Sean Trane Third and last album of Hopper’s 90’s project, with the lovely Elaine Di Falco on kb and vocals. What’s still amazing about this quartet is the double bass sound, with Hugh on the fuzzed-out one, and Chalenor on the “normal” one, and also the guitar. Rounding up the quartet is Martine’s drums, but we’ve good a cool brochette of guest, of which the ever-faithful Elton is the best-known. Laced with a touch f acid-jazz and trip-hop ambiances, the mood is entrenched in the soft dreamy mode, though at times, the sleep can become a tad awry, as you’ll find out.

If the opening Was A Time features Elaine’s soft vocals on a soft fusion, the ever-lasting Facelift gets another ‘face-lift’ (yeah, it’s too easy ;o))) but Lanaute’s flute and some fuzzed-out sounds give it an acid-jazzy flavour that can be reminiscent of St Germain. Extremely tasteful stuff if you ask me. Electronic diddles open November, but the acid-jazz beats return quickly, this time accompanied by Elaine’s soft vocals and her Rhodes, along with Jarvis’ trombone. The place goes wild (almost chaotic) and semi-dissonant weird hardliner vocals are the star of Ramifications, which brings you back to Hopper’s more daring songwriting days. The following Robohop goes a little further, or at least a tad bit more nightmarish, delving further into the electronic soundscapes and creepy sound effects. We return with a much softer Remind Me, where Elton’s soft sax and Elaine’s accordion are floating above the surface. A short acid-jazz piece Spacelift (yup, Hugh can play too ;o))) prefaces the album-longest Based On, but it’s the closing Tokitae that grabs our attention most, when it goes from demented to its ultra-calm ending.

A typical 90’s contemporary acid-jazz album, Delta Flora was Hughscore’s final chapter, and a very worthy one. Personally progheads should prefer investigating Hughscore’s rather short catalogue rather than some higher-profile acid-jazz artiste to discover the mid to later-90’s jazz soundscape in vogue at the time.

Warthur Recorded in the space of a few days, this collaboration from the Gilgamesh bandmates finds both in a quiet and contemplative mood. By and large, the raunchy, fuzzy bass sound Hopper brought to classic Soft Machine albums of years gone by is absent (but for a riotous outbreak on the opening track), and Hopper devotes himself to providing tuneful backing for Gowen's keyboard whimsies, which often stray into sparse New Age territory before skipping back to fusion. An intriguing piece, though I'd say it would be overhyping it to call it a classic of either artist's back catalogue (especially if their band work with the likes of National Health or Soft Machine are taken into account).

The rerelease includes a brace of live tracks at the end which, whilst interesting, have a fairly muddy sound quality and don't really fit the rest of the album; I haven't taken them into account (because I never let bonus tracks affect my rating of albums), but I generally skip them.

snobb After his departure from Soft Machine, Hugh Hopper collaborated with many different musicians. "Hugh Hopper Band" was his most straightforward fusion project. They released three albums, but "Carousel" is their only studio release.

Everyone familiar with Hopper's solo works may knows his interest in complex, often avant-garde jazz. "Carousel" is very different from all that.

The music on here is classic fusion, very melodic and upbeat. Nothing is particularly complex or twisted, just a lot of sunny atmosphere (reggae and Caribbean rhythms),quite heavy rock-like drumming, plus various tempos and moods. Another plus is guest trombonist Robert Jarvis, who adds some nice solos. Even if in moments the music sounds like Hugh Hopper-era Soft Machine, this album's main atmosphere is simpler and more catchy (still no way pop-related though).

Not the best Hopper solo work, but this album is his most accessible. Music for classic fusion fans.

Sean Trane Don’t panic here!! It’s not a bass duel coming from the two most gifted bass player of the Kent county, but a sweet minor collaboration where the former (Hugh) takes on the songwriting (thus making this a Hopper album, rather than a Sinclair album) and often leaves Richard on bass, guitars and of course vocals. If you were expecting a bass guitar extravaganza, there are only two tracks where both play their respective 4-strings, Hugh opting to play keyboards or even abstaining , leaving Richard interpret his songs alone. Indeed out of the nine tracks, Richard wrote only four (three of them using Hugh’s lyrics), so this was normally interesting to hear the result. Only Serge Bringolf adds a bit of drumming in half the tracks.

If I use the word “normally”, it is because this album is somehow one of the biggest deceptions in the Canterbury realm: no dissonant jazz rock, no widely open instrumental space allowing for interplay. Just 9 songs, often simplistic and somehow very English-type, where Sinclair’s beautifully-timbred voice can work wonders ((the opening Autumn Time with the two basses and diminutive keys), but not always, as some of the songwriting provides unnatural chords succession for Sinclair’s voice. He’s sometimes helped by French female back-up singers, but mostly they were there for kicks. Also of interest is the Wyatt-inflected Keep On Caring, the only Sinclair-only track, which could’ve stood in a Hatfield album, Richard trying to sound (and succeeding) like Jaco Pastorius. But will make the album endearing are the numerous reference to other Canterburians in Potted History (Not Sinclair’s best performance) and Only The Brave.

In short, a short (thankfully) album that was completely against the times (83), so much out of context of what we’d expect from them - but somehow, not far away from Sinclair’s 90’s works either – that it merits an attentive ear for the sake of having heard it, and maybe worth investigating your hard-earned cash in, if a complete fan. The only major negative point (hey this is a Voiceprint product after all) is the carelessness of the track list (never presented in the running order) and a missed index incrementation for Only The Brave, now buried in Solidarity. How typically botched up from Voiceprint.

Sean Trane Of all the players that surrounded the Canterbury crowd, Hopper had yet to play with Keith tippet and by summer 75, this was done. Indeed if Elton had played with gallivant and Tippett and Hopper before, Hugh hadn’t crossed Keith or Joe’s path yet. So this first collaboration could be seen as an early attempt to form a Soft Heap, especially given that the quartet remains mainly accessible, not seeking dissonance unless necessary, the album came with an interesting artwork cover, illustrating rather well the music inside. .

So if Dean is his usual self, Hugh is definitely in an excellent shape, Gallivan is remarkable on drums, but toys with some synthesizers, it is mostly Tippett’s playing that surprise us, especially knowing that his other works of that era were Ovary Lodge and that was more in the free-jazz realm. Here Tippet plays a lot of electric piano (which is rather rare occurrence, AFAIK) and gives the album a bit of a Mwandishi-sound at times. At best, you’d swear that Tippett has gone back to his Dedicated To album and at worst,

The opening Hopper-penned Seven Drones is starting out with a semi-free jazz with dissonant sax and piano, but madness doesn’t break loose, even if your sanity is being toyed with. But if you thought that was bad, wait until Jannakota and Dean’s squeaky sax imitating birdsongs. The Tippett-penned Echoes is a slow-developing affair that drags on endlessly and is way too predictable. If the first side is made of three tracks more or less written apart and adapting their piece to the foursome, the flipside is definitely the four musicians working together as the credits point out. The album’s best track is the superb Square Enough Fire, torrid jazz-rock that would easily finds its place on an early Nuclaus album. While Rocky Reclusive is borderline sane, Bjorn Free is a superb intro to the closing Soul Fate is starting out a bit dissonant, then veering Coltrane before going in an African ethnic beat drawing Elton slowly to meddle in.

While I wouldn’t put this first album in everyone’s hands, let alone reach everyone’s ears, Cruel But Fair is a very worthy album that hovers between Canterbury-type jazz-rock and the wild works of Keith Tippett.