Tonight I ran into another computer nerd. We ended up talking computers, then cars, then philosophy. He mentioned Nietzsche. He loves Nietzsche. And he writes poetry sometimes. Then we talked music. Then he says he has played bass professionally for 20 years. My mind was racing- he loves poetry, Nietzsche, philosophy in general. He knows what duality is. And he plays bass. So, I asked, "Have you ever heard of Jaco Pastorius?" It turns out he thinks Jaco is a giant but has never heard Jaco on any Joni albums. Lost touch with her after "Both Sides Now" (in the sixties). So I go, "You have never heard an album called "Hejira"? No. "Have you ever *seen* Jaco play on video?" Well, a long, long time ago he says. So I loaned him my store-bought copy of the "Shadows and Light" video. Before I handed it to him, I asked him if he knew of a Jazz bassist and composer named Charles Mingus. He did. I explained that some of the tracks on the video were written as a collaboration between Mr. Mingus and Joni, that Jaco played bass. His jaw dropped. "And Metheny plays guitar." His jaw dropped again. I reached into my pocket and said, "*** THIS *** is going to make your day." I handed him the video...... I don't NEED to be there. I just flat out KNOW that a bomb is going to go off in this guy's life in the form of the "Shadows and Light" video. I mean, he worships Jaco and has never seen the interplay between Brecker and Pastorius at the end of "The Dry Cleaner From Des Moines"?? I just hope I don't have to shoot him to get my tape back. :) Life is good. Lama
