A Show of Hands is the debut album by bassist Victor Wooten. It was recorded at Top of the Hill Studios in Nashville, Tennessee, and was released in 1996 by Compass Records. The album features bass guitar with only the accompaniment of vocals, and showcases Wooten's slap bass and signature open-hammer-pluck techniques. In 2011, Wooten reissued the album in remastered form, with three bonus tracks, on his Vix Records label.[1][2][3][4]
| A Show of Hands | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | ||||
| Studio album by | ||||
| Released | February 20, 1996 | |||
| Studio | Top of the Hill Recorders, Nashville, Tennessee | |||
| Genre | Jazz | |||
| Length | 44:56 62:11 (15th Anniversary Edition) | |||
| Label | Compass | |||
| Producer | Victor Wooten | |||
| Victor Wooten chronology | ||||
| ||||
Reception edit
| Review scores | |
|---|---|
| Source | Rating |
| AllMusic |   [1] |
In a review for AllMusic, Bob Gottlieb wrote: "This is one of the most ambitious albums I have run across... This is an album from the heart of a thinking and feeling human, who has so much to give... Put it on and open up to the music."[1]
Bill Milkowski of JazzTimes stated: "Few other bass players could summon up so much music from just four strings but Wooten pulls it off with a stunning bit of virtuosity, grace and nonchalance."[3]
Writing for Innerviews, Anil Prasad commented: "the disc makes a strong case for the bass as a lead instrument. In fact, the album goes so far beyond conventional ideas about the instrument that listeners often forget they're hearing virtually nothing but bass."[5]
Track listing edit
"Overjoyed" was composed by Stevie Wonder. "Medley" combines "Someday My Prince Will Come" by Frank Churchill and Larry Morey, "Misty" by Erroll Garner, "A Night in Tunisia" by Dizzy Gillespie and Frank Paparelli, and "Vix Blues" by Victor Wooten. The remaining tracks were composed by Victor Wooten.
| No. | Title | Length |
|---|---|---|
| 1. | "U Can't Hold No Groove..." | 4:08 |
| 2. | "More Love" | 3:28 |
| 3. | "Lotta Stuffis?" | 0:12 |
| 4. | "The Vision" | 5:35 |
| 5. | "Overjoyed" | 2:56 |
| 6. | "Live for Peace" | 0:05 |
| 7. | "A Show of Hands" | 5:27 |
| 8. | "Not Like the Other" | 0:41 |
| 9. | "Justice" | 4:01 |
| 10. | "Medley" ("Someday My Prince Will Come", "Misty", "A Night In Tunisia", "Vix Blues") | 4:30 |
| 11. | "Radio W-OO-10" | 0:27 |
| 12. | "Classical Thump" | 4:38 |
| 13. | "Keep Chargin'" | 0:25 |
| 14. | "Me & My Bass Guitar" | 5:14 |
| 15. | "Words of Wisdom" | 3:09 |
| No. | Title | Length |
|---|---|---|
| 1. | ""Yo Victa"" | 0:12 |
| 2. | "U Can't Hold No Groove..." | 4:00 |
| 3. | "More Love" | 3:31 |
| 4. | "Lotta Stuffis?" | 0:14 |
| 5. | "The Vision" | 5:37 |
| 6. | "Overjoyed" | 2:58 |
| 7. | "Live for Peace" | 0:06 |
| 8. | "A Show of Hands" | 5:28 |
| 9. | "Not Like the Other" | 0:41 |
| 10. | "Justice" | 4:01 |
| 11. | "Medley" | 4:31 |
| 12. | "Radio W-OO-10" | 0:28 |
| 13. | "Classical Thump" | 4:40 |
| 14. | "Keep Chargin'" | 0:25 |
| 15. | "Me & My Bass Guitar" | 5:18 |
| 16. | "Words of Wisdom" | 3:09 |
| 17. | "U Can't Hold No Groove... (Enhanced Version)" | 4:25 |
| 18. | "Flip Flop" | 2:42 |
| 19. | "Live Solo #2" | 12:25 |
Personnel edit
- Victor Wooten – bass, vocals, voice
- JD Blair – vocals
- Cortney and Brittany Knight – vocals, voices
- Michael Saleem – vocals
- Mark "Zeke" Sellers – vocals
- Roy Wooten – vocals
- Joseph Wooten- vocals, voice
- Michael Kott – vocals, voice
- Elijah "Pete" Wooten – voice
- Park Law – vocals
- Kurt Story – vocals
- Martin Luther King Jr. – pre-recorded sample from a speech[specify]
- Malcolm X – pre-recorded sample from a speech[specify]
- Aashid – voice
- Dorothy G. Wooten – voice
References edit
- ^ a b c Gottlieb, Bob. "Victor Wooten: A Show of Hands". AllMusic. Retrieved March 12, 2024.
- ^ "Victor Wooten - A Show of Hands". Jazz Music Archives. Retrieved March 12, 2024.
- ^ a b Milkowski, Bill (April 1996). "Victor Wooten: Beyond the Flecktones". JazzTimes. p. 43 – via Google Books.
- ^ Johnson, Kevin (March 9, 2011). "Victor Wooten Releases 'A Show Of Hands 15'". NoTreble. Retrieved March 12, 2024.
- ^ Prasad, Anil (1996). "Victor Wooten: If People Were More Like Music..." Innerviews. Retrieved March 12, 2024.