Volume Two
The second album, the first released in Britain, and the record that started the band's move toward jazz fusion.
Soft Machine, 1969
- Released
- September 1969
- Recorded
- February-March 1969
- Studio
- Olympic Studios, London
- Label
- Probe
- Producer
- Soft Machine
The band had split in September 1968 and reunited that December without Ayers to fulfil its contract. Hugh Hopper, the road manager, took over on bass, and his brother Brian Hopper guested on soprano and tenor saxophones.
Have You Ever Bean Green? nods to the Jimi Hendrix Experience, with whom they had toured the United States in spring 1968, and the title of the side-two suite Esther's Nose Job comes from a chapter of Thomas Pynchon's novel V. Melody Maker called the album little short of brilliant for much of its length. It reached number 2 on the Dutch Album Top 100, and in 2000 it was voted number 715 in Colin Larkin's All Time Top 1000 Albums.
Track listing
- Pataphysical Introduction Pt. 11:00
- A Concise British Alphabet Pt. 10:10
- Hibou, Anemone and Bear5:58
- A Concise British Alphabet Pt. 20:12
- Hullo Der0:52
- Dada Was Here3:25
- Thank You Pierrot Lunaire0:47
- Have You Ever Bean Green?1:23
- Pataphysical Introduction Pt. 20:50
- Out of Tunes2:30
- As Long As He Lies Perfectly Still2:30
- Dedicated to You But You Weren't Listening2:30
- Fire Engine Passing with Bells Clanging1:50
- Pig2:07
- Orange Skin Food1:52
- A Door Opens and Closes1:09
- 10:30 Returns to the Bedroom4:14
Personnel
- Mike Ratledge piano, Lowrey and Hammond organ, flute, harpsichord
- Hugh Hopper bass guitar, acoustic guitar, alto saxophone
- Robert Wyatt drums, vocals
- Brian Hopper soprano and tenor saxophone
- George Chkiantz engineer
- Mike Jeffery executive producer
More from Soft Machine
The Soft Machine (1968), Third (1970), Fourth (1971), Fifth (1972), Bundles (1975)