March 1978 - U.K. and U.K.

A month after my last release a new band briefly joins my library when supergroup U.K. released their self-titled debut album in March of 1978, my only album by them in my library. But who is U.K.? They were formed in England when drummer Bill Bruford and bassist/singer John Wetton wanted to continue making music together after Robert Fripp disbanded King Crimson in 1974. They decided to separate for a bit and for each of them to return with a new member to form a new band. Wetton recruited Eddie Jobson (keyboards/electric violin) from Frank Zappa's band and Bruford brought in guitarist Allan Holdsworth, formerly of Soft Machine. They only made one album with this line-up, but I'm excited to hear what this supergroup sounds like. Let's dive in!

The album begins with "In The Dead Of Night" as Wetton plays a simple bass riff and Jobson adds some keyboards overtop. Bruford plays a few nice drum fills before they settle into an organ-led main riff. Wetton's voice sounds just like it did years ago in King Crimson, pretty great! After a solid verse and chorus we start to notice Holdsworth's guitar a little more as he plays some cool stuff in tandem with Jobson's organ. The chorus is a little bland, but the verse is full of lots of cool stuff as Jobson speeds things up briefly with some great keyboards. He changes to some trippy backing keyboards and Wetton sets the stage with a nice bass riff as Holdsworth gets his first guitar solo! He ebbs and flows really nicely as he starts slow but ends up playing some really quick stuff in this wicked little solo. They bring it back to the main verse and after one final chorus they slowly jam out the end of this solid first song. Some cool keyboards by Jobson at the end segue right into the beginning of the next song, "By The Light Of Day". They sound pretty trippy as Wetton sings nicely, slowly along. Bruford plays some light cymbals but it's almost all Jobson on this one as he continues to loop some crazy sounding stuff. Bruford steps it up to a full drum kit and we hear some different stuff that it's hard to tell if it's keyboards or guitar with effects. I think it's Jobson but either way it sounds interesting; not anything amazing, but a nice change from the slow opening. After this verse is finished Jobson returns to the trippy opening, only this time Bruford is going crazy on his drums the whole time! I think that certainly spices it up and makes the riff better with more to focus on. This leads into another slow Jobson solo that is cool, but could be much more exciting. He ends the song by himself with some low droning notes and this also connects right into track 3, "Presto Vivace And Reprise". Bruford plays some excellent drums throughout this three minute song, reminding us why he is one of the best for progressive percussion. Wetton's bass is pretty cool too as they set the stage for Jobson to really show us what he can do. His keyboards are really good to start this tune off and he plays some awesome stuff! All this together sounds pretty sweet as everyone's parts combine to form a cool kind of madness! After a wonderful opening minute Holdsworth finally comes in and changes the pace with a nice heavy guitar riff. Jobson plays some nice keys and Bruford reels off some pretty great drum fills! Wetton joins in on vocals finally and this verse sounds pretty solid! The style is certainly a reprise of the first two songs as Wetton even sings both their names in this song! They continue to jam this great new riff until the end of the song as Jobson plays some pretty great keyboards. The first side ends with the eight minute "Thirty Years" as Jobson opens it with some trippy keyboards and Holdsworth adds some nice acoustic guitar. Wetton's singing fits this slow mood pretty well as the first couple verses are in this droning style. Around the 3:30 mark the song finally picks up a bit as they shift into a new riff led by some cool synths by Jobson. Bruford and Wetton are now playing a nice rhythm section and they set the stage for solos! Jobson begins with some cool keyboards overtop a cool guitar riff, but when Holdsworth takes the lead it starts to sound really good! Jobson's synths move to the background and Holdsworth starts to show off his stuff with a couple short but excellent solos! After some wonderful guitar work they return for another short verse before Wetton takes things in a new direction. He starts singing a new verse and the rest of the band adapt to form a new riff with a nice beat and some cool bass by Wetton as well. Bruford plays some nice drum fills in this slower part as Holdsworth once again takes the lead with a tamer, but still good guitar solo. Jobson plays some more trippy synths to bring this pretty good first side to a close.

The second side starts with "Alaska" and it begins with some very low bass by Wetton. Jobson comes in with some slow synths that make this quite an epic opening! It's more than just the opening too as this slow epic part goes on for over two and a half minutes. After over half the song is over we hear Bruford come in with some nice drums as this tune finally gets into gear! This new riff is still led by Jobson's keyboards but it's definitely more interesting than the slow opening. He plays a few different keyboards in this new riff and they all sound pretty great as this song continues to be a showcase for Eddie. The very end has a new fast riff that sounds great and it leads right into the next song, "Time To Kill" as it begins with what sounds like the end of this riff! Wetton is singing from the beginning and Jobson plays some nice piano while Holdsworth's guitar plays a different bit that meshes well. It moves into a more standard chorus with clapping and some more pop-y singing. After the chorus it's time for a Jobson electric violin solo! Holdsworth sets the stage with a nice guitar riff as Jobson starts off slow, but once he hits top speed this sounds pretty cool! It just sounds like a synthesizer, but this electric violin is interesting for sure as he continues to lead the way with some great stuff! After an extended awesome solo they return for one last chorus as Jobson nicely brings it to a finish. Track 7 is titled "Nevermore" and Holdsworth opens this one with some awesome guitar! He plays so quickly, hitting a bunch of different notes that sound great together. Jobson comes in with some epic backing keyboards and they settle into the main verse. Wetton sings pretty high in this interesting verse and Bruford plays some great drums as well. Jobson spices things up a bit with some cool piano in the next verse and after that's done it's time for a solo. Holdsworth and Jobson alternate short solos in this part with Allan playing some decent guitar and Eddie playing some pretty great keyboards! After this great solo-off they slow things down in a new verse as Wetton sings much lower than earlier. He trails off soon after and we're left with a slow and trippy backdrop. Jobson plays some cool keyboards over this dreamy setting but I think they leave us out in space for a little too long. Wetton begins a new verse overtop this trippy music as he sings slowly along. Bruford comes in with some excellent drum fills and Holdsworth takes the lead with some slow, epic guitar. This ending riff is pretty good as Bruford is the highlight with some great drumming. Jobson ends it with some more trippy keyboards and this brings us to the final song on the record, "Mental Medication". Holdsworth opens with some slow, trippy guitar that sets the tone before Wetton joins in with some light singing. Jobson adds some backing keys to another interesting riff but at about 1:15 they move into a more standard rock riff. Bruford's drums are great once again and Wetton's singing and bass are both solid. Jobson plays some more cool keyboards and briefly takes off for a cool little bit. After this slow verse they move to a more upbeat part with Jobson playing some crazy keyboards! Holdsworth gets some nice guitar in as well but it's Jobson that leads the way with some great stuff. He segues into a new riff that has Wetton playing a nice bass line to keep the pace. Holdsworth and Jobson take turns soloing again and again it sounds pretty awesome! I like Holdsworth's guitar especially but everything sounds pretty good in this part. Wetton switches to a different groovy bass line and Jobson takes off for an electric violin solo! It sounds pretty good, but I think I actually like the rhythm section more as Wetton and Bruford are both playing some great stuff as well! This wonderful middle section finally comes to an end as they return to the slow opening verse. They let this song slowly fade to an end and thus ends a unique rock album.

That is the end of "U.K." and I thought it was a pretty good album. It had some highs and lows but was overall pretty solid. It was great to hear Wetton and Bruford again as I think they form a great rhythm section and the two newcomers were both pretty great! Holdsworth's guitar gets lost in the mix sometimes, which is unfortunate because I thought he did great when he was in the spotlight, and Jobson's keyboards are everywhere. Most of the songs were also largely written by Jobson and Wetton and this would lead to a short-lived tenure with this line-up as both Bruford and Holdsworth would leave the band. Without them, I am not interested in what else is to come, but this album was certainly a worthy addition to my library. Next time we'll hear some familiar faces again, until then!