U.K. - UK | Jazzbo Notes

Mar

26

U.K. - UK

≡ Category: 1970s, Fusion, Highly Recommended, Music Reviews |
≅ Written by: Michael Kydonieus

JAZZBO NOTES HIGHLY RECOMMENDED RECORDING

Rating:

Is UK really fusion, or is it “just” progressive rock like King Crimson and Yes, two other bands having Bill Bruford in common as the drummer? Good question. On the progressive rock side of the ledger, you have the fact that the lead-off cut, In the Dead of Night, was a sizeable FM album rock oriented radio station hit. And there’s also the fact that all of the musicians came from progressive rock bands like Yes, Soft Machine, King Crimson and Roxy Music.

But for me, even though UK’s music draws more from rock and classical sources than jazz, the question is settled by UK’s emphasis on improvisation. So, I’d say that UK is both fusion AND progressive rock.

Besides, I’d rather err on the side of inclusiveness than have you all miss a great recording.

UK is a very ambitious band, not a surprise considering who the members are (Allan Holdsworth, guitar; Bill Bruford, drums; Eddie Jobson, keyboards and violin; and John Wetter, bass and vocals). The songs follow a classical format with some jazz elements. First, melodic, rhythmic and harmonic material is given. Then it is developed in another section, interspersed with sections for the musicians to improvise over.

Actually, I’m giving the impression that the song structures are more discrete than they actually are. Through-composed sections are interwoven with places for the musicians to solo. Care is taken to vary rhythmic attacks and keyboard/guitar textures to avoid the tedium that can sometimes occur with long progressive rock suites.

Does it all work? Well, sometimes the way the sections fit together can seem arbitrary, rather than inevitable, as they do in the best classical concertos, but you’ve got to give these guys credit for trying.

One does wish with that John Wetton had a better vocal instrument to work with. His vocal timbre is perfect for this sort of music, but he goes off key distressingly often and his phrasing could be improved, which is somewhat surprising, coming from a bass player, who is part of the rhythm section, after all.

For those of you who look down on UK because of their not altogether successful efforts to write multipart musical suites, or because of John Wetton’s faltering sense of pitch, you should at least be able to enjoy Allan Holdsworth’s wizardly and burning leads, tethered to a recognizable genre for what would probably be the last time in years. Eddie Jobson’s violin solos are nothing to sneeze at for that matter. They show an enviable grasp of harmony, unlike the usual fusion wanking from rock musicians blindly playing the same old pentatonic scales, not ever having bothered to crack a book on music theory.

Overall, UK is a consistently stimulating listen, and should be a welcome addition to your music library, provided you don’t either hate progressive rock or can’t stomach vocalists who go off key.