Pastorius as a tribute to him, the greatest and most influential bass player who ever lived.

TEEN TOWN

This is the town just for kids in their teens
Only a sound if you know what I mean
It's hip!

I really dig the way that Jaco Pastorius played on his jazz bass
He could strike a mellow tone or if he wanted he could jam it at a fast pace
Digital delay
And an awful lot of good technique
Playin' a new way
I especially like what he's done with Metheny
And then again his work with Joni Mitchell's pretty outrageous too
It's really too much!
When you consider his influence in music
Got to be extra funky
The tone of life!

So now I know you dig exactly what I mean when we're cruisin' Teen Town
(Cruisin' the street, groovin' the beat)
It's the total groove I'm likely to be feelin' any time I want to get down
Feel like dancin'
Every time I listen to this song
Really entrancin'
I especially like what he's done with harmonics
(Playin' notes I never heard)
It's apparent his fretless is not diatonic

This is the town just for kids in their teens
Gettin' around really makin' the scene
This is the town just for kids in their teens
Only a sound if you know what I mean
Know what you mean

Now you're cruisin' through the town
It's the coolest place around
Hey, now you're playin' in the town
It's the coolest sound I've found
(Now you're playin' in Teen Town)

Cool it!
I am cruising

You know that Shorter and Zawinul
Didn't write the lyrics to this melody of Jaco's
But since their jammin' is outasite
It's a pleasure to write
(Oh yeah)

Funky as funky can get
Funky as funky can get

Really jammin'!
(Very cool!)

This is the down town
Cruisin' Teen Town

***********
Jaco Pastorius: Music
Kevin Kraft: Lyrics, vocals, drum machine, keyboard
Overdubbing: TEAC 3340S reel-to-reel 4 track (a fossil)

Utilizing harmonics, polyphony and a unique sustained tone on his fretless-electric, Jaco Pastorius elevated the musical function and extended the range of the electric bass guitar to that of a multi-timbral melody instrument.
Jaco came to international attention as the bass player for the jazz group Weather Report in 1976 on their record, "Black Market" and on his debut solo record, "Jaco Pastorius" from the same year. The following year, Weather Report took the jazz world by storm with Joe Zawinul's hit "Birdland" (from "Heavy Weather") in which Jaco played the opening melody by bending harmonics on his fretless-electric bass while Zawinul carried the actual bass line on synthesizer.
Much of Jaco's best work can be found on Weather Report's "Heavy Weather", "Mr. Gone", "Night Passage", "8:30", "Black Market", his own solo albums and on Joni Mitchell's "Hejira", "Don Juan's Reckless Daughter" and "Mingus". Jaco's composition, "Portrait of Tracy" from his first solo record amazed jazz fans from all over the world with its innovative counterpoint, harmonics and expressiveness. To many, it seemed an impossibility that the song was actually a solo performance without overdubs.
A virtuoso bassist, composer, drummer and arranger, Jaco was an incredibly gifted musician.
Jaco's life came to a tragic end in 1987 when he died from injuries sustained during a violent altercation with a club bouncer in Ft. Lauderdale, Florida. He was 35 years old.

Category:

Music

Tags:

• Jaco
• Pastorius
• Teen
• Town
• Heavy
• Weather
• Report
• Electric
• Bass
• Fretless
• Guitar
• Vocalese
• Vocal
• Voice
• Sing
• Lyrics
• Salsa
• Jazz
• Disco
• Funk
• Funky
• Joe
• Zawinul
• Wayne
• Shorter
• Badrena
• Joni
• Mitchell
• Pat
• Metheny
• Manhattan
• Transfer
• Kevin Kraft
• gnukev

[MrKeys57]

keep coming back time after time to listen, Astonishing performance! never heard something like it, high five! - Levi

[gnukev]

@MrKeys57 I really appreciate that you get what I was trying to do here despite the lo-fi recording! Thanks a lot!

[homoignobilis]

Totally Manhattan Transfer. Hey, don't I know you?

[gnukev]

@homoignobilis LOL. Thanks! Do you know me? Send me a message...

[GritCityDisciple]

I understand you really are down with Weather Report so Im taking the opportunity to ask you about something:

I saw a documentary recently and in one part Teen Town was playing in the background, but it wasnt the album version. Biggest difference was that the bassline was played with SLAP BASS. Do you have any idea of what version it might be?

[gnukev]

@GritCityDisciple Could it be the Marcus Miller version?

[gnukev]

@GritCityDisciple Thanks very much for listening!

[GritCityDisciple]

Hahaha great tribute! Very well executed and I agree with every word said in the "bass lyrics"

[gnukev]

@WiktorR0 Thanks for listening to my words! Happy holidays!

[WiktorR0]

Every time I listen to this tune I have your smiling face before my eyes.

"The Tone Of Life"