''Rocket Science'' is a studio album by
Béla Fleck and the Flecktones
Béla may refer to:
* Béla (crater), an elongated lunar crater
* Béla (given name), a common Hungarian male given name
See also
* Bela (disambiguation)
* Belá (disambiguation)
* Bělá (disambiguation) Bělá, derived from ''bílá'' (''whit ...
, released in 2011. It reached number 1 on the ''
Billboard
A billboard (also called a hoarding in the UK and many other parts of the world) is a large outdoor advertising structure (a billing board), typically found in high-traffic areas such as alongside busy roads. Billboards present large advertise ...
'' Jazz chart and number 36 on the Top Independent Albums chart.
The song "Life in Eleven" won Best Instrumental Composition at the 54th Annual Grammy Awards.
The album is the first since 1992's ''
UFO Tofu
''UFO Tofu'' is the third album by Béla Fleck and the Flecktones, released in 1992. The title is a palindrome, which is also a musical theme in the title track; the idea originated with the musician Baby Gramps.
Production
The album was produce ...
'' to feature founding member
Howard Levy
Howard Levy (born July 31, 1951) is an American multi-instrumentalist. A keyboardist and virtuoso harmonica player, Levy "has been realistically presented as one of the most important and radical harmonica innovators of the twentieth century. ...
in the regular band lineup.
Reception
In his
AllMusic
AllMusic (previously known as All Music Guide and AMG) is an American online music database. It catalogs more than three million album entries and 30 million tracks, as well as information on musicians and bands. Initiated in 1991, the databas ...
review, music critic Thom Jurek praised the album, calling the Flecktones re-energized. He wrote "With Levy on harmonica and piano, it's as if he never left. Rather than try to re-create the band's old sound, the Flecktones push ever further into their own seamless, unclassifiable meld of jazz, progressive bluegrass, rock, classical, funk, and world music traditions on this delightful—and at times mind-blowing—record."
Track listing
All songs by
Béla Fleck
Béla Anton Leoš Fleck (born July 10, 1958) is an American banjo player. An acclaimed virtuoso, he is an innovative and technically proficient pioneer and ambassador of the banjo, bringing the instrument from its bluegrass roots to jazz, classi ...
unless otherwise noted.
# "Gravity Lane" – 5:58
# "Prickly Pear" – 3:49
# "Joyful Spring" (
Howard Levy
Howard Levy (born July 31, 1951) is an American multi-instrumentalist. A keyboardist and virtuoso harmonica player, Levy "has been realistically presented as one of the most important and radical harmonica innovators of the twentieth century. ...
) – 2:39
# "Life In Eleven" (H. Levy/B. Fleck) – 5:25
# "Falling Forward" – 5:08
# "Storm Warning" – 7:57
# "Like Water" (
Victor Wooten
Victor Lemonte Wooten (born September 11, 1964) is an American bassist, songwriter, and record producer. He has been the bassist for Béla Fleck and the Flecktones since the group's formation in 1988 and a member of the band SMV with two other ...
/B. Fleck) – 4:42
# "Earthling Parade" – 7:58
# "The Secret Drawer" (
Future Man
Roy Wilfred Wooten (born October 13, 1957), also known as RoyEl, best known by his stage name Future Man (also written Futureman and known to fans as Futche) is an American musician, inventor and composer.
He is best known as a member of jazz ...
) – 2:12
# "Sweet Pomegranates" (H. Levy) – 5:55
# "Falani" – 6:50
# "Bottle Rocket" – 5:53
;Deluxe Edition
#
"Wolf Laurel" – 6:05
Personnel
*Béla Fleck
Béla Anton Leoš Fleck (born July 10, 1958) is an American banjo player. An acclaimed virtuoso, he is an innovative and technically proficient pioneer and ambassador of the banjo, bringing the instrument from its bluegrass roots to jazz, classi ...
– 5-string banjo
The banjo is a stringed instrument with a thin membrane stretched over a frame or cavity to form a resonator. The membrane is typically circular, and usually made of plastic, or occasionally animal skin. Early forms of the instrument were fashi ...
(tracks 1, 3-8, 10-12), Goldtone 10-string Prototype (track 8), Deering Crossfire electric banjo (tracks 2, 6)
*Future Man
Roy Wilfred Wooten (born October 13, 1957), also known as RoyEl, best known by his stage name Future Man (also written Futureman and known to fans as Futche) is an American musician, inventor and composer.
He is best known as a member of jazz ...
– drumitar
A Zendrum is a hand-crafted MIDI controller that is used as a percussion instrument. The Zendrum was influenced by the "Drumitar," invented by Future Man. There are several Zendrum models that are well-suited for live performances: the Z1, ZX, E ...
, acoustic drums
A drum kit (also called a drum set, trap set, or simply drums) is a collection of drums, cymbals, and other Percussion instrument, auxiliary percussion instruments set up to be played by one person. The player (drummer) typically holds a pair o ...
, percussion
A percussion instrument is a musical instrument that is sounded by being struck or scraped by a beater including attached or enclosed beaters or rattles struck, scraped or rubbed by hand or struck against another similar instrument. Exc ...
*Howard Levy
Howard Levy (born July 31, 1951) is an American multi-instrumentalist. A keyboardist and virtuoso harmonica player, Levy "has been realistically presented as one of the most important and radical harmonica innovators of the twentieth century. ...
– diatonic harmonica
The harmonica, also known as a French harp or mouth organ, is a free reed wind instrument used worldwide in many musical genres, notably in blues, American folk music, classical music, jazz, country, and rock. The many types of harmonica inclu ...
(tracks 1, 2, 4-8, 11, 12), bass harmonica
The harmonica, also known as a French harp or mouth organ, is a free reed wind instrument used worldwide in many musical genres, notably in blues, American folk music, classical music, jazz, country, and rock. The many types of harmonica includ ...
(track 8), synth
A synthesizer (also spelled synthesiser) is an electronic musical instrument that generates audio signals. Synthesizers typically create sounds by generating waveforms through methods including subtractive synthesis, additive synthesis and f ...
(track 2), piano
The piano is a stringed keyboard instrument in which the strings are struck by wooden hammers that are coated with a softer material (modern hammers are covered with dense wool felt; some early pianos used leather). It is played using a keyboa ...
(tracks 1-7, 10, 12)
*Victor Wooten
Victor Lemonte Wooten (born September 11, 1964) is an American bassist, songwriter, and record producer. He has been the bassist for Béla Fleck and the Flecktones since the group's formation in 1988 and a member of the band SMV with two other ...
– Fodera 4-string bass
Bass or Basses may refer to:
Fish
* Bass (fish), various saltwater and freshwater species
Music
* Bass (sound), describing low-frequency sound or one of several instruments in the bass range:
** Bass (instrument), including:
** Acoustic bass gui ...
, Fodera 5-string NYC bass, Compito 5-string fretless bass A fretless bass is a bass guitar whose neck does not have any frets. While the instrument is played in all styles of music, it is most common in pop, rock, and jazz. It first saw widespread use during the 1970s, although some players used them befo ...
(track 5, 8, 11)
Production notes:
*Béla Fleck – producer
*Kevin Dailey
Kevin Dailey is a composer, multi-instrumentalist, record producer and mixer based in Nashville, Tennessee. As a producer, engineer, musician, composer or mixer, he has worked with Béla Fleck and the Flecktones, Mikky Ekko, Rome Fortune, Myzic ...
– engineer
*Richard Battaglia – engineer
*Richard Dodd – mastering
*Jeremy Cowart – photography
*Sean Marlowe – art direction, design
*Paul Grosso – cover art, creative director
References
2011 albums
Béla Fleck and the Flecktones albums
MNRK Music Group albums
{{2010s-jazz-album-stub