Volume Two (The Soft Machine album)

Volume Two
Studio album by The Soft Machine
Released September 1969
Recorded February–March 1969 at Olympic Studios, London
Genre Progressive rock
Length 33:20
Label Probe SPB 1002
Producer The Soft Machine
The Soft Machine chronology
The Soft Machine
(1968)		 Volume Two
(1969)		 Third
(1970)
Professional ratings
Review scores
Source Rating
Allmusic [1]
Piero Scaruffi (7/10)[2]

Volume Two is an LP by The Soft Machine, first released in 1969. A jazz influence is introduced to the humour, dadaism, and psychedelia of The Soft Machine (1968).

The album was inspired by Frank Zappa's Absolutely Free, and consists of two long compositions with "As Long as He Lies Perfectly Still" and "Dedicated to You" serving as interludes. Acting on a recommendation from Zappa, the band split the main tracks into smaller pieces to increase the band's income from the album.[3]
According to the lyrics in Have You Ever Bean Green? The Soft Machine thanked The Jimi Hendrix Experience, with whom they toured through the USA in 1968, that they as a beginning band were exposed to large crowds. The title of this song refers to a soulful plaint in the song Are You Experienced?, "Have you ever been experienced?".

Contents

Track listing

Side 1

  1. Rivmic Melodies - 17:07
    1. "Pataphysical Introduction – Pt. I" (Robert Wyatt) – 1:00
    2. "A Concise British Alphabet – Pt. I" (Hugh Hopper, arr. Wyatt) – 0:10
    3. "Hibou, Anemone and Bear" (Mike Ratledge / R. Wyatt) – 5:58
    4. "A Concise British Alphabet – Pt. II" (H. Hopper / R. Wyatt) – 0:12
    5. "Hulloder" (H. Hopper / R. Wyatt) – 0:52
    6. "Dada Was Here" (H. Hopper / R. Wyatt) – 3:25
    7. "Thank You Pierrot Lunaire" (H. Hopper / R. Wyatt) – 0:47
    8. "Have You Ever Bean Green?" (H. Hopper / R. Wyatt) – 1:23
    9. "Pataphysical Introduction – Pt. II" (R. Wyatt) – 0:50
    10. "Out of Tunes" (M. Ratledge / H. Hopper / R. Wyatt) – 2:30

Side 2

  1. "As Long as He Lies Perfectly Still" (M. Ratledge / R. Wyatt) – 2:30
  2. "Dedicated to You But You Weren't Listening" (H. Hopper) – 2:30
  3. Esther's Nose Job - 11:13
    1. "Fire Engine Passing with Bells Clanging" (M. Ratledge) – 1:50
    2. "Pig" (M. Ratledge) – 2:08
    3. "Orange Skin Food" (M. Ratledge) – 1:52
    4. "A Door Opens and Closes" (M. Ratledge) – 1:09
    5. "10:30 Returns to the Bedroom" (M. Ratledge / H. Hopper / R. Wyatt) – 4:14

Personnel

with

Tribute

Slovak avant-garde, solo drummer Lucas Perny recorded "8898" [1] as a tribute song in 2009, inspired by early Soft Machine songs "A Door Opens and Closes" and "10.30 Returns To The Bedroom".

References

  1. ^ Kurtz, P. (2011 [last update]). "Volume Two - Soft Machine | AllMusic". allmusic.com. http://www.allmusic.com/album/r18378. Retrieved 25 July 2011. 
  2. ^ Scaruffi, P. (2011 [last update]). "The History of Rock Music. Soft Machine: biography, discography, reviews, links". scaruffi.com. http://www.scaruffi.com/vol2/softmach.html. Retrieved 25 July 2011. 
  3. ^ Bennett, G. Soft Machine: Out-Bloody-Rageous. London: SAF Publishing Ltd., 1993, p. 163
  4. ^ "Hugh Hopper - 1962-1972". Hulloder.nl. http://www.hulloder.nl/hh-60.html. Retrieved 2011-12-03. 

External links

Soft Machine
Studio albums
The Soft Machine (1968) • Volume Two (1969) • Third (1970) • Fourth (1971) • Fifth (1972) • Six (1973) • Seven (1973) • Bundles (1975) • Softs (1976) • Land of Cockayne (1981)
Singles
"Love Makes Sweet Music" (1967) • "Joy of a Toy" (1968) • "Soft Space" (1977)
Live albums
Alive & Well: Recorded in Paris (1978) • Live at the Proms 1970 (1988) • BBC Radio 1967-1971 (2003) • BBC Radio 1971-1974 (2003) • Soft Machine and Heavy Friends (2005) • Softstage (2005)
Cuneiform albums
Spaced (1996) • Virtually (1998) • Noisette (2000) • Backwards (2002) • Live in Paris (2004) • Grides (2006) • Middle Earth Masters (2006) • NDR Jazz Workshop (2010)
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