Victor Wooten

A Show of Hands

By Jeremiah Kaufman

     Like an artist gathers paint for his palette, Victor Wooten gathers musical colors and elements of various instrumentation for his bass.  Through the tables of time only a handful of bass players have been recognized as competent soloists, while even fewer have performed a solo act.  Redefining this idea of a one man band, Wooten manages to draw the life energy from conventional music around the world, and alone, re-transmit it through a four string.  This rare and exciting talent can be heard on the stellar album A Show of Hands.

The album begins with a song entitled “U cant hold no groove.”  This quick slick and funky bassman bounces around his bass with a slappy groove that captures the ear of even the most discriminating listener.  Showcased right outta the gate, Wooten’s rare talent and incredible skill pierces the membrane of all past ideology with exciting chord progressions coupled with angelic, rhythmic grooves.

If you like contrast in your music then Wooten’s your man.  His variations of speed, rhythm, and timbre multiplied by the sound of today allows for an incredibly dynamic level of listenability and excitement.

On tracks like “The Vision” and “Some Day My Prince Will Come,” Wooten plays very heartfelt and emotional ballads.  These touching bass lines allow for an open mind and a free flowing imagination.  On other highly energetic tracks like “More Love” and “Justice” Wooten plays a slippery variation on electronic music by utilizing thick bass effects and deep signal processing.

            This dynamic album by one of the greatest bass players of all time is sure to please any musician searching for a different kind of stimulation.  It works great for parties of all ages too.  It is subtle enough to create an ambience, but never lies too low, totally allowing for an up-beat social hour.  Music aficionados come hither, A Show Of Hands is sure to please.