The Tragic 1987 Death Of Jaco Pastorius

By 1987, Jaco Pastorius was far removed from his glory days with Weather Report. Per The New York Times, he had previously been diagnosed with bipolar disorder, and his erratic behavior and drug and alcohol abusewere well-documented at that point. He was broke, divorced from his second wife, and sleeping in a park in his

By 1987, Jaco Pastorius was far removed from his glory days with Weather Report. Per The New York Times, he had previously been diagnosed with bipolar disorder, and his erratic behavior and drug and alcohol abuse were well-documented at that point. He was broke, divorced from his second wife, and sleeping in a park in his hometown of Fort Lauderdale, Florida. But he still loved playing music, as evidenced by his unexpected appearance at a Carlos Santana concert on September 11 of that year. According to the Sun-Sentinel, Pastorius jumped onstage to jam with the legendary guitarist at the Sunrise Musical Theatre, only to be thrown out soon after.

At around 4:20 a.m. on September 12, Pastorius reportedly was spotted outside the Midnight Bottle Club in Wilton Manors, which was one of the many establishments he had been banned from. The bassist was denied entry, and he allegedly reacted by angrily kicking the doors of the club, drawing the attention of its manager, Luc Havan, and triggering a physical altercation. 

Per New Times Broward-Palm Beach, the then-25-year-old Havan was a martial arts expert who claimed to have acted in self-defense after Pastorius hit him, striking him once and causing the troubled musician to fall down and hit his head on the pavement. However, an eyewitness alleged otherwise, suggesting that the club manager delivered a much more serious beating. Either way, Pastorius was knocked unconscious during the altercation and spent the next nine days in a coma before he died on September 21. He was only 35 years old.

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