Bundles (album): Difference between revisions

[[File:1975 bundles.jpg|right|200px]]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 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.