Soft Machine - The Dutch Lesson (2023)

The Dutch Lesson Review by Thom Jurek
Cuneiform continues its excavation of Soft Machine's history with The Dutch Lesson, a 1973 small theater gig from Rotterdam. Previously, only one concert recording from 1973 existed (apart from dodgy bootlegs), NDR Jazz Workshop, which took place in Hamburg in May. Bassist Roy Babbington had joined the band to replace Hugh Hopper after Six. Though he appears on the Hamburg recording, it's clear that bandmates John Marshall (drums), Karl Jenkins (reeds, electric piano), and Mike Ratledge (piano, organ) hadn't solidified around him yet. The Dutch Lesson, recorded in October, followed their defining performances at several major European music festivals. The two-set show offers no early material; its contents include most of Six and early versions of "Down the Road" and "Hazard Profile."

Most fans, critics, and journos didn't know about this show. It was audience-recorded from the front row by record store owner Bert Boogaard, holding a Uher portable tape machine in his lap. While it's true one wouldn't expect much from an audience recording then, it delivers excellent fidelity despite some oversaturation by the drum kit.

Typically, the intros to some tunes happen gradually. On opener "Stanley Stomps Gibbon Album," the intro is quite gradual; circular piano and keyboard themes subtly converse. When Marshall crashes in, he ups the tempo as Babbington delivers throbbing, distorted thunder transmuting the jam into jazz-rock. Across this date, the intuitive, conversant interplay between the bassist and Ratledge is incendiary. The 11-plus-minute read of "The Soft Weed Factor" begins with ghostly electric piano lines playing a fragmental blues shuffle. It increases in tension and groove, and the rhythm section joins him in the foreground, strolling and warping the progression before Jenkins erupts with soprano and oboe solos as the band ratchets the intensity. This rendition of "37 1/2" careens across modal and post-bop before becoming a true showcase for Jenkins' brilliant, extended soprano solo. "Ealing Comedy" is an imaginative captivatingly active bass solo on which Babbington reveals his penchant for blues, boogie, and hard bop. "Down the Road" is a showcase for the soprano saxophonist as his bandmates erect a slippery, nocturnal, utterly kinetic, bluesy, vanguard jazz-funk response. Here, "Hazard Profile" is delivered as a rowdy, sprawling (14 minutes) psychedelic exercise in driving, hypnotic jazz-rock fusion. It morphs into serpentine group improv with stellar work from Ratledge's piano as Marshall's sympathetic, syncopated groove buoys him. Closer "Gesolreut Jam" reprises the theme and vamp from their performance of "Gesolreut" during the first set. Dirty, funky, nd modal, this take winds through jazz, nocturnal funk, future blues, and hard rock, as Babbington and Jenkins go head-to-head with Marshall and Ratledge before deconstructing the progression rhythmically, harmonically, and dynamically; it's a labyrinthine sonic traverse across a wide musical expanse that ends with the band whispering the show to a sublime, sensual close. Despite the occasional "hot"-sounding drums, The Dutch Lesson is an essential addition to Soft Machine's catalog, and due to its obscure origins, this unexpected release feels like a gift.

Tracklist
01. Stanley Stamps Gibbon Album (7:16)
02. Between (2:12)
03. The Soft Weed Factor (11:05)
04. Lefty (1:58)
05. Gesolreut (9:30)
06. EPV (4:33)
07. Down the Road (10:40)
08. Ealing Comedy (5:33)
09. 37 1/2 (7:17)
10. J.S.M. (4:39)
11. Riff II (0:41)
12. Chloe and the Pirates (9:57)
13. Hazard Profile (13:56)
14. Improvisation (5:20)
15. Gesolreut Jam (7:41)