U.K.: Difference between revisions

*Allan Holdsworth: guitar

*[[John Wetton]]: bass, vocals

*[[Bill Bruford]]: drums

=Summary of quotes on U.K.=

==[[Any Key In The U.K. (Unknown publication 1978)]]==

How did '''U.K.''' come about?

==[[Player Of The Month (Beat Instrumental 1978)]]==

Bill Bruford’s solo album (out this month) is the latest of Holdsworth’s projects; the featured musicians also include Dave Stewart on keyboards and an American called Jeff Berlin on bass, whom Allan spent several minutes enthusing over ("He’s a killer. He’s gonna scare a lot of people. Really lethal." ) At the time of writing secret rehearsals are going on with a new band believed to include Bruford, Holdsworth, Eddie Jobson and John Wetton. Whether this will result in a touring band, or in an album, or in both, is not known yet. Allan had been sworn to silence even regarding band personnel, and this information came from "another source". Let’s just hope it’s accurate.

==[[Allan Holdsworth (Guitar Player 1980)]]==

Had things become better?

==[[Holdsworth & Co. A New Side Of Allan’s Music. (Guitar 1980)]]==

What sort of equipment will you be using live with the trio?



==[[Allan Holdsworth (International Musician 1981)]]==

In 1977 I joined Gong which was a potentially interesting writing situation, but they could never stop arguing long enough to orgnaise (sic) anything. We toured a little and then I left. Later that year I played on an album with Jean-Luc Ponty - ‘Enigmatic Ocean. In 1978 I played on Bill Bruford’s solo albums ‘Feels Good To Me’ and ‘One Of A Kind’. I joined '''U.K.''' in ‘78 which consisted of Bill, John Wetton, Eddie Jobson and myself, one album there. In 1979 I went to Paris with the new trio, and here we are two years later about to make another album. Ultimately I’d like the band to do a couple of albums and establish in the USA: I’m sure we’ll have more success over there.

==[[No Record Contract, No Big Hoopla, But The Fans Have Kept The Faith For Allan Holdsworth (Guitar World 1982)]]==

For example, what I did with '''UK''' was a total disaster as far as I was concerned - I should have never done it in the first place except for the fact that maybe a few more people got to hear me. But I hated it! Because I really had no space in it, I had no being in the band. They wanted me to play the same solo, and there was no way that whatever I did would affect what went on. I couldn’t play something and then add another chorus or it would go off and do something else - I couldn’t do anything like that. I had to do it just as I was playing on a record. It made me sick. But that was the way the music was written, in bits and pieces, not real compositions, composed like violin variations, but bits and pieces thrown together. It made the music kind of non-organic and sterile to me, and I was miserable most of the time. I used to just get drunk. Half the time I couldn’t remember which tune we were playing! Basically, I enjoyed making the album with Bill, and I hated '''UK'''! I just wanted to escape the ‘Tricky Dick,’ to try and find a musical thing, where I had more of substance to do rather than parts, because anybody can learn parts.

"That’s my feeling, anyway. I was becoming so despondent about the whole thing that I didn’t care whether I was doing the job well - which is why I knew I had to leave, because it was really self-destructive. I knew I had to go."

==[[Guitar Phenom Allan Holdsworth Says He’s Not That Impressed By Flash (The Georgia Straight 1983)]]==

You’ve played with a lot of groups and artists over the years–'''U.K.''', Bruford, Soft Machine, Tony Williams. Are you happier playing with I.O.U. than you were with the others?

==[[The Innocent Abroad (Musician 1984)]]==

Having worked with the likes of Tony Williams, Jon Hiseman (in Tempest) and Narada, it seemed only logical that Holdsworth would fall in with another great drummer; he joined Bill Bruford to make Bruford’s solo classic, One Of A Kind. The two enjoyed working together so much, Bill brought him along to help found art-rock power players '''U.K.''', something which Bruford now has second thoughts about: "It’s obvious that '''U.K.''' was split into the pop half-with John Wetton and Eddie Jobson the potential Asia-type superstars-and Allan and I on the other side. I had hoped Allan would reinforce my side of the discussions, counterbalance the rock aspects of the thing. But it was a painful counterbalancing, it wasn’t understood, and I kind of put Allan on the spot."

==[[Allan Holdsworth (Guitarist 1985)]]==

One of the things that drove me crazy when I used to work with '''UK''', was that everything was always superficially organised, but it wasn’t organised at all really. It’s like an insect that’s got the skeleton on the outside, and I prefer it when the skeleton is on the inside. Not that there’s anything wrong with insects, bugs are great!

==[[Never again a serial-production-group (Sym Info 1986)]]==

Then came '''U.K.''', which came about because some girl had recommended me to the other boys from '''U.K.''' Bill and I got fired from '''U.K.''', so that was it. Why? I have no idea, really not… why do you dismiss somebody? After that Bill started his own band. The record-company probably found it safer to go further with the other two guys in the band, who were adjusted quite commercially, than with two typical jazz-people like Bill and me.”

==[[Mike Pachelli Show (video transcript 1991)]]==

MP: And did I read this correctly, that you and Bruford were actually dismissed from the band?

==[[Creating Imaginary Backdrops (Innerviews 1993)]]==

'''U.K.''' [the band]



==[[No Secrets (Facelift 1994)]]==

"... And then I guess I went from Gong to '''UK''', because I met Bill during that period."