THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1996, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Tuesday, March 12, 1996 TAG: 9603120048
SECTION: DAILY BREAK PAGE: E1 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BY RICKEY WRIGHT, STAFF WRITER
LENGTH: Medium: 61 lines
NOT FOR Bass Players Only.
If Victor Wooten had a slogan in mind while recording his new album, that was it. The former Newport News resident and star bassist with Bela Fleck and the Flecktones, whose lineup includes brother Roy on the hybrid ``drumitar,'' wants to reach an audience beyond his peers.
By making ``A Show of Hands'' (Compass Records) a true solo album, with the only sounds his instrument, a self-written rap and brief spoken-word interludes, Wooten set himself a challenge. But the CD largely meets his goal of listenability. Despite some pretty dazzling chops, this escapes being just empty, showy soloing.
One of Wooten's guideposts on ``Show'' is Stevie Wonder, whose ``Overjoyed'' is included.
``That's a song I learned about 10 years ago,'' Wooten said last week from Topeka, Kan., en route to nearby Lawrence for the first date of the Flecktones' current tour. ``I love the way Stevie can go through complex chord changes, but make it so the average person can relate to it.''
Wooten's public life as a musician began at the age of 5, when he was part of the Wootens with his four brothers. He grew up on the likes of Wonder, Sly and the Family Stone, and James Brown.
The positive messages of that music reverberate throughout ``A Show of Hands,'' which includes guest spots by his parents.
``I didn't know what I wanted to say, so I sat them down and said, `Just talk,' say things they used to tell us,'' Wooten said.
In the '80s, he found himself dunked into the deep end of other styles during a six-year stint at Busch Gardens.
``It was the first time I had played with other musicians who weren't in my family, so that was a real eye-opener,'' he said. ``I learned a lot about music there. We played just about all the musical shows - the country show, the Italian show. They had a show called `Sing Out America' that was, like, patriotic songs. It's a great job. I recommend it for any musician.
``One thing, we had to play the same show five to seven times a day. And they want the show to be the same every day. That's a lot different from what I do now, which is so improvised. But neither one is better than the others. I learned how to play simply and still reach that universe where every note is a world in itself.''
With the Flecktones on 200 or so dates a year, Wooten said he faces a similar challenge.
``It gets back to the same thing - how to keep it fresh, how to keep it new,'' he said. ``There are certain things people expect me to do every show. So even though they may be old to me, I do them every night. So I ask, `How can I keep it fresh for me?' I try to get down to the molecules of the music.'' ILLUSTRATION: Color photo by Compass Records
In "A Show of Hands," Victor Wooten features his instrument, a
self-written rap and spoken interludes.
KEYWORDS: PROFILE by CNB