Cobalt Blue Vinyl LP

How many albums virtually upend a genre? And how many erstwhile bluegrass bands top a contemporary jazz chart?! The answer to these questions is, #1: very few, and #2: only Béla Fleck & the Flecktones! Their second album, 1991’s fancifully entitled Flight Of The Cosmic Hippo, topped Billboard’s contemporary jazz albums chart and scored a couple of Grammy noms. But, more importantly, this record really made explicit the Flecktones’ bebop leanings, as they devised the term “Blu-Bop” to describe their unique fusion of bluegrass and jazz. Stylistic whiplash has never felt so good or sounded so sweet! Just check out their warm, instrumental wizardry on chestnuts like “Michelle” and “The Star Spangled Banner.” And don’t miss Fleck’s banjo power chords on “Turtle Rock.” Real Gone Music had Mike Milchner at Sonic Vision remaster this classic for vinyl for maximum fidelity, and gave it a repress on cobalt blue vinyl limited to just 900 copies.

Released: 5/9/25