"Portrait of Jaco" truly celebrates the life of Jaco Pastorius and documents his contributions in a chronological and magical journey. A passionate and stunning 'audio biography,' "Portrait" provides the listener a wealth of knowledge and inspiration, bringing us all a deeper understanding of his genius."

"Portrait of Jaco' is a stunning collection of Jaco's musical stepping stones. Listen as Jaco cuts his teeth on soul grooves in his youth while maturing before your eyes. For musicians, especially bass players, this is one of the most important recordings to own since Heavy Weather. It is essentially the prequel to Jaco's innovative solo album."

"Portrait of Jaco - The Early Years' is real history just drenched in inertia, class, truth, unbiased observations, and ultimately the undeniable extrapolation of just how special Jaco Pastorius was. Aside from the fact that it contains incredible never-before-heard recordings of Jaco during his early years, it's got the most endearing spoken word reflections from Jaco's family, friends, colleagues, all the great icons he played with, and we hear from the man himself. This brilliantly crafted anthology is awe-inspiring on multiple levels, and after all was said and done I realized that Jaco's early years friend Bob Bobbing was the only person on this planet who could have achieved this triumph. Jaco was truly "connected," and Bob has tapped into that line. I'm certain that this anthology will quickly and forever become the standard for all things Jaco. Yeah...this is the real deal we've all been waiting for...whether we knew it or not."

"Bob Bobbing, producer of this anthology, has succeeded in polishing the rough stone of his own discovery into a bright and beautiful diamond. Through his approach, Bob's efforts have born fruit such as booklet and spoken words so fans will feel Jaco's real image and perceive his secrets more deeply and widely than ever as it reveals the mysteries of Jaco and shows us the process of his evolution. But this anthology attracts me most because Jaco's reality inheres in it. It stimulates the raw sensibility within myself about Jaco, which is amazing! Portrait of Jaco will undoubtedly raise Jaco fans into rapture!"

I first became aware of Bob Bobbing’s "Portrait Of Jaco" project around four years ago when I started work on a documentary series about Jaco Pastorius for BBC Radio. For me at that time the central question about Jaco the musician was this: what had happened before he launched himself on an unsuspecting world in 1976? In other words, where did this creative genius come from and how could he be so different? With Charlie Parker and John Coltrane or even Joe Zawinul and Wayne Shorter you could hear the music develop on recordings over time and at least get some idea about how they arrived at their particular innovations. With Jaco, as far as we all knew, there was nothing to hear. How wrong could we be?

Thanks to the foresight, energy, and perseverance of Jaco's friend and fellow bassist Bob Bobbing the whole story exists! Remarkably, Bob recorded and preserved nearly every group Jaco played with from the moment he picked up a bass guitar in his early teens. The result is to make Jaco seem even greater. Why? Because he's no longer the mythical bass player from another planet. By allowing us to hear the young Jaco striving for and finding his own voice, Bobbing has in effect made Jaco's achievement real. I heard some of these tapes at Bob's house in 1998 - it was without a doubt one of the most thrilling musical experiences of my life. Unless someone can take me back to the Village Vanguard in 1961 to see John Coltrane with Eric Dolphy few things are going to compare.

Thanks Bob we all owe you one!