Tennessee 2025-2026 Regular Session

Tennessee House Bill HJR0228 Compare Versions

Only one version of the bill is available at this time.

Old	New	Differences
1	1
2	2	<BillNo> <Sponsor>
3	3
4	4	HOUSE JOINT RESOLUTION 228
5	5	By Faison
6	6
7	7
8	8	HJR0228
9	9	003683
10	10	- 1 -
11	11
12	12	A RESOLUTION to recognize and honor legendary bassist Victor
13	13	Wooten.
14	14
15	15	WHEREAS, it is the privilege of the members of this General Assembly to honor those
16	16	citizens whose devotion to craft and artistic integrity not only result in exceptional art but also
17	17	inspire people throughout this State and around the world; and
18	18	WHEREAS, one such individual is Victor Lemonte Wooten, a skilled naturalist, teacher,
19	19	magician, acrobat, husband, father of four, songwriter, record producer, and one of the most
20	20	esteemed bass players in the history of the instrument; and
21	21	WHEREAS, although he now calls Nashville home, Mr. Wooten was born just outside of
22	22	Boise, Idaho, on September 11, 1964, and spent his formative years in Hawaii, where his
23	23	parents, Dorothy and Elijah Wooten, were stationed as members of the United States Air Force;
24	24	and
25	25	WHEREAS, he was "born into a band," with brothers Regi on guitar, Roy on drums,
26	26	Rudy on saxophone, and Joseph on keys, all of them happy to welcome the arrival of their baby
27	27	brother/new bassist to round out the quintet; he has had an instrument in his hands since the
28	28	age of two and states that he acquired music as one does a language, through unfettered
29	29	access and the freedom to experiment; and
30	30	WHEREAS, The Wooten Brothers Band hit the road when Victor was only six years old,
31	31	opening for the iconic Curtis Mayfield; soon after, he was affectionately known as the eight-year-
32	32	old Bass Ace, and before graduating from high school in Newport News, Virginia, he shared the
33	33	stage with artists such as Stephanie Mills, War, Ramsey Lewis, Frankie Beverly and Maze,
34	34	Dexter Wansel, and The Temptations; and
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39	39	WHEREAS, now a five-time Grammy Award winner, Mr. Wooten hit the worldwide scene
40	40	in 1990 as a founding member of the eclectic supergroup Béla Fleck and the Flecktones, along
41	41	with banjo player Béla Fleck, Victor's brother Roy "Future Man" Wooten, and harmonica and
42	42	piano wizard Howard Levy; the band created a completely new sound and has become known
43	43	for its genre-defying music. It is still going strong to this day; and
44	44	WHEREAS, Mr. Wooten's sought-after skills and growing popularity led to his recording
45	45	and performing with artists such as Tommy Emmanuel, Chick Corea, The Dave Matthews Band,
46	46	Bootsy Collins, Branford Marsalis, Mike Stern, Prince, India Arie, Keb Mo, Dennis Chambers,
47	47	Susan Tedeschi, Gov't Mule, Bruce Hornsby, Stanley Clarke, Marcus Miller, Frank Gambale,
48	48	and the legendary Moroccan group Nass El Ghiwane, among many others; and
49	49	WHEREAS, in 1996, Victor Wooten's first solo project, A Show of Hands, was recorded
50	50	with only a four-string bass, no multitracking, and a lot of groove and soul; this revolutionary
51	51	album has been hailed as one of the most important bass records of all time; and
52	52	WHEREAS, devoted to giving back to youth and fostering a love of music in upcoming
53	53	generations, Mr. Wooten created a music program in 2000 called "Bass/Nature camp," which
54	54	was expanded to include all instruments under the moniker "Victor Wooten's Center for Music
55	55	and Nature"; his camps found a permanent home in 2009 at Wooten Woods, a nearly 150-acre
56	56	retreat located on Duck River west of Nashville owned by Victor and his wife, Holly; and
57	57	WHEREAS, he has also been in service to others through teaching at Berklee College of
58	58	Music in Boston, Massachusetts, co-leading the Victor Wooten/Berklee Summer Bass
59	59	Workshop; at Berklee, as at his own camps, he collaborates with Berklee Bass Department
60	60	Chair Steve Bailey, alongside whom he has been teaching since the early 1990s; and
61	61	WHEREAS, Mr. Wooten has penned two books—The Music Lesson: A Spiritual Search
62	62	for Growth Through Music and The Spirit of Music: The Lesson Continues, and he owns Vix
63	63	Records, which releases his albums; and
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68	68	WHEREAS, in addition to his Grammy honors, Victor Wooten has been named Bass
69	69	Player of the Year by Bass Player Magazine on three occasions and is the first person to win
70	70	that prestigious award more than once; in 2011, he was ranked No. 10 in the Top 10 Bassists of
71	71	All Time by readers of Rolling Stone magazine; and
72	72	WHEREAS, taking to heart his mother's words, "The world needs more than just good
73	73	musicians. We need good people," Victor Wooten did not content himself with being one of the
74	74	most celebrated musicians of all time—he has continued to be an example of the sort of person
75	75	the world needs, one who embodies compassion, humility, and service above self; now,
76	76	therefore,
77	77	BE IT RESOLVED BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF THE ONE HUNDRED
78	78	FOURTEENTH GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF TENNESSEE, THE SENATE
79	79	CONCURRING, that we recognize and honor Victor Wooten for his many contributions to the
80	80	State of Tennessee through his artistry and generosity of spirit, extending our best wishes for
81	81	every continued success.
82	82	BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, that an appropriate copy of this resolution be prepared
83	83	for presentation with this final clause omitted from such copy and upon proper request made to
84	84	the appropriate clerk, the language appearing immediately following the State seal appear
85	85	without House or Senate designation.