Béla Fleck and the Flecktones is the debut album by Béla Fleck and the Flecktones, released in 1990. It reached number 17 on the Billboard Top Contemporary Jazz Albums chart. At the Grammy Awards of 1997, a live version of "The Sinister Minister", a track from the album, won the Best Pop Instrumental Performance award.
Reception
In his Allmusic review, music critic Brian Mansfield praised the album and wrote "For all the flash, there's little pretense; the group's astonishing musicianship keeps an 'aw-shucks' accessibility that lets everybody follow the melody while they marvel."
Track listing All songs by Béla Fleck unless otherwise noted. "Sea Brazil" – 3:43 "Frontiers" – 6:08 "Hurricane Camille" – 2:38 "Half Moon Bay" – 5:09 "The Sinister Minister" – 4:38 "Sunset Road" – 5:04 "Flipper" – 4:21 "Mars Needs Women: Space is a Lonely Place" – 5:01 "Mars Needs Women: They're Here" – 3:30 "Reflections of Lucy" (B. Fleck/John Lennon/Paul McCartney) – 3:38 "Tell It to the Gov'nor" – 4:06
Single The only single from the album was "The Sinister Minister". The music video received heavy airplay on MTV and VH1 at the time of its release. Because of the popularity of the video, it was featured on an episode of VH1's Pop-Up Video. The song won won a Grammy Award for Best Pop Instrumental Performance in 1997, despite having been released seven years earlier.
Personnel Béla Fleck – banjo Howard Levy – diatonic harmonica (tracks 1, 2, 4, 5, 8–11), synth (tracks 5, 11), synthesizers (tracks 5, 6, 8, 10), piano (tracks 1–4, 6, 7, 10), Jew's harp (track 2), güiro (track 5) Roy "Future Man" Wooten – Synth-Axe Drumitar Victor Wooten – bass Camille Harrison (uncredited) – vocals (track 6)
Production notes Produced by Béla Fleck with the Flecktones Carlos Grier – editing Bil VornDick – mixing Denny Purcell – mastering Mark Fox – artwork, design Laura LiPuma – art direction Jim McGuire – photography
Chart positions YearChartPosition1990Billboard Top Contemporary Jazz Albums17
References