MAN IN A DEAF CORNER: ANTHOLOGY 1963-1970

A Beginner's Guide to Proto-Prog, pt. 3: Released in 2001 this double CD comprises an anthology of WYATT-era SOFT MACHINE previously unreleased home and studio recordings as well as previously released live recordings from the jazz influenced beginnings of '63 and '65 of a piano (MIKE RATLEDGE), guitar (DAEVID ALLEN, KEVIN AYERS), bass-less, light-sax (BRIAN HOPPER), drums (ROBERT WYATT), non-vocal group over the formation of the vocal UK psyche influenced SOFT MACHINE in 1967 to an organ (MIKE RATLEDGE), guitar-less, bass (AYERS, HUGH HOPPER), heavy-sax (ELTON DEAN, LYN DOBSON), drums (WYATT), non-vocal, Canterbury style jazz rock/fusion unit in '69/'70 with the occasional use of cello and cornet by HUGH HOPPER and WYATT, respectively, in their early period.

In the early 60's, WYATT, RATLEDGE and the two HOPPER brothers occasionally jammed at WYATT's parents' house entertaining the artists, writers, musicians and poets who were always allowed into the house. This attracted Aussie guitarist and poet DAEVID ALLEN who was into jazz like Robert's brother. These circumstances resulted in the home recordings comprising jazz mainly improvisational in nature. However, "Orientasian" from 1965 sounds very JOHN COLTRANE in nature and is almost on par with late 60's SOFT MACHINE. Notwithstanding this nice track not much of interest is found in these home recordings unless you are a music historian or enjoy the great drumming of WYATT. In passing we note that the recordings indicate that long songs in rock music evolved from jazz' experimentation with the length of the numbers.

The sole studio recording on the CD is a 2001 remake of the 1969 RATLEDGE/WYATT composition "As Long As He Lies Perfectly Still" with only ex-SOFT MACHINE, HUGH HOPPER joining forces with JAKKO JAKSZYK on guitar and DAVE STEWART on keyboards among others. Recordings of the pre-SOFT MACHINE/CARAVAN group the WILDE FLOWERS (1964-67) could appropriately have replaced some or all of the previously released live recordings of CD 2 but legal issues supposedly made that impossible.

BRIAL HOPPER provides excellent liner notes documenting the influences from jazz (such as MINGUS, COLTRANE, DAVIS and MONK) and modern European music (STOCKHAUSEN, BERIO, HINDEMITH, BOULEZ, MESSIAEN etc). By the way, did you know that SOFT MACHINE is a name resulting from MIKE RATLEDGE and BRIAN HOPPER's interest in literature as it is taken from the novel of the same title by WILLIAM S. BURROUGHS? And if you ever questioned ex-Policeman ANDY SUMMERS' brief association with SOFT MACHINE there is a photo documenting this.

We may try to fill the gap in the development of proto prog between this compilation and MILES DAVIS' introduction of modal jazz of the late 50's with instrumental groups like the guitar-driven early rock of the SHADOWS (for instance, 1960's "Apache" and "Man Of Mystery"; 1961's "Nivram"; 1962's "Wonderful Land", "Guitar Tango" and "Perfidia"; 1963's "Atlantis") and the VENTURES (1962's "Percolator") as well as the organ-driven, early space rock of the TORNADOS ("Ridin' the Wind" and JOE MEEK's "Telstar", "Robot" and "All the Stars in the Sky" from 1962-63) and the R&B of BOOKER T. & THE MG'S (1962's "Green Onions"; 1963's "Checkers" and "Mo' Onions"). Notable also is SUN RA & HIS ARKESTRA's experimental jazz ("We Travel the Spaceways", 1962 and "Thither & Yon", 1963).

The CD is released on Universal Music Group subsidiary Sanctuary Records Group Ltd. on the label Castle Music. Established in 1979, Sanctuary Records specializes in artists with long-term appeal usually heritage acts that have had a long career and steady fan base such as KING CRIMSON, BLACK SABBATH, TANGERINE DREAM and URIAH HEEP. Until absorbed by Universal Music Group in 2007 it was the largest independent record label in the UK and the world's largest independent owners of music intellectual property rights with over 150,000 songs.