Customer Reviews

Palmystery

5 star:		(8)
4 star:		(4)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(2)

 

 

"Victor Wooten's "Palmistry" comes closest to handling matters the best by giving him a fair amount of personal space even if surrounded by busy arrangements and African background voices. "The Lesson", for instance, is a duet that features only bass and a rhythm box along with hand claps".Pittzburg Tribune

Guest musicians on his new album are Mike Sternon guitar, Richard Bona on percussion and vocals, Karl Denson on tenor saxophone, Keb' Mo' and several others.

Just the very first spins of the first trach make clear his position as a top notch bass player (he is the veteran bassist of Béla Fleck & the Flecktones) and an excellent composer.

The tracks are all original compositions with the exception of Horace Silver's "Song For My Father".

The musincianschip is fantastic and Victor is on the top of the game.

This a an excellent mix of jazz fusion, blues, gospel, funk and world and the album is very enjoyable for both instrumentals and vocals.

My favourite tracks are : "2 Timers", the middle-eastern tinged "Combo", "I Saw God," which features Richard Bona among its vocalists and the Spanish rhythm flavoured "The Lesson".

Victor's fans will want this for their collections. It's one of his best CDs out there.

Who Let the Cats Out
Tiki
Marcus
The Toys of Men

Victor wooten is just an incredible person. He's talented beyond belief and still supremely humble and spiritual. He shines on this album. I had just gotten this album and was listening to it when some friends stopped by. They arent musicians and are more into top 40 stuff but they really got into this album. All of the tracks are great but I think the standout track is I saw god...Worth the buy...pick it up...if you're reading this you're probably a fan of his anyway...it's good....get it.

This man is a genius. He can play any genre and you will enjoy it. See him in person with his band or with Bella Fleck, you won't regret it.

This album has been around for a while, but I only recently got around to getting a copy, after having enjoyed Soul Circus for quite a while.

There is a real evolution in Wooten's song writing and playing. This is a guy who is not only a fantastic player, but who can write catchy tunes and someone who has really spent some time thinking about life. All this comes out in Palmystery, which is a wonderful album.

This is the album we've been waiting for Victor to make since "What Did He Say?" He's finally put together the best of his song-oriented tunes with some really good instrumental jazz tunes. And the hooks, both melodic and rhythmic, are more immediate and joyful than on "Yin/Yang" or "Soul Circus." As always, the invited guests also shine, but I'll single out Derrico Watson on drums for special consideration. He's just fantastic here.

I've tried a few Victor Wooten albums in the past, but was never particularly hooked on any of them. But this one really works. There are a couple of songs that are just platforms for bass gymnastics that aren't very interesting--I've never been a fan of slap bass--and there are some cheesy solos here and there, but most of the cuts, especially the first four songs, are excellent for their ensemble playing, energy, and composition. As good as the bass playing is, the drumming is even better.

Victor Wooten is a joyful man. You can hear the joy in all his music. But run through this CD at least two or three times and listen to his amazing technical prowess so you get past all that, because he has. Just settle in for some very enjoyable performances. In Wooten's case
those chops are just a means to an end, and not an end it themselves.

2 Timers is an upbeat song that sounds like it could have come from Weather Report, and features some very fine harmonica work. It has a smooth transition where the bass part stays the same behind a very clever time change, from frenetic bounce to easygoing stroll and then
back again. Cambo has a vague vocal (indistinct lyrics, or maybe none at all) that sounds influenced by Middle Eastern laid over a strong foundation, but with a keyboard solo that unfortunately degrades into finger exercises. I Saw God is a happy-sounding tune with a lyric that gives a lighthearted but thoughtful and non-self-righteous view of religion ("I saw God the other day, she looked like you he looked like me," and "'You see, 'I'm not a religious type of person,' and he said, 'You don't have to be.'"). The Lesson is a bass solo feature with some percussive background that is influenced by Spanish music. Left, Right & Center is a selection with a touch of Brecker Brothers-style fusion-funk as multiple instruments double the same lines.

Sifu is an odd selection, starting out with somber strings and a voiceover from Wooten's martial arts instructor that says something that sounds like it was off-the-cuff but the song tries to put it on a pedestal: "A lot of times when martial arts teaches you a lot of techniques, you're taught to block a certain way, or to kick a certain way, it doesn't mean that guy is wrong, it just means you're the one doin' it, and it's no different, than, like, if you wore that shirt and I wore this shirt, it doesn't mean one of us is wrong." It breaks out of the adagio into a heavy fusion romp, occasionally re-sampling, "It doesn't mean one of us is wrong" as a percussion technique. It also gives the quote much more gravitas than it really deserves.

Miss U is a happy song with lyrics that suggest joyful mourning for a lost friend ("I know that I'll see you again, in other land, but until then, I'm going to miss you"). A running line through the song sounds like guitar but I suspect it's some sort of bass. Flex is yet another upbeat tune with a generous helping of bass runs, and reminds me a little of "(Used To Be A) Cha Cha" from Jaco Pastorius. The Gospel is very slow, loosely influenced by gospel forms and Dixieland, with a plaintive vocal of indeterminate lyrics. It finishes with the message, "Someday, maybe someday, we'll all be free" which might have had a definite message in 1865, another in 1940, but today I'm not quite sure what he's getting at. Song For My Father starts out as a typical energetic take on the jazz standard, but moves into some
interesting rhythmic and harmonic departures. Happy Song could have been done by Spyro Gyra, and is yet another joyful Wooten tune. You can almost see Snoopy dancing to this one (which might be. The album closes with Us 2, a slower tune that sounds like it could have been taken from the same Clapton songbook as Wonderful Tonight, though with sparse instrumentals, featuring the Dobro guitar sound.

This recording has some moments for hard-core musicians but is mostly a celebration of life and music without taking itself too seriously.

I saw Wooten and his band perform these songs live prior to this release. The concert was exceptional. The songs are amazing and his on stage candor was great. The songs show a connection to the complex rhythms found in Wooten's performances with Bela Fleck. Musically this collection of songs is well worth the money. There are amazing musical feats performed on this album as well as poetic composition and lyrics. An excellent CD!

Victor Wooten continues to amaze and his latest album is inspiring. If you want to hear what limits someone can push a bass guitar too and listen to a motivation if not spiritual message purchase this album.

Also if you get to see the Victor Wooten Band on tour this year you will not be disappointed.

I think this is Victor's most cohesive work to date in terms of putting forth an 'album' that caters to a wide range of musical tastes. I rate all his work 5 stars because it is what it is...fantastic bass playing. However, I think this particular album takes the whole musicality thing to a new level for him in terms of bridging the gap between a good 'song' and staggering bass playing. Eitherway, if you like Victor then you will be sure to like this one!!!