| Softs | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | ||||
| Studio album by | ||||
| Released | June 1976 | |||
| Recorded | January to March, 1976 at EMI Abbey Road Studios, London | |||
| Genre | Jazz rock [1] | |||
| Length | 44:55 | |||
| Label | Harvest | |||
| Producer | Soft Machine | |||
| Soft Machine chronology | ||||
| ||||
| Review scores | |
|---|---|
| Source | Rating |
| AllMusic |   [1] |
Softs is the ninth studio album by the jazz rock band Soft Machine, released in 1976.
John Etheridge replaced Allan Holdsworth on guitar shortly after the release of the previous album, Bundles , and Alan Wakeman, cousin of Yes keyboardist Rick Wakeman, took over saxophone duties from Karl Jenkins. Karl would play keyboards exclusively from this point onward. During the recording of the album, the group's last remaining original member, Mike Ratledge, left the band.
In 2019, Etheridge told Ed Masley that:
We came to record the album and Mike Ratledge never showed up. He had kind of been wanting to leave, he told me that. And I think the thought of making the album was the final straw, so he didn't show up. It didn't make a lot of difference, to tell you the truth, by then, which is a shame... But Karl Jenkins had sort of taken over and he was writing most of the music.
Two tracks recorded during the early sessions with Ratledge were included on the album. Wakeman and bassist Roy Babbington left the group not long after the album was released, Wakeman having been a member for less than six months. [3] The album was originally to be titled One Over the Eight, a reference to this being the band's ninth album, but this title was eventually rejected. [4]
All compositions by Karl Jenkins except where indicated.
| No. | Title | Length |
|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Aubade" | 1:49 |
| 2. | "The Tale of Taliesin" | 7:15 |
| 3. | "Ban-Ban Caliban" | 9:19 |
| 4. | "Song of Aeolus" | 4:29 |
| Total length: | 22:12 | |
| No. | Title | Length |
|---|---|---|
| 5. | "Out of Season" | 5:30 |
| 6. | "Second Bundle" | 2:35 |
| 7. | "Kayoo" (John Marshall) | 3:25 |
| 8. | "The Camden Tamdem" (John Etheridge, John Marshall) | 1:50 |
| 9. | "Nexus" | 0:47 |
| 10. | "One Over the Eight" (Karl Jenkins, John Marshall, John Etheridge, Alan Wakeman, Roy Babbington) | 5:26 |
| 11. | "Etika" (John Etheridge) | 2:21 |
| Total length: | 20:34 42:46 | |
Soft Machine are a British rock band from Canterbury formed in mid-1966 by Mike Ratledge, Robert Wyatt, Kevin Ayers, Daevid Allen and Larry Nowlin. As a central band of the Canterbury scene, the group became one of the first British psychedelic acts and later moved into progressive and jazz rock, becoming a purely instrumental band in 1971. The band has undergone many line-up changes, with musicians such as Andy Summers, Hugh Hopper, Elton Dean, John Marshall, Karl Jenkins, Roy Babbington and Allan Holdsworth being members during the band's history. The current line-up consists of John Etheridge, Theo Travis, Fred Thelonious Baker and Asaf Sirkis.
Sir Karl William Pamp Jenkins,, HonFLSW is a Welsh multi-instrumentalist and composer. His best known works include the song "Adiemus", Palladio (1995), The Armed Man (2000), his Requiem (2005) and his Stabat Mater (2008).
Third is a live and studio album by the English rock band Soft Machine, released as their third overall in June 1970 by CBS Records. It is a double album with a single composition on each of the four sides, and was the first of two albums recorded with a four-piece line-up of keyboardist Mike Ratledge, drummer and vocalist Robert Wyatt, saxophonist Elton Dean, and bass guitarist Hugh Hopper. Third marks a shift in the group's sound from their psychedelic origins towards jazz rock and electronic music.
Volume Two is the second LP by The Soft Machine, released in 1969. The album combined humour, dada, psychedelia and jazz. In 2000 it was voted number 715 in Colin Larkin's All Time Top 1000 Albums.
The Soft Machine is the debut album by the British psychedelic rock band Soft Machine, released in 1968. It is the group's only album to feature Kevin Ayers as a member.
Bundles is the eighth studio album by the jazz-rock band Soft Machine, released in 1975.
Six is the sixth studio album by the jazz rock band Soft Machine. Originally released in 1973 as a double LP, the first disc is a live album and the second disc is a studio album. This is the first album to feature Karl Jenkins as a member the group, replacing Elton Dean. Jenkins eventually became the de facto leader and main composer of the group.
Fourth is the fourth studio album by the rock band Soft Machine, released in 1971. The album is also titled Four or 4 in the USA.
Seven is the seventh studio album by the jazz rock band Soft Machine, released in 1973. Bassist Roy Babbington, who had previously worked with the band as a session musician on the Fourth (1971) and Fifth (1972) albums, joined the band as a full-time member, replacing Hugh Hopper, who left to begin a solo career. This line-up change meant more than half of Soft Machine was now former members of the band Nucleus.
Fifth, is the fifth studio album by the jazz rock band Soft Machine, released in 1972. In the US the album was identified on cover and label by number (5).
Michael Roland Ratledge is a British musician. A part of the Canterbury scene, he was a founding member of Soft Machine. He was the last founding member to leave the group, doing so in 1976.
Roy Babbington is an English rock and jazz bassist. He became well known for being a member of the Canterbury scene progressive rock band Soft Machine.
Alive & Well: Recorded in Paris is a (mostly) live album by the jazz rock band Soft Machine, released in 1978. It is their first album recorded entirely without any founding members of the band, as Mike Ratledge left the group during recording of the previous album Softs. It is also first album since their debut without wind instruments.
Land of Cockayne is the tenth studio album by the jazz rock band Soft Machine, released in 1981. The title refers to the medieval land of plenty. It would be the last album released under the Soft Machine name until Hidden Details in 2018.
Wonderin' is a tribute album featuring jazz-funk cover versions of Stevie Wonder songs. It was recorded by the ad hoc band Rollercoaster made up of leading UK session and jazz musicians from British jazz-rock bands of the 1960s and 1970s such as Soft Machine, Blue Mink and Nucleus.
Burden of Proof is the sixth album by the Canterbury associated band Soft Machine Legacy and their third studio album, released on CD in March 2013. This was the last album to use the "Legacy" suffix before it was dropped in 2015. Soft Machine returned with Hidden Details in 2018 featuring the same line-up that recorded this album.
Hidden Details is the eleventh studio album by the jazz rock band Soft Machine, released in September 2018.
Steam is the fourth album by the Canterbury associated band Soft Machine Legacy and their second studio album, released on CD in 2007. This is the final Soft Machine project to feature bassist Hugh Hopper prior to his death in June 2009. He was replaced by Roy Babbington, Soft Machine member from 1973 to 1976. Babbington has previously replaced Hopper in Soft Machine-proper. Steam also marks the first appearance of Theo Travis in the group replacing Elton Dean who died in February 2006 at age 60.
Soft Machine are an English rock band from Canterbury formed in mid-1966. As a central band of the Canterbury scene, the group became one of the first British psychedelic acts and later moved into progressive rock and jazz fusion. Having known numerous line-ups, the band currently consists of John Etheridge (guitar), Theo Travis, Fred Baker (bass) and Asaf Sirkis (drums).
