Bela Fleck & The Flecktones

It always amazes me when I spy albums by the Flecktones tucked away in the new age or "miscellaneous" sections of record stores. Fleck has surely bent the boundaries of genre with his mind-altering banjo virtuosity, but the core of this music is JAZZ, even for a purist like myself. This album, one of only three with harmonica/keyboards stud Howard Levy, is a particular treat in the ensemble -- Future Man will make a believer of those who pooh-pooh digital percussion as "canned" or "fake." Most important here are the tunes -- "Sinister Minister" may well be the "Perdido" or "Caravan" of the next century. A marvelous record to be in every futuristic jazzophile's collection!

Bela Fleck and the Flecktones self titled album is easily one of their best and most impreesive albums. The musicianship on the album is incredible, especially with Fleck's incredible picking and Wooten's impossible bass lines. Many of the songs are great, with no bad ones. Some of the highlights are Hurricane Camille, Sunset Road, Reflections of Lucy and the song that really stands out above the rest, Sinister Minister. Sinister is not only very funky, it is also an extremely hard to play songs, especially Wooten's bass solo in the middle.

This album is great for musicians and fans of bluegrass and jazz. Overall a very impressive album that deserves recognition.

I was playing banjo and harmonica in a Bluegrass/Folk band back in the early 1990's when one day our fiddler gave me a copy of this CD. I'm not sure whether he meant for me to play like Bela Fleck and Howard Levy at the same time, but this recording certainly had a tremendous impact on me.

The Flecktones starts bass player Victor Wooten and from there on it gets weird. There "drummer", Roy "Future Man" Wooten plays a guitar/synthesiser, tapping out rhythms than would be the envy of any conventional drummer. Harmonica master Howard Levy plays notes on his harmonica that aren't even there. No kidding. I've had the chance to study with Howard and I'm only beginning to get the concept of doing the previously impossible. Banjo player Bela Fleck achors this group. Fleck plays Fusion Jazz/Bluegrass banjo in a way that is both appealing to conventional tastes and delighting to those who love "Out There" Jazz.

This melding of odd talents makes for one of the most revolutionary...Read more