Recap: The Wooten Brothers w/s/g Rebirth Brass Band @ Troy Music Hall 10/3/23 -By Ed Conway

I’ve enjoyed seeing Victor Wooten ever since I first saw him playing bass with Bela Fleck &  The Flecktones along with his brother Roy “Future Man” Wooten on percussion. This, however, was the first time seeing him with his other two brothers, Joseph on keys and Region guitar. To say Victor is a virtuoso, on the bass would be an understatement as he easily shifts from straight up plunking to finger tapping on the fretboard to some left hand techniques I can’t begin to describe, all leading to the front man style of a lead guitarist. Victor credits his oldest brother Regi for helping him develop his style as Regi also demonstrated a finger tapping style that would have made Eddie Van Halen green with envy. In fact, all four brothers could be described as innovative, stylistically. Second youngest brother, Joseph, traded with the younger Victor on vocals throughout the hour and a half set with a few of his originals, as well as, a medley of covers beginning with the Elton John/Bernie Taupin penned “Your Song”, and running through several different musical styles and culminating with Stevie Wonders’ “My Cherie Amour.” His innovative style wasn’t just confined to keys, as he used a vocoder for “Hero.” During the evening, Victor made several tributes to his late brother Rudy, who passed away in 2010 at the age of 51.The final tribute coming at the end of the evening as Victor mentioned his brother being a sax player, he needed horns, so he brought up openers, Rebirth Jazz Band for the James Brown classic, “Get Up” (I Feel Like Being A) Sex Machine to fill in for the missing horn and looking around, there didn’t appear to be anyone still sitting in their seats as everyone was swaying to the music.

Openers, New Orleans based Rebirth Brass Band made their second appearance in Albany in the last month, as they headlined the Albany Riverfront Jazz Fest back on September 9. Started by brothers Keith and Phillip Frazer back in 1983, the brass band plays an upbeat New Orleans style jazz, reminiscent of the famous Second Line. There were very few people not grooving to the infectious music with a few people up and dancing in the aisles. The audience was having a fantastic from the very first beat and gave a standing ovation as they finished their set. While most opening acts usually limit their set to 30-45 minutes, they were given a full hour and no one seemed to mind. In fact, if it weren’t for the Wooten Brothers coming up next, I’m not sure anyone would have wanted them to stop.

It was great to see such audience appreciation for both bands as the near capacity crowd gave both bands a standing ovation. The music was infectious and the rapport between the bands and the fans made it feel as if we were in a much smaller, intimate setting. Not much more can be said about the wonderful acoustics in this venerable music hall which opened in 1875. This National Historic Landmark is certainly a national treasure that we are lucky to have