Originally released in 1976, Softs was something of a make-or-break album in Soft Machine’s career. It came after the band had suffered a serious setback in the abrupt departure of guitarist Allan Holdsworth, who quit to join Tony Williams’ Lifetime in the USA.
He took off just as Bundles, their first album for EMI’s Harvest label, came out in 1975, adding insult to injury. Fortunately, he made amends by suggesting his replacement should be the relatively unknown John Etheridge.
