Soft Machine - Floating World Live (2025 Remastered version) (2006/2025)

OFT MACHINE 'FLOATING WORLD LIVE' notes by Sid Smith An indispensable record of a band at the top of their game…
The arrival of guitarist Alan Holdsworth into the ranks of Soft Machine in December 1973 marked a significant change in tone and style for the venerable jazz-rock institution. Having started out as an experimental pop group in the mid-1960s, Soft Machine had undergone several changes not only in its personnel but in its music. By the early 1970s albums such as Third, Fourth, boasting long-form compositions in complex and adventurous arrangements, secured their reputation as the UK’s leading jazz-rock performers.

With albums such as Fifth, Six, and Seven navigating a beguiling path through austere free-jazz meditations, minimalist overtures, and immersive proto-ambient sound worlds, the arrival of guitarist Allan Holdsworth in the ranks of this musical institution in December 1973 brought a new and excitingly bold dynamic into the group’s interlocking riffs and elegant themes.

Galvanizing the group’s fanbase at home and in both Europe and America, Holdsworth’s lightning-fast runs and edgy riffing made Soft Machine gigs a must-see, hot-ticket event, as he brought a rockier perspective to Karl Jenkins’ compositions.

By the time of this Bremen Radio broadcast in January 1975, Mike Ratledge (keyboards), Karl Jenkins Sax, Oboe, Keyboards) Roy Babbington (bass), John Marshall (drums), and Holdsworth had been working together for a year. Constantly honing their collective abilities in concert, the quintet had already recorded their first (and only) studio album together, Bundles, in July 1974.

Although not released until March 1975 the setlist at Bremen is largely drawn from Bundles in a sparkling performance that many fans felt outshone the studio versions of this material.

The opening sequence of Floating World / Bundles/ Land Of The Bag Snake is an exhilarating 15-minute rollercoaster in which Holdsworth’s ferocious, gutsy playing bursts into the air, particularly on the Land Of The Bag Snake where his free-spirited performance easily outstrips its studio counterpart.

Mike Ratledge’s The Man Who Waved At Trains, which seamlessly flows into the bracing Peff, highlights a wistful mood swing courtesy of an attentive solo from Holdsworth, this time on violin. Once again, this beautiful piece, one of the last tunes Ratledge would compose for the group before leaving in March 1976, is superior to the version recorded for Bundles in every respect.

While it's true to say Holdsworth’s remarkable flights across the fretboard dominate a scorching set as the principal instrument, there’s plenty of space for others in the group to step into the spotlight. Roy Babbington’s bass solo, here titled Ealing Comedy is a masterclass in exploring texture and melody. Mike Ratledge’s use of the EMS suitcase synthesizer on North Point conjures exotic sound worlds utilizing percussive-style sequencers with harsh, ear-bending sonorities and modulations. No Soft Machine set would be complete without a drum solo and in JSM, John Marshall, always one of the most musical and thoughtful of performers, demonstrates why he was so highly regarded by both fans and critics alike.

Of interest to fans of this later period in the band’s history, there are early versions of Song Of Aeolus and the bare structural bones of Ban-Ban Caliban later refined and developed on their next studio album, Softs, trading here as Riff III.

The improvised Endgame typifies the effortless acceleration the group had at its disposal all of which makes Floating World Live something of a bittersweet release given that just two months after its recording Allan Holdsworth would leave Soft Machine to join Tony Williams’ Lifetime.

Beautifully remastered by guitarist and MoonJune Records artist, Mark Wingfield, this is without doubt one of the very best archival Soft Machine releases. Capturing a cracking set by a lineup at the very top of their game, Floating World Live is an indispensable counterweight to the group’s sole studio album, Bundles.
credits
released January 8, 2025

Recorded by Dietram Köste at Post-Aula, Bremen, Germany, January 29, 1975, under the direction of Peter Schultze. Sounds technicians Jürgen Kuntze and Klaus Schumann. Concert producers Gisela Steppat and Volker Steppat for Radio Bremen (Sparkasse In Concert).

Digitally remastered for the 2025 re-issue by Mark Wingfield
at Heron Island Studio, Cambridgeshire, England, November 2024.

Graphics by Leonardo Pavkovic.
Front cover and inside cover image by Fernando Natalici.
Soft Machine photo by Fabrizio Cecca.

Compositions:
1, 2, 8, 11, 13 - Karl Jenkins
3 - Allan Holdsworth
4 - Roy Babbington
5, 6 - Mike Ratledge
7 - Mike Ratledge & John Marshall
9 - John Marshall
10, 12 - Karl Jenkins, Mike Ratledge, Allan Holdsworth, Roy Babbington, John Marshall

Tracklist
1 The Floating World (2025 Remastered version)
2 Bundles (2025 Remastered version)
3 Land Of The Bag Snake (2025 Remastered version)
4 Ealing Comedy (2025 Remastered version)
5 The Man Who Waved At Trains (2025 Remastered version)
6 Peff (2025 Remastered version)
7 North Point (2025 Remastered version)
8 Hazard Profile, Part 1 (2025 Remastered version)
9 J.S.M. (2025 Remastered version)
10 Riff III (2025 Remastered version)
11 Song Of Aeolous (2025 Remastered version)
12 Endgame (2025 Remastered version)
13 Penny Hitch (2025)