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Soft Works

Abracadabra

Review by Gary Hill
This group is made up of former Soft Machine members. The line-up is Allan Holdsworth (guitar, Synthaxe), Elton Dean (alto saxophone, saxello, Fender Rhodes), Hugh Hopper (bass) and John Marshall (drums). Now, this is a remastered version of an album that was originally released in 2003. I have written in the past that I think Allan Holdsworth was the greatest guitarist who ever lived, so you have to figure that it’s worth the price of admission for me based on his work alone. That said, everything here is killer instrumental fusion. So, it’s all impeccable.

This review is available in book (paperback and hardcover) form in Music Street Journal: 2025  Volume 3. More information and purchase links can be found at: garyhillauthor.com/Music-Street-Journal-2025.
Track by Track Review
Seven Formerly

I love the cool keyboard textures that get this underway. Eventually other instruments join and we are taken into an intriguing jam that has both spacey electronic and tasty jazz at play. This works through a number of shifts and changes and covers a lot of cool territory. It gets fairly driving at times. It runs almost ten-and-a-half minutes, so there is plenty of room for evolution.

First Trane

More than a minute longer than its predecessor, horn and bass set the mood with a rather, trippy, bluesy vibe. The cut builds out gradually from there. As it does it just oozes cool and charm. It gets really powerful at times along the road. Even when it’s less soaring, it’s still hitting all the right spots.

Elsewhere

More driving and fierce, the classy jazz fusion sounds are still in charge here. This is another killer slab of fusion.

K Licks

This is quite an intriguing and powerful musical exploration. The central focus is on the horn playing, but everything gets its moment in the spotlight.

Baker's Treat

Coming slower and feeling sultry, this is a potent piece of music. This evolves and grow, but remains in a slower groove. It has some killer guitar work at play. Every part of this is great, though.

Willie's Knee

A bit more energized and driving, this is another with some scorching hot guitar work. In fact, it’s positively on fire.

Abracadabra

Packed full of magic and charm, this is a particularly cool piece of music. It’s another amazing array of fusion sounds.

Madame Vintage

Holdsworth really lets loose on this thing. This another powerhouse number that really shows off so much fusion flash and flair.

Has Riff (live)

The ultra-low bass line on this is insanely cool. The saxophone wailing over the top just adds to the magic. Percussion joins after a time and this continues to explore in style. Holdsworth comes in later, scorching, but at a lower volume level as the whole track continues to intensify. It eventually drops back and keyboard take complete control.

Facelift (live)

The horn work on this thing paints some amazing melodies. The track works through some killer musical territory as it grows and grooves. Holdsworth gets the opportunity to shred later along the road, really delivering.

 
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