Béla Fleck and the Flecktones: Flight Of The Cosmic Hippo

What if you could embark on a musical odyssey that blends bluegrass, jazz, and rock in a way you've never heard before? Join us as we explore the innovative soundscape crafted by Béla Fleck and the Flecktones, where banjo virtuoso Béla Fleck and the Wooten brothers redefine musical boundaries. With Howard Levy's mesmerizing harmonica and Roy "Future Man" Wooten's groundbreaking drumitar, discover how these musicians create a sound that captivates audiences worldwide.

Experience the cosmic magic of the Flecktones as we discuss the dynamic interplay between multiple bassists and the genius of using unconventional instruments. Our musical journey draws parallels to pop culture icons like Stanley Kubrick's "2001: A Space Odyssey" and The Rolling Stones, adding a familiar backdrop to their experimental rhythms. We even spice things up with some whimsical nods to cultural intersections and Zappa-esque compositions that prove these musicians are truly in a league of their own.

Delight in our deep dive into the Flecktones' top album tracks, from the powerful basslines of "Star of the County Down" to the rock and roll fusion of "Turtle Rock." We'll uncover hidden gems like the surprising chase sequence in "Hole in the Wall" and share humorous reflections on everything from Hungry Hungry Hippos to potential future jazz and blues discussions. Celebrate the diverse, rich tapestry of the Flecktones' music with us, and prepare to be amazed at how each listen reveals new favorites.

Transcript

Speaker 1 0:10

All right, thank you for listening to the Greatest Non-Hits. I'm Chris, and playing Flight of the Cosmic Hippo is my co-host, tim Actually, this is a pre-recording and Tim's with me. Tim, how you doing, buddy, doing well here. All right, this is in your real house. So Tim has turned me on to this album.

Speaker 1 0:35

Bella Fleck and the Flecktones are a really innovative band. They blend bluegrass jazz world music. They blend bluegrass jazz world music. The guy playing the banjo in this is Bella Fleck. He is banjo royalty. He's all things banjo. He's won Grammys with this lineup, this group, with this album that we're going to listen to today. So if you don't know who he is, if you don't know who the Flecktones are, strap in Exactly, and we feel bad for you because we're hip to them and they're awesome, and we're going to listen to all of it and, like we always do, we're going to banter, we're going to have some laughs along the way and then the end, we're gonna give you, uh, our three nuggets. So strap in, buckle up, tim. How you doing, bud doing well, excellent. Give me your affinity with these guys.

Speaker 2 1:36

Tell me your background, what they mean to you yeah, I think my sister had a lot of art which is, uh, in their spotify catalog you can check it out there and uh, it just, it just blew my mind, really blew my mind. These guys are playing all these notes in unison, in this jazz fusion, sort of crazy elemental, extremely difficult way and hitting all these different sort of genres in one album and multiple genres in each song as well.

Speaker 1 2:22

Yeah, and they've got all kinds of different instruments there's victor wooten is the name of the bass player, and he has an older brother, roy wooten, who plays the drum guitar on this album, and it's sort of like a conventional, like the. The shape of it is like a conventional guitar but it's wired in a certain way, or they called it a syntax, a syntax drum atar, but when you hit you know some of the mechanisms on the body of the, the guitar. It's got a fretboard and everything. Then it's got a whole fretboard.

Speaker 2 2:56

Yes, so he's using that primarily, but he also has like a regular standard drum kit that he uses also right, yeah, and gets the sounds from his regular drum set from you know to recorded, you know analog style, into the wiring which in the beginning stages. That's why it's such a big thing, because there's all these wires to each Each button has a separate wire coming through this guitar. So I think originally it was a big old honking duct, taped, wired, like buttoned, like mess of, until they could get it into like a real instrument.

Speaker 1 3:42

Right, yeah, well, this is like the iteration after this drum guitar. It was a syntax, the synth. Well then, yeah, that inspired the zen drum, right? And he uh, victor, I'm sorry, roy wooten is who we're talking about. Future man, aka future man, that's his handle. He's from the future, right, and he worked with a couple of guys, with Daniels and another guy.

Speaker 2 4:05

I can't remember what was his Geez.

Speaker 1 4:08

Well, anyway, two other guys came along and said we've got the concept for this instrument, and he worked with them, and then, a number of years later, the Zendrum was patented in 2008,. I think Right, so yeah, so anyway, it's pretty phenomenal. There was also that guy. Check out videos of it, honestly? Oh, yeah, of course. Well, there's also that one guy what's his name? Howard Levy is on this album, and he is an innovator of the harmonica too, I believe, right.

Speaker 2 4:40

Yes, a lot of different effects. And going to these shows, I mean there was always usually a sit-down jazz, you know older contingent in the front, and then there was always these grooving like hippies in the background. Yeah so there was a clash of two, a clash of two listening groups at each show.

Speaker 2 5:03

Yeah two listening groups at each show. Yeah, and I think you know people would try to sit but also would like break it into dance and like stand and then sit down and it was like this little like jibbity job of the chair right the day, like being tied to this chair and people being, like you know, like at their shows because it's like does it clash?

Speaker 1 5:23

do they clash at all?

Speaker 2 5:24

No, it's just no, yeah, they're probably like shut up. But this older guy that this is 17 Grammys for Bella and he's accompanied by the Wooten Brothers.

Speaker 1 5:41

Howard Levy's really good in this too, and Howard Levy, the harmonica player, also. He's worked, they've collaborated with all kinds of big stars, and howard levy's won like a bunch of grammys too just for his contribution to this. But he, he wasn't really in the lineup for a long time like they. This lineup, I think, formed in 88. This was recorded in in 90 or 91, 91., yeah, 91. And in 92, he left the band and came back in like 2010 or 11, which is weird.

Speaker 1 6:12

It's like a 19 year hiatus after being in a band for five years. Right, you leave for 19 and then come back, and I don't. Then I think he left after that at some point, I don't know, during COVID, who I don't know during COVID, who knows, I don't know. But I mean I want to get into the music because it is really at the end of the day, music is awesome.

Speaker 2 6:29

Let's get into it. Yeah, ready.

Speaker 1 6:31

Yeah, so this is Blue Boy. This is the very first one here.

Speaker 3 6:34

Blue, you're my boy. Thank you, sir.

Speaker 2 6:48

I saw Victor with Stephen Bailey, another bassist, two bassists, double bass experiment oh yeah cool while you're singing. Yeah, one plays the melody, one plays the bass.

Speaker 1 7:02

It's really cool on bass no it is you can't concentrate on it's really cool On bass. No it is, that's the thing you can't concentrate on it. There's multiple cool things going on.

Speaker 2 7:11

It's almost like they're all playing solos. This is almost like it's a cosmic note journey, almost yeah.

Speaker 1 7:18

Howard Levy's playing it with piano too, right.

Speaker 2 7:21

Oh, okay.

Speaker 1 7:22

I think he does harmonica and piano. Wow too right. Oh, okay, I think he does harmonica. Wow, that is phenomenal. But yeah, the bass play. I think roy is playing a conventional drum right now, like a little bit, I don't know, I don't know, like, there's that drum guitar.

Speaker 2 7:48

This is like Super Mario Brothers.

Speaker 1 7:57

Or like yeah, Peanuts, oh for sure, Shout out to Charlie Brown's mom Wah, wah, Wah wah. That's serious, yeah.

Speaker 3 8:20

Ah, that feels that feels better. Nice, yeah, ah, that feels that feels better.

Speaker 2 8:28

Nice, the hardcore jazz people are turning around and being like you gave all these hippies permission to be here.

Speaker 1 8:36

Yeah, that's the serious side of the trend. Where's the deodorant?

Speaker 2 8:44

Yeah, Don't you people have homes there? Better not be grilled cheeses in the parking lot.

Speaker 1 9:04

I'll take two Speed it back up now. That's a very incredible transition right there.

Speaker 2 9:08

The Babashab Raga yeah.

Speaker 3 9:22

A little Raga here.

Speaker 2 9:25

Babashab Raga. It's up to 11, this Babashabraga.

Speaker 3 9:29

Babashabraga.

Speaker 2 9:41

This is where Victor thrives here.

Speaker 3 9:48

Like what? Oh wow.

Speaker 2 9:54

I've heard this a few times now, but Doesn't this kind of remind you of, like Stanley Kubrick's Space? Yeah, Space Odyssey. Space Odyssey yeah, 2001 Space Odyssey.

Speaker 3 10:21

Let's get some Hal clips in here. Well, you read me who. You read me of Affirmative Terry.

Speaker 2 10:34

Open the pod bay doors pal, it's a cosmic journey through. I'm afraid I can't do that. What's the problem? Even the album covers. I hit both through space, like cartoons, spaceships and shit.

Speaker 1 10:53

Yeah, ooh, all right, all right. This is now flying saucer Dude.

Speaker 3 11:02

How you going to the airport.

Speaker 4 11:05

Flying somewhere. How'd you guess?

Speaker 1 11:11

What did you think, at last it was incredible.

Speaker 2 11:17

It was a ditty. It was quite a ditty. This is the kind of stuff where you think, like, what would be the song that I would have to listen to just walking around all the time, beep, boop, bop, like one of these songs on the album? Any one, any one of these songs now could be like just your modus operandi music when you're walking around the city. Sure, give you that ethereal edge. You know what I'm saying.

Speaker 1 11:53

Who's Howard?

Speaker 4 11:57

Take it easy, champ, johnny Red Knee. Okay, do it.

Speaker 1 12:11

Dudes. Oh yeah, we need.

Speaker 3 12:15

We're gonna go to college next year.

Speaker 1 12:17

You'll get into Godspeed you black emperor, and the f***ing shins and you'll blow a bunch of dudes and you'll become a lesbian.

Speaker 2 12:36

That's shins and you'll blow a bunch of dudes and you'll become a lesbian. That's new script. Yeah, flying saucer dudes.

Speaker 1 12:38

I like how they have the banjo for the flying saucer. Dudes, I like how they have the banjo for the flying saucer. You know, what's kind of cool too, is that they fuse a really basic instrument like a banjo with something as innovative as a, a drumitare, a drumitare and then everything else in between, piano harmonica bass.

Speaker 2 13:04

He's definitely playing drumitare in this. He's definitely playing trombotar in this Because you can. He's got the upper sticks, which is like the bongos, right? He's given a tutorial on it somewhere on YouTube and it's phenomenal. He plays a drum solo, but he's kind of like narrating it at the same time. He's such a cool dude. Yeah, future man, sovereign citizen. Alright, don't go there.

Speaker 4 13:42

Take it easy, champ. Why don't you stop talking for a while? Maybe sit the next couple plays out All right. All right, buddy, way down.

Speaker 3 13:56

One, one, one. This place is called Lick my Lack Pump.

Speaker 2 14:08

A lot of flak's really pumping on the licks here. It's sensitive too. I mean these guys are like making these sort of like really. They really have to nosh this out, like hash it out, making these dang songs so freaking complicated. There's no missed notes ever. It's like Frank Zappa-esque, almost.

Speaker 1 14:43

Yeah, no, it also. It blends. It blends everything that's good about sophisticated jazz with everything that's great about country and bluegrass music. Yeah, and it's such a respectful merger.

Speaker 2 15:01

It's so fetch.

Speaker 3 15:02

Yeah.

Speaker 1 15:05

So fetch, yeah, so fetch. What is fetch?

Speaker 2 15:11

It is. Yeah, these guys really are masters Howard's holding down the keys really well.

Speaker 1 15:24

Yeah, he's fighting them hard with the python, come on, then what?

Speaker 3 15:33

How about you?

Speaker 4 15:39

Your idea braves the night, but the fight is mine.

Speaker 1 15:49

Oh, that was awesome.

Speaker 2 15:50

All this is turtle rock. Okay, this is getting progressive here yeah, this is rock and roll.

Speaker 1 15:56

Here's johnny, I know right.

Speaker 2 16:17

This is when the crazy hippies in the back are just jamming the turtle rock Sure.

Speaker 1 16:30

I mean, I'm more of a rock guy myself. So mr turtle, oh dude, mr turtle isn't my fault they put in like it's just a shot away you can hear a little bit of Rolling Stones. This is a nod to that, is it? Yeah, like Give Me Shelter, that song is Give Me Shelter by the Rolling Stones. That was a little bit of a nod.

Speaker 3 16:58

Okay, yeah, it's uh.

Speaker 2 17:04

I heard it. I feel you on it. Yeah, abracadabra oh wow Victor, oh oh wow Victor.

Speaker 1 17:33

Oh, this is the best of Victor Wooten right there. What that all just came screaming back to you.

Speaker 2 17:47

Victor's screaming. Right now he's flying high. If the lyrics were, is it jazz?

Speaker 3 18:04

Pit stop. We're going to play some jazz here at the pit stop, okay, wow, okay, bella.

Speaker 2 18:25

He plays with a lot of effects on his banjo as well, oh, my God, I didn't hear that part.

Speaker 1 18:33

Why did I that didn't sink in the first few times I heard this song.

Speaker 2 18:38

Turtle Rock is definitely going to be in both of our top threes, I think. How can it not? This is like 80s-esque almost. It has a little bit of 80s rock to it. Well, definitely, this is a Van Halen of banjos.

Speaker 1 18:59

I was saying, yeah, his finger picking was very Van Halen-esque. Well, interesting, it was 1991, so that kind of finger work was invoked.

Speaker 3 19:21

One plays jazz here at the pit stop. Okay, I'd love to go to the pit stop. What a freak the ball is getting pitted, so pitted.

Speaker 1 19:57

Oh man, I was pitted on that one for sure, this is Flight of the Cosmic.

Speaker 2 20:03

Hippo, this is what Tim was playing. I playing, yeah, I tried to play.

Speaker 1 20:08

And would you say this is probably their biggest song.

Speaker 2 20:13

It's their catchy. Yes, I mean on this album.

Speaker 1 20:17

yes, If you've heard of them, it's likely it came via this song.

Speaker 2 20:23

It's also the name of the album too, so it's the crescendo of it, it's the um, it's that it's jazz and bluegrass at the same time, almost yeah it's latching on to like a riff. That's just really.

Speaker 1 20:48

Powerful here. I know I like the bass in the background. Go Boooo, boooooo. Yeah, cosmo. Shout out to Kramer and Babs.

Speaker 3 21:11

Cosmo.

Speaker 1 21:18

Ian Roy is probably playing with that drum guitar right now.

Speaker 3 21:24

Line somewhere.

Speaker 2 21:35

Levy is cruffin' it. They give him space, you know. They give each position that little bar.

Speaker 1 21:48

Yeah, you know they give each position that little bar of. I like how this is like a more delicate song versus the chaos. You need it. I'm glad that they're doing something like this in such a tasteful way.

Speaker 3 22:01

Yeah.

Speaker 1 22:09

That feels better. I think like the diatonic harmonica is something Howard Levy invented or I don't know. He was like synthesized the harmonica in something. Yeah, he also plays a Hammond B3 organ someone he also plays a. Hammond B-3 organ.

Speaker 2 22:28

The Wooten Brothers were military kids. They moved around a lot growing up. Oh okay, newport News, virginia.

Speaker 1 22:43

Right, yeah.

Speaker 2 22:45

Mostly around Virginia, right, yeah, mostly around Virginia yeah, Hampton. And Newport News, the amount of festivals that they've played as well Bonnaroo, bonnaroo, chat. Newport News Best Jazz Instrumental Album, best jazz instrumental album. These guys will be in Sydney. They're going to Singapore, I mean crazy life, so cool.

Speaker 1 23:49

Yeah, when this came out, the Indianapolis star deemed the album jazz, played with the country instruments and down home warmth, what Chick Corea might sound like if he played with the nitty gritty dirt band. That's how it went Wow. I think that's about right Very good.

Speaker 2 24:15

Little harmonics there from the bass, harmonics from the bass comes out so powerful.

Speaker 1 24:21

I know it's like the way they make the instruments pop.

Speaker 3 24:24

Mm-hmm.

Speaker 1 24:25

Or they like, put a little electronic twist on these. Yes, simple.

Speaker 2 24:31

Oh, should we get a little preface to the Star Spangled Banner here?

Speaker 1 24:34

Uh yeah, we could, for the land of the free, shout out to Hot.

Speaker 3 24:43

Tula Girl.

Speaker 1 24:47

Okay, all right. Well, yeah, this is called the Star Spangled Banner, but this is a hell of a rendition of it, so it kind of comes in.

Speaker 2 25:18

It's unclassifiable as Tom Jurek.

Speaker 1 25:24

Luton's a great bass player.

Speaker 2 25:28

Well, it's him and his brother with bass and drums. I mean, it's such a.

Speaker 1 25:34

Instinct between them. Right, right, yeah. Four-string, five-string, fretless, six-string electric bass is what he's playing. Right, it's pretty.

Speaker 2 26:18

Yeah, right now he's playing the 5 string fretless Wow.

Speaker 1 26:21

Harmonica, howard. Yeah, yeah.

Speaker 4 26:35

What a freak Cosmo Cosmo 75 light years from the Earth. The light by which we see this star has spent 75 years traversing into stellar space on its journey to the Earth.

Speaker 2 26:59

That's the Star Spangled Banner right there.

Speaker 1 27:01

That's right, alright.

Speaker 3 27:08

Sorry, I guess a star is born.

Speaker 1 27:15

Alright, that's as patriotic as tim is gonna get all right pop culture, patriotism yeah, okay, this is called star of the County Town Way down Way down, think of what's in the picture.

Speaker 4 27:46

Do it, johnny Red Knee? Okay, do it.

Speaker 3 27:51

Do it, do it All right and how are we feeling on this one?

Speaker 2 28:01

This is like a country.

Speaker 1 28:04

Yeah, this is a good song.

Speaker 2 28:06

I feel like a futuristic John Wayne, like Fifth Element, vibe, going on. Yeah.

Speaker 1 28:16

This is something that you play in the background before a TED Talk. That's funny, I mean, it's good, it's enjoyable. It should be in the background.

Speaker 2 28:29

It's a little elevator-y yeah it's elevator-y, it should be in the background a little elevator-y. Yeah, it's elevator-y, it should be in the background.

Speaker 1 28:34

Elevator-y yeah. Or like the music in the background of your trip to Yellowstone, or something like that yeah down the secret stairwells.

Speaker 2 28:46

Yeah Of Yellowstone.

Speaker 4 28:49

Take it easy, champ. Why don't you stop talking for?

Speaker 3 28:54

a while. Take it once and take it again.

Speaker 2 29:03

It's got the gravity. It's got that sort of like yeah, floating through space, gravity. Shout out to Sandra Bullock. You haven't done one of those. Shout out to the runners.

Speaker 1 29:29

Yeah, shout out to the runners. Who else would we Shout out to the tea drinkers? Shout out to the runners. Who else will we Shout out to the tea drinkers? What else did we used to do in the old days?

Speaker 2 29:36

Yeah, Shout out to the dolphins I don't know the dolphin trippers.

Speaker 4 29:57

Yeah, to the radio while I'm collating, so I don't see why I should have to turn down the radio.

Speaker 2 30:01

Yeah, all right, he's like yeah milton loves bell fleck in the flat zones really does. He listens to it on his radio.

Speaker 3 30:11

Yeah, at Inateck.

Speaker 1 30:14

At a reasonable value. I was told. I was told.

Speaker 3 30:18

The last time he did not receive a piece.

Speaker 2 30:23

It's chocolate, vanilla, vanilla, chocolate, chocolate, vanilla, chocolate, vanilla. Oh, I realize we forgot a word from our sponsor. A very good board game in between songs here, since this isn't the flight of the Cosmic Kid, though, bring us down into the three-dimensional realm of consumerism.

Speaker 1 30:56

You got that as a little bit of a palate cleanser maybe.

Speaker 2 31:00

Yeah, we can do a little. I'm loving this actually.

Speaker 1 31:06

This might be in my top three.

Speaker 3 31:08

Really Listen to this nice little bit here.

Speaker 2 31:12

Imagine them playing this live. This is like Ravi Shankar stuff right here, do-do-do-do-do-do, this is. They probably jam on that one.

Speaker 1 31:27

Yeah, this is like background music of an R-rated movie from the 90s. Yeah, all right, we've got a little palate cleanser before we Just gonna do.

Speaker 2 31:39

All right, let's uh.

Speaker 3 31:40

It's Hungry, hungry Hippos. First to gobble up the most marbles wins.

Speaker 2 31:44

Hungry.

Speaker 3 31:44

Hungry Hippos, we're Hungry. Hungry Hippos, we love to feed our face. We're Hungry.

Speaker 2 31:49

Hungry Hippos, we love to feed our face.

Speaker 3 31:51

We're in an eating race. How's?

Speaker 2 31:53

about dessert. Okay, Takes me back to that stupid plastic game.

Speaker 3 32:02

Yeah exactly when are these marbles?

Speaker 2 32:03

Yeah, this is like there's no marbles.

Speaker 1 32:04

There's too many marbles. I don't think I ever played that game once it's this carpal tunnel waiting to happen, I know. It's like what is that?

Speaker 2 32:15

It's like Whack-A-Mole Jr without the mallet.

Speaker 3 32:19

Yeah.

Speaker 2 32:19

Don't arm the children, just give them hippos to eat marbles. All right, we got Jekyll and Hyde here, ted and Alice.

Speaker 1 32:36

This is kind of nice. It's just Bella jamming right.

Speaker 2 32:41

This is a seven-minuter so. Is it really Strap in One of the least visited on Spotify? That's true.

Speaker 1 32:54

That's why we're here. Let's give it a listen.

Speaker 2 32:56

Could be. It Could be a deep hit.

Speaker 1 33:04

It's kind of hypnotic. Have you ever heard this live? How many times have you seen them live?

Speaker 2 33:22

I don't think I've ever seen the band live, have you? Have you seen any of them? Like just Victor, victor and Stephen Bailey and their double bass experiment, okay, and on stage, we're on stage. Rams at, on stage, gotcha, yeah, um, it must have been awesome. It was very unique, one of the most unique shows, two of the best Different bassists, very different style. I feel like one of our friends. Jordan Tice played with Bella Fleck when he was in his teenage years. Uh-huh, now he's doing the music thing in Nashville.

Speaker 3 34:19

Is it local now?

Speaker 2 34:20

Oh yeah, he's local to Maryland. Around the Annapolis area. Shout out to Jordan Tice Excellent, excellent guitarist.

Speaker 1 34:34

Oh, he must be. Yeah, we do a little bit of a collab here with these guys.

Speaker 3 34:42

We do a little bit of a collab here with these guys Maybe it's just a jam.

Speaker 1 34:50

This is good bass. It must be hard to play bass and banjo at the same time, right?

Speaker 2 35:01

It's almost like stepping on each other's toes a little bit sometimes, the way that yeah Trying to play right after each other in this song.

Speaker 4 35:39

It's only a dream. It's only a dream. Here's Johnny.

Speaker 2 35:50

Jekyll and Hyde. It builds up here Almost like a turtle rock scenario here.

Speaker 1 36:00

Yeah, this is a festival kind of interlude.

Speaker 2 36:09

I don't know how Victor is doing this With Howard on keys sprinkling these. This is a crowd favorite.

Speaker 1 36:18

It is a crowd favorite. Is this a song you can get up to? This is a crowd favorite.

Speaker 2 36:25

It is a crowd favorite. I think so Okay In the jam band world.

Speaker 3 36:32

You know it's the longer of the song.

Speaker 1 36:43

That's not bad, I mean, it's kind of simple.

Speaker 2 36:47

They're linking up the bass and the harmonica, yeah.

Speaker 1 36:54

You put it that way when you come across that you don't.

Speaker 2 37:01

Oh then you put the banjo on top of it.

Speaker 1 37:02

Yeah, you can do everything. A blues traveler, you know, came after these guys. I'm sure they must have been in some way influenced, right? Oh, definitely.

Speaker 2 37:27

They're hot. This is straight fire. Jekyll and Hyde, fire, fire. I just love the crescendo. I do too. The longer that you wait for the crescendo sometimes, the better the song. I agree, I don't know, maybe.

Speaker 1 37:55

It's all about the way they make you wait for it you know?

Speaker 2 38:11

Did you know hippos are not related to horses and are more closely related to whales and dolphins? I didn't know that. Yeah, they're closer to whales, more closely related to whales, so More closely related to whales and dolphins than horses Like who Than horses.

Speaker 3 38:28

Oh.

Speaker 2 38:29

Yeah, this is hippos, yeah, who.

Speaker 3 38:33

I was just like wait a minute, you're talking about hippos.

Speaker 1 38:36

Kate, more associated with dolphins than horses.

Speaker 2 38:40

Oh yeah, I don't know what I'm saying.

Speaker 4 38:44

Take it easy champ.

Speaker 2 38:46

Okay, they're nocturnal, Hippos are nocturnal. So I wonder when do they dream? What do hippos dream? What the hell they do?

Speaker 1 39:00

Nocturnal. Yeah, it's like an emission. Yeah, yeah, okay, drakkar Noir. Maybe they have dry dreams, I don't know.

Speaker 2 39:15

French dreams. So we were both saying this song is seemingly it's very Drakkar.

Speaker 1 39:24

Noir-ish Drakkar Noir. Yeah, my little darling. Yeah, it's very Pepe Le Pew. This is Michelle Madel, right.

Speaker 2 39:34

Michelle Madel. Ah yes, Sunday, Monday. This is the other big listener on this.

Speaker 3 39:54

I love you. It's very beautiful this morning.

Speaker 1 40:17

what else they could have called it?

Speaker 3 40:19

Well, this piece is called Lick my Love Pump.

Speaker 4 40:26

Okay.

Speaker 1 40:35

Way down.

Speaker 4 40:38

I like what they're doing here, Still having eggs coming at you. Hold on people.

Speaker 2 40:44

Hope you got your griddles little ham sandwich on on the side here. Check it for a walk there, johnny here's Johnny. I had some eggs. You don't have an egg coming at you, hold on, I kind of have the eggs, just bacon, eggs, sourdough, you know.

Speaker 1 41:16

Don't forget the ham All. Right howl, Don't forget the ham All right howl.

Speaker 4 41:26

No, do not come with me to the Casbah. We shall make beautiful music together right here. C'est l'amour.

Speaker 3 41:35

C'est toujours. I don't know what's going on here, oh Wow.

Speaker 1 42:11

What a freak. That's a fretless kind of thing.

Speaker 2 42:13

This is some Jocko. This is like Jocko.

Speaker 1 42:17

What, what.

Speaker 2 42:24

So pitted.

Speaker 3 42:34

What man the Baron get pitted, so pitted.

Speaker 2 42:48

Okay, Howard.

Speaker 4 43:01

My fingers hurt.

Speaker 2 43:05

Yeah, they would hurt. After this, it takes a manville.

Speaker 1 43:11

Oh.

Speaker 3 43:11

Grandma, now your back's going to hurt. You just pulled landscape.

Speaker 2 43:20

Oh, the hand job. The hand job, russell. Excuse me, russell, but I believe I requested the hand job. Thank you, wayne. We're doing a little clip audit here, clip auditing for you.

Speaker 1 43:50

Like what. Now I know why I got so many more listens than Jekyll and Hyde.

Speaker 3 43:57

Yeah.

Speaker 1 43:59

And Ted and Alice.

Speaker 3 44:07

Sorry, I guess his daughter's born.

Speaker 2 44:13

Okay, All right this next one's called Hole in the Wall. We're going to keep digging here.

Speaker 3 44:19

We're going to keep digging here Two day of mine. You keep digging, I keep digging here, we're going to keep digging here Two damn man.

Speaker 1 44:24

You keep digging I'm digging it.

Speaker 3 44:27

Hey, we can't even get into like a second-rate hotel.

Speaker 2 44:48

I mean a second-rate motel. You dig, he's got his vital hole.

Speaker 4 45:06

He's got his vital, his vital hole.

Speaker 2 45:18

That's pretty cool. Oh, each time I looked around, the walls moved in a little tighter. Good timing on that. One. Slap of the bass. Slap of the bass. Who are you, howard's, slapping?

Speaker 4 46:00

I want to see you, howard, slapped.

Speaker 2 46:10

Slap the bass big time. This album is crazy. It's like a museum artifact.

Speaker 1 46:21

Yeah, I agree. Shout out to Paul Rudd. It's not the best big time.

Speaker 2 46:28

Get some tea. Get some more tea on the kettle, stay with us. Get some Darjeeling Chamomile mango. Okay, oh, yeah, yeah, this is what.

Speaker 3 46:46

This is where Bella gets to just Uh Uh. Wait, just a minute.

Speaker 1 47:04

I just I don't want to desecrate this with gassy hole.

Speaker 2 47:08

Shout out to Kate McKinnon.

Speaker 3 47:14

Yeah.

Speaker 2 47:15

The people out on the grass at all the various festivals that Bella Fleck is played with.

Speaker 1 47:38

I pass on grass all the time.

Speaker 3 47:58

So you want another piece of cake, Milton hey, but last time I didn't receive a beat and I was told, Just pass to the radio while I'm to the radio, while I'm collating.

Speaker 4 48:07

So I don't see why I should have to turn down the radio because I didn't repeat a beat and I was told.

Speaker 1 48:20

Just pass. Yeah, Howard. I like the way Howard and Bella are playing with each other.

Speaker 2 48:32

And Victor. They all play in a triptych like rundown. They do a triptych rundown Right. Andown, they do a triptych rundown right, and then they play a chase part right, right, and then up the key, up the scale down. I mean I know it's so crazy. They're musical geniuses, I know, I think lagoon, I think waterfall.

Speaker 3 48:59

I think tropical, this I think waterfall, I think tropical.

Speaker 2 49:02

This is a cement hole.

Speaker 1 49:09

Okay, this is a Flame of the Cosmic Hippo, reprise From song four. And you know I mean this is a great song, I'm gonna. I'm calling it a hit and I gonna this is I'm discounting it, I'm disqualifying it well, I mean, you can put it in slow down, okay no, this is where they slow down.

Speaker 4 49:36

Yes, it's good, it's tolerable there's something happened to him, love.

Speaker 1 49:52

Spicoli loves the Cosmic Hippo yeah, I'm stressing out because I don't know what I'm going to choose. It's like oh, I'm going to choose, oh, I'm going to just Do. You know what yours are.

Speaker 2 50:12

Yeah, definitely Do you want to. Should we start it up? Yeah, let's start it up, all right?

Speaker 1 50:20

Number three, number three Number three for me.

Speaker 2 50:25

Shout out to our sponsor Happy Fun Ball.

Speaker 4 50:29

And by Happy.

Speaker 1 50:29

Fun Ball, please, man, that was actually funny.

Speaker 2 50:35

We got number three Hole in the Wall, Hole in the Wall.

Speaker 1 50:40

Yeah, yeah.

Speaker 2 50:43

Oh, that is a great choice. The chase is amazing. I know it's this sort of like it. It tires you out so good you're gonna sleep.

Speaker 1 50:52

well, that's kind of the song it is yeah, that's the one in it early on in it they were kind of playing off each other sort of yeah that. Yeah.

Speaker 1 51:00

It was that whole chase, you know, like the banjo chasing the harmonica and back and forth. Yeah, you know, I love that too, man. Yeah, For my number three, I'm going to go Turtle Rock. Oh, Because he was really jamming in that one, wasn't he? Yeah, and it was that jamming part that you know that put me over the top. So I'm going to make that my number three, Wow.

Speaker 2 51:25

Okay, man, this is tough.

Speaker 1 51:32

I know.

Top Flecktones Album Tracks Discussion

Speaker 2 51:33

Because I did really like Star of the County Down and that very ending of it and that very ending of it. I want to exclude the title track from I mean, yeah, I'm going star of the county down, I'm just doing it okay. Number two it had a great ending, you could tell that was the improv like yeah, you door, door opener. That's like their sort of um deep jam in, probably when they played live.

Speaker 1 52:08

I would have to check set list right but yeah all right, my number two is going to be number the first song blue bob, blue bob. Yes, I thought that that was just I mean yeah, just like the Bass playing in it Early on. It set a tone For the whole album. Strap in because we're gonna. They just come right at you full force, all of their Best stuff. You know, really A lot of it comes out at the very beginning and I think it was well placed as the number one song.

Speaker 2 52:42

It's my number two song okay, um, so what's my number one here? I'm going. I'm going turtle rock. Yeah, because it deserves it. Second listen, listen, second, third listen. That's like the song that I want to listen to the most. Yeah, probably because, if it's my music profile, more rock and roll, jazz fusion yeah, instead of. But you know, I have a place in my heart for Michelle and flight of the cosmic hippo, great, great riff. And the first two songs were good.

Speaker 1 53:21

But yeah, yeah, they're. I mean those are, I mean all these songs are great and you can probably I mean this is a bad. This is a hard album to do this kind of an exercise because, yeah, at any given day I can listen to it again and choose three different other, you know.

Speaker 2 53:35

But yeah, walk around with this on. Run around with this on. Yeah, walk around your house. It's good stuff. Just Walk around your house. It's good stuff. Just keep it on in the background. It's good stuff, yeah.

Speaker 1 53:45

My number one is going to be Hole in the Wall. Yeah, wow, I love that. The chase did it for me and it's right in the middle of the song and I feel like it's buried in there. It's got the least amount of listens on Spotify, and and it's got the least amount of listens on Spotify and that chase part of it just blew me away. And I don't get blown away by bluegrass or jazz or anything like that, but jazz is coming up on me. I used to dismiss it and I'm like I don't know if it's just We've got to do some jazz albums, exactly, we might go down that road, maybe some blues, I mean, you know, exactly, we might go down that road, maybe some blues.

Speaker 2 54:22

I mean you know yeah.

Speaker 1 54:24

There's a lot from the 90s. Maybe we can even go into some Prince again. I don't know. We'll open it up, but I think that puts a bow on it right.

Speaker 4 54:31

I'm the.

Speaker 3 54:31

Booker Dolores today.

Speaker 2 54:33

Yeah, big money Cake us up. Rock on All right.