I think the new version is ca. 2005.
As far as his claim to be the greatest bass player in the world, I don't think he said it from the stage, at least, that's not where the claim got famous. The story is that he said it to Joe Zawinul, before he played in Weather Report. Joe's reaction basically was Sure you are, kid. Have a nice day. And then of course, he heard Jaco play.
The other famous quote from him along these lines is It ain't bragging if you can back it up! At the time, he could back it up.
However, this braggadocio is just one side of his personality. I saw him twice in the 70s, once with Weather Report and once on the Shadows and Light tour with Joni Mitchell. Both times his presence was enthusiastic, but more about the music than his ego. He never said anything into the mic that was self congratulatory. In fact, I don't think he spoke at all. Joni gave him a warm introduction, for sure. From all accounts, he was a genuine and generous person, who's personality, like many, was susceptible to having its faults amplified by drug use. I studied with people who played with him and I have played and hung with a drummer here in Colorado who spent a lot of time partying with him in the 80s. I have never heard an unkind word spoken about him from anyone who knew him.
The negative stories I've heard were in the 80s. When I was at Berklee, in 1984 or 1985, Jaco came by the school. I was in a different part of the building, but a friend came up to me and told me that he just saw Jaco grab someone's bass out of their hands and go running up and down the hallway yelling I'm the sh*t! While that sounds extreme, it was by no means the most extreme thing I experienced in terms of seeing people do dumb things while on drugs. Jaco's hold on reality could get tenuous, with wild ups and downs and displays of weird behavior, but his fundamental persona was not one of arrogance. At that time, I think he was struggling with no longer being in Weather Report because of his personal demons and was trying to express his continuing relevance. There were other stories of him barging onto stages, trying to get attention, but I think these things were the signs of a person struggling for help more than a person asserting his ego. Sadly, there were lots of people who were looking for a chance to get high with a legend, so, like others who are famous, it was easy to get caught up in that and avoid spending time reflecting on what would be the healthiest path. The combination of his mental health and the chemicals that he put in his body was a tragic one. The result was not one of personal failing, but of disease and circumstance.
I do think he did say to Joe that he was the greatest bass player in the world, but as a sober youth, I don't think he was being arrogant, I think he was making a confident assessment of his skills and path at the time that in no way diminished his admiration and respect for many musicians, some of whom we've probably heard. He said that in the same way that a lot of young kids come on the scene who are hungry and looking for a good job, regardless of the profession and you certainly hear it i the sports world all the time. He was an extremely focused and sober youth. He wasn't given to outrageous behavior until he was introduced to drugs, which he had vehemently resisted, after joining Weather Report. Still, even after he went through the craziest part of his life, he was known, both among musicians and his basketball buddies in New York City, as a kind, generous and loving man. Arrogant can be the flip side of intense, and Jaco was intense, but I don't think it came from a place of arrogance.
Hal, you are right that Jaco is not a legend. He was a real man, with all that entails.
