Bundles (album)
Bundles is a 1975 album by Soft Machine that features Allan on electric and acoustic guitar. He also wrote two tunes. This version of the band was leaning in a jazz-rock direction. Karl Jenkins had joined in 1972, and became a dominant force in the band, writing the majority of the tunes on this album. The centerpiece is the five-part "Hazard Profile", and in particular part I, which contains one of Allan's most well known early solos, clocking in at over six minutes. The solo was recorded live in one take with all of the band. At this point, Allan had really started to get a handle on how to record his guitar, and the notes were flowing with apparent ease. His legato style was already unique by this point. Even if he hadn't continue to refine it in the years to come, his performance here would be enough to secure him a place in the guitar playing hall of fame. Harmonically, his solos were still relatively straightforward, and he would keep on woodshedding seriously in the years to come. There's a relaxed flow to the overall band's performance that is still enjoyable to listen to five decades later. We also get a rare and special treat in "Gone Sailing": Allan plays a 12-string guitar with an alternate tuning that in some ways points forward to "I.O.U.", but in other ways stands out as totally unique in his entire discography.
Track listing
| Track title | Composer | Length | Comments. | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | Hazard Profile Part One | Jenkins | 9:18 | Guitar solo 2.46-8.45 |
| 2. | Hazard Profile Part Two Toccatina | Jenkins | 2:21 | |
| 3. | Hazard Profile Part Three | Jenkins | 0:33 | |
| 4. | Hazard Profile Part Four | Jenkins | 1:25 | |
| 5. | Hazard Profile Part Five | Jenkins | 5:29 | |
| 6. | Gone Sailing Holdsworth | Holdsworth | 0:59 | Acoustic 12-string solo piece |
| 7. | Bundles | Jenkins | 3:14 | Guitar solo 0.55-2.59 |
| 8. | Land of the Bag Snake | Holdsworth | 3:35 | Guitar solo 0.00-3-35 |
| 9. | The Man Who Waved at Trains | Ratledge | 1:50 | |
| 10. | Peff Ratledge | Jenkins | 3:37 | |
| 11. | Four Gongs Two Drums | Marshall | 2:31 | |
| 12. | The Floating World | Jenkins | 7:07 |
Allan Holdsworth: Guitar
John Marshall: Drums
Roy Babbington: Bass
Karl Perkins: Keyboards, oboe, saxophone
Mike Ratledge: Keyboards
Ray Warleigh: Flute on "The Floating World"
Summary of quotes on "Bundles"
In 1976, Allan Holdsworth played an important role in the album "Bundles" by Soft Machine, where he delivered two remarkable guitar solos. The first of these solos was featured on the track "Hazard Profile, Pt. II." This solo displayed Holdsworth's exceptional speed and smooth technique.
Holdsworth also contributed to the title track of the album, "Bundles," which led into the song "Land Of The Bag Snake." In "Land Of The Bag Snake," a repeated sixteen-measure chorus underwent four changes, and Holdsworth's guitar solo added to the tension by anticipating and executing these changes effectively.
In a later interview in 1980, Holdsworth reflected on his time with Soft Machine and their album "Bundles." He mentioned that he joined the band for about a year and that it was a unique experience for him, as he had never played in odd time signatures before. They recorded the album "Bundles" together, and he used a Gibson ES-175 guitar going directly into his AC-30 amplifier for the solos. Interestingly, during the recording of "Hazard Profile, Pt. I," he accidentally left about five bars of silence in the solo, which was later filled with additional notes in post-production because the band decided to keep the track as it was. [This summary was written by ChatGPT in 2023 based on the quotes below.]
See also Soft Machine.
Quotes on Bundles
Terry Theise’s electric guitar top ten (Guitar magazine 1976)
He has recorded with Soft Machine on "Bundles", playing two extraordinary long solos. The first of these is on Hazard Profile, Pt. II and it is a monster. Rhythmically, it utilises a three note pattern which recurs at frequent intervals, and which starts the solo off. The amazing Holdsworth speed is well displayed, and it’s so smooth; the notes glide out rather than tear out (as is the case with McLaughlin). And the lines themselves are substantive, irrespective of the velocity at which they’re expelled. Modes with chromatically altered notes, dissonances, even the occasional blues lick, all are fused into a surging motion, rising and falling. At two points in the solo, the accompaniment shifts from the droning tonic to a chorus of changes which Holdsworth follows effortlessly. Ingeniously at one point he changes two notes in a repeating line which perfectly address the changing harmony underneath. He is also featured on the title track which leads into Land Of The Bag Snake, in which a repeated sixteen measure chorus is divided into four changes. The dynamics of the guitar solo lie in the tension which immediately precedes each change, i.e. as anticipation of it leads to execution of it, it is again a fine solo.
Allan Holdsworth (Guitar Player 1980)
I did a few light gigs in some pubs with [drummer] John Marshall, who at that time was also with a jazz-rock band called Soft Machine. I enjoyed playing with John, and he mentioned to the other guys in the band that a guitarist might fit in. They asked me along as a guest to a couple of trial gigs. We did a short English tour, and they asked me to join. So I stayed with them for about a year.
Did you find that you fit into their musical style?
It was nice; they just let me be. It was really interesting, because I'd never played in odd time signatures before. We recorded one album together – Bundles - early on. Unfortunately, it didn't come out until almost a year later, when I was about to leave the band.
There's a long solo on the opening cut, “Hazard Profile, Part I," in which your guitar has a lot of sustain. Did you use a compressor?
No. That was a Gibson ES-175 going straight into my AC-30. I used that on the song "Bundles" too. On "Hazard Profile" we were running it down, and I didn't realize that it was being recorded - I don't suppose that anybody did - and about halfway through the solo I was changing pickups or something and left about five bars of silence. I was outvoted later, and they decided to keep the track, so I went back and plugged in two or three long notes to fill the empty space.
Mike Pachelli Show (video transcript 1991)
MP: And the album Bundles has a tune on it, it’s called Hazard Profile, it has a very long solo on it. Is that like the longest of yours to date.
AH: Haha, I don’t know I’m scared to listen to it now, that’s a long time ago, I don’t know. I think it was pretty long. I remember I tried afterwards I hated the solo, I remember, and I tried to overdub on it and it was worse so I just left it – had to leave it as it was.
Links
AH Archives: https://www.facebook.com/AllanHoldsworthArchives/posts/193221927518375
Ed's blog: http://threadoflunacy.blogspot.no/2017/06/4-soft-machine.html
Discogs: https://www.discogs.com/Soft-Machine-Bundles/release/990344
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=OLAK5uy_kQQLeMAf0Nl1-CKeziCf66Z8rm60ejGfg
