BéLA FLECK AND THE FLECKTONES

'Béla Fleck and the Flecktones' is a multi-Grammy winning, primarily instrumental group from the USA, that draws equally on bluegrass, fusion and jazz, sometimes dubbed "blu-bop." The band formed in 1988, initially to perform once on the PBS series ''Lonesome Pine Specials''. The Flecktones have toured extensively since then, often playing over 200 concerts per year.

Contents

History

Discography

Grammy awards

Trivia

External links

History

Frontman Béla Fleck plays acoustic and electric banjos, mixing a bluegrass and folk sound into a modern improvisational style. Fleck has received Grammy nominations for performances in the jazz, bluegrass, pop, spoken word, contemporary Christian, gospel, classical, and country categories. To date, he is the only artist to receive nominations in as many diverse categories.
Brothers Victor Wooten and Roy "Future Man" Wooten form the rhythm section. Victor Wooten is widely lauded in jazz and bass-playing circles for his sometimes hyperkinetic slap and pop technique on bass guitar, and many consider him the leading bass virtuoso in music today. Future Man plays percussion using his own invention, the Synthaxe Drumitar, a MIDI controller shaped like a guitar.
Membership in the Flecktones has changed little since the band released its first album. Harmonica and keyboard player Howard Levy appeared on the Flecktones' first three albums. After Levy's departure, Fleck and the Wooten Brothers regrouped on the album Three Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest, the title a reference to the 1975 movie ''One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest'' based on Ken Kesey's novel. Saxophonist Jeff Coffin joined the band beginning with the album ''Left of Cool''.
The band went on an amicable year-long hiatus throughout 2005, during which the individual members toured frequently in other configurations. The Flecktones are active and touring again as of 2006.

Discography

★ ''Béla Fleck and the Flecktones'' (1990)

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★ Grammy nomination, Jazz Album

★ ''Flight of the Cosmic Hippo'' (1991)

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★ No. 1, U.S. jazz charts

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★ Grammy nomination, Jazz Album

★ ''UFO Tofu'' (1992)

★ ''Three Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest'' (1993)

★ ''Live Art'' (1996)

★ ''Left Of Cool'' (1998)

★ ''Greatest Hits of the 20th century'' (1999)

★ ''Outbound'' (2000)

★ ''Live at the Quick'' (2002)

★ ''Live at the Quick'' (DVD, 2002)

★ ''Little Worlds'' (2003)

★ ''Ten From Little Worlds'' (2003)

★ ''The Hidden Land'' (2006)

Grammy awards

★ 1997

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★ Best Pop Instrumental Performance, "The Sinister Minister" by Béla Fleck and the Flecktones

★ 2001

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★ Best Contemporary Jazz Album, ''Outbound'' by Béla Fleck and the Flecktones

★ 2007

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★ Best Contemporary Jazz Album, ''The Hidden Land'' by Béla Fleck and the Flecktones

Trivia

★ Each of the current members of the quartet has released at least one solo album.

★ The band's name is a reference to the 1960's rock band Dick Dale and the Del-Tones.

External links

★ Official band web site

★ Béla Fleck's web site

★ Victor Wooten's web site

★ Future Man's web site

★ Another Future Man web site

★ Howard Levy's web site

★ Jeff Coffin's web site

★ Archives In Cowtown - Unofficial fan site with song and concert history and statistics (established March 2004)

★ Béla Fleck and the Flecktones collection at the Internet Archive's live music archive