For the first-time Jaco listener. Any Jaco-phile worth his or her salt should have the albums these tracks were taken from.

If you are a Jaco fan, you already know that he is on a plain by himself. He is the original Bass master and innovator who has paved the way for so many modern day bassists. You can argue whether or not today's bassists have more technical skill than Jaco, but he is the pioneer.

This collection does an amazing job of taking vital tracks from many of Jaco's projects (solo, Weather Report, Joni Mitchell colabs, Word of Mouth band, etc.) and presents them in chronological order. It's perfect as an introduction for new listeners, but also great if you already have all the other Jaco albums. I would also recommend the Live and Outrageous dvd which was shot in 1982 at the Montreal Jazz Festival and the Weather Report Live at Montreux 1976 for further evidence of Jaco's brilliance.

this is must have collection , most of the stuff here is going to make you explore other artists-there is a good collection of stuff with others like herbie hancock, joni mitchell and pat metheny-not a bad or unintersting cut here

Judging by the track selection, this compilation is an excellent overview of Jaco's important recorded work. Whether it's worth purchasing is another question. Long time fans will most likely already own the complete albums containing these selections. For younger fans interested in checking out Jaco's music, I would suggest purchasing one or more of the complete recordings represented on this compilation. The reason for this is that you should hear these great albums in their entirety. For the novice I would suggest purchasing Weather Report's Heavy Weather, Joni Mitchell's Shadows And Light on DVD, or Jaco's excellent live disc, The Birthday Concert. If you're a Metheny fan you can check out Bright Size Life. If you've thought about purchasing Jaco's self-titled debut on Columbia, then this compilation might be a good choice because almost all of the material from that album is represented here.

I saw Jaco in person with Weather Report. Without a doubt he could claim to be the world's greatest bass player. You may quibble, but he is still unsurpassed in his fluid style and pure unbridled yet sensuous approach to caressing the bass. Even if you own all the disks by someone you think is slightly better than Jaco (yeah right, who is that?) you owe it to yourself to have a Jaco sampler at the least. That is what this is.

My only gripe here is that his catalog is SO slim. I wish he wasn't dead, or that he had recorded more stuff. He did not. How sad is that? For God's sake, if someone has any new Jaco stuff in their closet, GET IT OUT! Jimi was great too, but his catalog is similar. Don't let either of them be forgotten, but also do not forever keep reissuing the same music which only makes us realize how much we all missed when they passed, both too soon. Peace.