TalkAwhile - The Folk Corporation Forum

I just managed to finally get a CD of "Soft Machine Alive and Well in Paris" featured one Mr Ric Sanders on violin (I've been searching for it for a while, and it's always too expensive, but a copy came up on the marketplace for 7 quid...)...

I also managed to get "Second Vision" with Ric Sanders and John Etheridge...

Great stuff... Wonder if Ric ever feels the desire to back into some mad jazz fusion? It'd be great to see Sanders and Etheridge play together again.

Both interesting albums with some fabulous playing by Ric.  I've always felt it (ie playing Jazz fusion kind of material) is what he was put on this planet to do....which is why I sometimes find it surprising that he's spent the last 30 odd years playing music that is generally considered to be (at least in origin) English folk-rock. IMHO only of course...

there are many who would argue that he doesnt play folk and never really stopped jazzing
 not that i'm one you understand

See...

http://www.talkawhile.co.uk/yabbse/index.php?topic=18636.0 (http://www.talkawhile.co.uk/yabbse/index.php?topic=18636.0)

and some short sighted people see that as a bad thing  ;D

DM and GC were (are) both jazz drummers, and I don't see too much conflict between jazz and folk, but don't forget Soft Machine were serious prog-freaks too, with a tendancy towards overblown experimentation, 19 minute live opuses, playing to fields of chilled out pot-heads and sandled, beardy people. Oh no, that's Cropredy.

Still sad about Hatfield ATN : would have liked to have seen them there :'(

you need to have been there to understand Keith, soft machine were a fine outfit, I still listen to them.
Hatfield and the north were ok, I think I saw them somewhere in london (only think!!!) my pal was into them in a big way but I always preferred soft machine.

You must have read my mind Bill. I *like* overblown prog - Yes, Rick Wakeman, ELP...but I do prefer Caravan and HATN to Soft Machine. They were probably a bit too avant garde for me.

I notice Maart has left a comment in Pip Pyle's condolensces book. I believe Hatfield ATN are continuing, with Mark Fletcher taking over on drums - I think he's the bloke who drummed for "The Richard Sinclair Canterbury Band" at the Coventry Jazz festival this year (Supporting Soft Machine [Legacy for pedants.]). I'd love to see a "Canterbury" equivalent of Cropredy... (Hopefully not in Canterbury, as I can't be arsed to go down there.)

I was a nipper when these bands were around, and blissfully unaware of them until I reached teenaged years.. I love Soft Machine in all its incarnations, especially Bundles. A lot of hard core Softettes seem to dislike to Jenkins era, but I quite like it - and I can see why they dislike it.

Steeleye Span's drummer played with Soft Machine [Legacy] for at least one gig  recently - I have a boot of it.

East of Eden would be good for Croppers. Jazz followed by Jig-A-Jig.

There has been a few attempts at a Canterbury festival over the years.  This will have to do for now...

http://www.marlowetheatre.com/details.asp?id=370

Pity people still can't spell Daevid after all these years!  Should be a good night.

Talking of East of Eden...Dave Arbus used to own a house a friend of mine rented.  Interesting bloke...

east of eden: **** band rescued from eternal obscurity by recording a jig

Indeed there has - the last one that I am aware of was last year, outdoors close to Faversham. I understand that not enough punters went....

Sorry - i should have been more specific...what I meant was that there have been several attempts at a 'Canterbury Sound' type festival over the years...the Canterbury Fayre that took place at Mount Ephraim Gradens started off being a vehicle for Caravan and their mates but then got taken over...great festival but not terribly well organised...the one in 2003 with Love and Ratdog amongst others was a peach.  There was actually a one dayer there this year with some popular indie-pop type combos strutting their stuff...Charlatans and Mystery Jets if I remember correctly...

Their later proper Jazz stuff is good.

i'll never know, i'll take your word for it 

Your loss. Stick to jigs.

Some people like jazz, some people like folk, some people like both, personally I don't give a jazzing folk.

not really, i saw them(east of eden) once and they were desperately awful, but as i said tried to rescue the gig with Jig a jig.
it didnt work
theres much more to life than jigs and im not sticking to anything

Well I think Harbottle's a lucky wotsit.  I've been vaguely looking out for that album, in a kinda "if I see it I'll buy it" sort of way.  It doesn't come up often.

Envious!

LOL. Today at work I've been listening to Ralph McTell, the Esbjorn Svensson Trio (Jazz), and Jade Warrior!

Was that in the 1970s? I don't really like that old stuff much, but the jazz stuff they did more recently was good.
Ji

early 70's
 when Dave Arbus finally hit paydirt with "Baba O' Reilly" he left and i believe Joe O'Donnell joined them but they just disappeared off the radar
 not that i was desperate to know what they were up to

Just noticed the rotten title of this thread.

For the record:

Ric is not soft.  And neither is his sanding machine.

Now carry on.

Sir Robert Peel

According to my book 1970s music, they did albums right up until the late 70s, but with a completely different lineup with no original members!

I mean - that's quite clearly ridiculous isn't it...bands with no original members masquerading as the original artists.  Certainly wouldn't happen round these folk-rock parts now would it?   ;D ;D ;D

Hello buddies -not wanting to start up a heated debate on the pros and cons of Rics jazz/folk fiddling again but just thought it was relevant and of interest to mention the book that I was given on the 25th Dec as a reward for eating my greens for the whole of 2006. It is a fantastic biography of the Soft Machine written by Graham Bennett called "Out-Bloody-Rageous" that traces the history of the Soft Machine from the early beginnings until its demise in 1984. It includes several interesting pages on a certain Mr Ric Saunder's time in the band. A publication of immense interest to Soft Machine fans.

It's a great book - highly recommended... the sort of book Fairport deserve....

ISBN number please?

http://tinyurl.com/2xb5r3

Who is Ric Saunders?

"Ric Saunders" is a well known typing error often found  in postings by hyperopic individuals with dyslexia posting messages after 12:52:am. :)