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CANTERBURY SCENE
A Progressive Rock Sub-genre
From Progarchives.com, the ultimate progressive rock music website
Canterbury Scene definition
With many other types of English progressive music developing mostly in London, it may at first seem strange that the old pilgrimage centre and relatively quiet cathedral city of Canterbury, became the centre of this very English form of progressive music and jazz fusion. Originally the Wilde Flowers, a teenage band of members living in and around Canterbury, playing a mix of pop, R'n'B and band members with a developing love of jazz, was formed in the 60's and became the seedling from which the Canterbury Scene grew. Australian beatnik Daevid Allen during a long stop-over at Robert Wyatt's parent's home, a refuge for many left field artists, was to catalyse the evolution of the Wilde Flowers into the fledging Soft Machine and the development of some avant music during the English psychedelic and underground period. From 1963 to 1969, the Wilde Flowers included most of the figures who later formed Canterbury's two best known bands, (The) Soft Machine (Robert Wyatt, Kevin Ayers, Hugh Hopper) and Caravan (Pye Hastings, David Sinclair, Richard Sinclair, Richard Coughlan).Canterbury was then to be the cradle for several of the more freewheeling British bands of the post-psychedelic era. While fans would suggest this is the home of an English musical quirkiness tempered with quite a bit of whimsy, within the Canterbury Scene's musical spectrum any similarities between Canterbury's major bands, (e.g. Soft Machine, Caravan, Gong, Robert Wyatt, Kevin Ayers, Hatfield & the North, Egg, National Health), are not immediately obvious*. Most bands will be found employing a clever fusion of rock rhythms and jazz improvisation with intellectual song-writing and varying strengths of psychedelia - some would too include folk elements (e.g. Spirogyra), others blues (e.g. Carol Grimes and Delivery). In addition, a number of bands employed various elements from classical music, for instance those bands with Dave Stewart playing keyboards. Whilst there have been a handful of excellent and distinctly different guitarists to play with Canterbury bands (e.g. Andy Summers, Allan Holdsworth, John Etheridge, Steve Hillage, Phil Miller), the lead instrument of choice has been keyboards. One English peculiarity of Canterbury is what the late John Peel called the 'School of Anti-song' because of particular Wyatt, Ayers and Richard Sinclair's approaches to vocals and perhaps the whimsy - more recently Richard Sinclair's vocal style has perhaps accurately been labelled as 'English jazz singing' by Jazzwise (i.e. singing jazz with an English rather than the usual American accent).
(*However, once you've heard some Canterbury bands the commonality becomes more obvious - chord sequencing e.g. Caveman Hughscore's electric piano opening on the tune 'More Than Nothing', the vocals, the lyrics etc.)
Both the Soft Machine and Caravan were popular in England's psychedelic/ underground scene before releasing their first albums in 1968, with Machine completing on level footing with Pink Floyd. However, by the early 70's a series of fragmenting changes of bands' line-ups, (Soft Machine went through about 30) and the subsequent formation of new bands, rapidly broadened Canterbury's range, with many newer musicians with only loose and in fact, no previous Canterbury connections. Early Soft Machine member Daevid Allen formed Gong in Paris. Both Kevin Ayers and Robert Wyatt left the Softs because of musical developments they did not like, to begin their own solo careers. By the mid-70's, most the old and new Canterbury bands had progressed away from psychedelia, developing their distinct forms of progressive rock some embracing jazz fusion, many playing extended jams with now limited lyrical input (e.g. Hatfield and The Norths, National Health, Gilgamesh). Caravan became more folky. However, as the 70's progressed several Canterbury bands would lose most of the rock element from their music. Gong retained their psychedelic side longest, but with the departure of Daevid Allen and Steve Hillage in the mid 70's, the band evolved into the percussion-oriented, jazz rock group Gong, which eventually became the modern day Gongzilla. Daevid Allen regained Gong's name in the 90's and through his solo work and with his University of Errors, is still evidently producing psychedelia. Steve Hillage's form of psychedelia evolved into the glissando rock of his own band and then into electronica, by the end of the 70's. In particular, Hillage through his work as a successful record producer of new bands from the 80's, develop his form of electronica through other bands. This music lost much of its complexity e.g. few riffs played over and over, rather than dozens per tune that previously had often typified prog, into a very popular form that is the antithesis of prog, i.e. the various forms of house music, with associated remixing/turntablism. For instance, Gong's "You" got the remix treatment in the 90's - but then to reflect his range of activities, Hillage has also produced and played guitar for Algerian Rai singer, Rachid Taha for over 20 years.
Many of Britain's better known avant-garde and fusion musicians of the 70's and 80's - including Fred Frith (Henry Cow), Allan Holdsworth (Gong, Soft Machine, UK, Bruford) and Peter Blegvad - were involved during their early careers playing in Canterbury bands. And still new musicians join the Canterbury Scene's ranks, Theo Travis being perhaps the most notable recently (Gong, The Soft Machine Legacy). The Canterbury scene was to have a major influence on musicians in Europe, especially France (e.g. Gong, Moving Gelatine Plates), the Netherlands (Super Sister)and Italy (Daedalus), and more belatedly in the USA (Hughscore). Caravan reformed in the mid 90's, while ex-members of Soft Machine could be found in various avant jazz and straight jazz fusion groups, e.g. Just Us, Soft Heap, Soft Works and most recently The Soft Machine Legacy. From the Canterbury Scene, RIO it its various forms has developed.
FOOTNOTE: As indicated above, many Canterbury Scene bands are acknowledged as having played/are playing jazz rock fusion. However, because of their strong Canterbury affliations are listed under "Canterbury Scene" in Prog Archives.
Dick Heath
Based loosely in part on the source: http://www.allmusic.com
Canterbury Scene Top Albums
Showing only studios | Based on members ratings & PA algorithm | Show Top 100 Canterbury Scene
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Canterbury Scene overlooked and obscure gems albums
Random 4 (reload page for new list) | As selected by the Canterbury Scene experts
NATIONAL HEALTH National Health |
GILGAMESHGilgamesh |
THE BRUISED ROMANTIC GLEE CLUBJakszyk, Jakko M. |
KEW RHÔNEGreaves, John |
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Latest Canterbury Scene Music Reviews
Gong Canterbury Scene
Review by snobb
First album of really Moerlen's Gong. If six early albums from Gong were Daevid Allen's ,with
Canterbury sound ,full of freaky psychedelia, seventh "Shamal" ( without Allen and Gilli Smyth)
was something in transition, "Gazeuse" is first real Moerlen's Gong album. The music there is
jazz-fusion of highest level!Very complex,with large percussion/drums section, new line-up includes great guitarist Alan Holdsworth as well. No traces of psychedelia of early years, just very dynamic jazz-rock.
I think, many of early Gong lovers could be mistaken by this album. It's musical direction is so different, that in fact it is just another band ( line-up is almost new as well). But for jazz fusion lovers this recording is one of the best evidence from that time.
Should be presented in every jazz fusion fan collection!
Gong Canterbury Scene
Review by snobb
Shamal is first Gong album without Daevid Allen, Gilli Smyth and almost without Steve Hillage.
Recorded right after You ( and after the end of great Gong Trilogy), it is change in direction. Instead of Allen's Gong psychedelic Canterbury sound you will find there some transitional music. Psychedelia ( both with Allen and Gilli vocals and Hillage guitar) is almost gone, but jazz-rock is filling it's place. Whenever the musicians generally are all great, instrumental part of album sounds very competent. Main problem is Howlett vocals, which isn't good, and doesn't fit at all.
Another problem is that the album is unfocused: some separate music pieces are great, but they all are just placed in the bag without any idea or direction. Still not real jazz fusion of later Gong, the music is more early jazz-rock with plenty of pleasant and interesting moments.
All in all, that album is not bad at all, but plays some transition role by the way to non-Allen Gong. Instrumental pieces are from interesting to great. And all album isn't boring at all because it is different enough.
Must have for every Gong fan.Strong 3,5.
Gong Canterbury Scene
Review by snobb
This album has nothing too much in common with classic Gong albums. In fact, it is "New
York Gong", something like Daevid Allen solo project.Whenever the year is 1980, don't be surprised to find there ... punk music. OK, it is far from usual punk, but Daevid Allen punk - synthesizer based , but with fast and simplistic punk rhythm. Songs are short, melodic, full of craziness and energy. Plus saxes and often speaking Daevid vocal. Plus political lyrics.
Very light traces of spacy psychedelia there. In fact, this is something should be named "prog- punk". Or you can name it kind of RIO/avant as well, with very NY downtown atmosphere ( John Cale sometimes sounds like this).
Quite interesting album, but far from Gong or usual progressive rock. For Daevid Allen fans and Gong collectors.
Gong Canterbury Scene
Review by
Sean Trane
Special Collaborator Prog-Folk Specialist
The return of Hillage in the band was written maybe as early as the Gong Unconvention in
the winter of 2006 in Amsterdam's Melkweg, but it obviously took time to mature as in early
summer of 08, Steve joined Gong on stage for two shows in London with a couple new
songs, but it would be another big year before this album would see the light of day in the
fall of of 09. Sooo Steve and wife Lmiquette Giraudy came back and in terms of the line-up,
if the Daevid & Gilly pair are obvious, Malherbe is only a guest, reoplaced by now-usual
Theo Travis, the drum stool is still under Chris Taylor and veteran Howlett on bass.
Looking at the credits of the songs, it is unsurprisingly mostly an affair of the Steve/Miquette
and Daevid/Gilly pairs that dominate the songwriting, even though the girls collaborate on
three tracks throughout the album. 2032 is a long (almost filled to the brim) album, made from 14 songs, a few lasting between 7 and 8 minutes, and by the time you're nearing the end of the disc, it is almost 2031, so this album is aptly titled, especially if you stopped for loo emergencies. The least that can be said is that all tracks arewell-made and finely crafted, filled with a certain kind of lunacy (an updated version of early Hillage solo delirium and Daevidian madness)
Well the Pothead Pixie will find the usual Planet Gong universe, but in a violuntary updated manner, both musically, butr lyrically as well. Tracks like Digital Girl and Escape Control Delete are obvious shots at modern technology, but more annoying are the purposely light- handed pop songwriting, sometimes bordering on the silly, but not in the hilarious 70's style. The two distinctive signature lead guitars are generally working well together, Daevid's glissando solos matching Steve's delay-saturated riffs. More interesting is to try to pick out the Malherbe wind intervbention from Travis'. The album is extremely wordy with only one near-instumental (Guitar Zero) and sometimes reaches almost Kraftwerk-style of electro-pop (in Robo-Warriors) and sometimes the group sounds like another Tentacle.
Personally I thought that Zero To Infinitea was a much worthier album in the Radio Gnome Invisible saga, but it was also playing much safer. 2032 is full of risk-taking, which is always a double edged sword, but these quirky songs might seem fresh and even bring a new blood in the Gong planet, I'm not sure that they'll age as gracefully as the previous material. Personally I consider this album as quite a deception, but let's see how it ages with successive listens, which obviously won't be as frequent after the first two months.
The Soft Machine Canterbury Scene
Review by toroddfuglesteg
This live album is basically Bundles played live. Hence my four stars. I rate Bundles very highly and this live album is therefore essential in my record collection. I have probably been listening to this album too much because I really find it so enjoyable. The Bundles line-up also plays on this live album. This include Allan Holdsworth.
The album starts with the mediative piece The Floating World and the listener is automatic drawn into Soft Machine's world. It is followed by Bundles and Land Of The Bag Snake. Superb stuff. Some avant-garde bass stuff comes in at Ealing Comedy. The Man Who Waved At Trains includes violin from Allan Holdsworth. Fabelous. Karl Jenkins is brilliant at Peff. North Point is just fuzz from Pembridge. Allan Holdsworth is brilliant on his guitar at Hazard Profile Part One. John Marshall gives us a ten minutes long drum solo on J.S.M. and parts of Riff III before the rest of the band joins in halfway through and takes us through Song Of Aeolus, Endgame and Penny Hitch with some brilliant interplays. And so ends this live album.
This live album can be compared to British Tour '75. The difference is the guitarists (John Etheridge vs. Allan Holdsworth). Both albums are superb. Allan Holdsworth is playing his guts out on this album and his fingerprints is all over it. That alone is reason enough to enjoy it. But the rest of the band is excellent too and this live album capture a brief moment of Soft Machine's career. Highly recommended, this brief moment is.
4 stars
Robert Wyatt Canterbury Scene
Review by toroddfuglesteg
Good musicianship disguises the emptiness.Robert Wyatt was on leave from Soft Machine because he thought they became too much of a jazz band.......... and he recorded this album. I am confused. This album, his debut album, is an avant-garde free jazz album where ideas are thrown together without creating good tunes. This album is not even in the Canterbury scene mould. This is RIO or even something more avant-garde than that. Not even Soft Machine was this avant-garde.
You may detect that I am not a fan of this album. You are right. The musicianship is good and I do get a couple of the tunes here. But listening to this forty-five minutes long jam leaves me an empty feeling. If only this jam was dynamic. It is not. Only a couple of tunes has any dynamics. The rest is experimentations over some themes and only that. This is not an album for me.
2 stars
Gilgamesh Canterbury Scene
Review by toroddfuglesteg
Another fine album from Gilgamesh.This sadly ignored band included the likes of Hugh Hopper (released from Soft Machine) and Alan Gowen. Both was sadly taken away from us far too early. Alan Gowen's excellent contributions to this album just reminds me how much this world misses him. Check out his fabelous playing on Play Time and you will get my point. Alan Gowen was more or less the leader of Gilgamesh. He was also the leader of National Health. Those who knows National Health should really purchase all Gilgamesh album. The music here is pretty similar to National Health......... with a couple of differences. This album is much more keyboards focused and laid back than the first two National Health albums. Gilgamesh is much more jazz than jazz-rock. They are also much more jazz than National Health, Hatfield & The North and Soft Machine.
Play Time is an excellent track. So is Bobberty. The rest of the material here is good, but sadly a bit anonymous. This is not rock. This is silent contemplation. This is a good album, but nothing more than that. I still rate Gilgamesh very highly and will listen a lot to this album during the next decades.
3 stars
Supersister Canterbury Scene
Review by psarros
4.5 stars for this unique band...Among the most significant prog bands ever to come out of The Netherlands, SUPERSISTER's story begins in mid-60's at the Grotius College in Hague,when some young students begun a band named ''The Bulbs'',led by Robert Jan Stips.The band adopted constantly new styles and influences and this was the reason for the numerous changes of the band's name (from ''The bulbs'' to ''Q-Provocation'',shortened to ''Provocation'' and in 1968 to ''Sweet okay supersister'').Their lives were absolutely amazing with dancers and body painters on stage and ,as Pete Sjadin from ''Group 1850'' saw them one night,he helped them release their first single in 1970,followed by the recordings of their debut ''Present from Nancy'' the same year.
Already performing under the name SUPERSISTER,''Present from Nancy'' is an album way beyond its time with obvious references to SOFT MACHINE and CARAVAN,but more importantly with a personal approach to energetic complex rock music.The album is mostly instrumental,offering awesome interplays between the musicians and furious grooves,hard to get into with a single listen.You can easily been blown away by the battles of Sascha Van Geest's flutes with the tight performance of Ron Van Eck on bass and Marco Vrolijk on drums/percussion.Rob Stips' piano and organ are almost everywhere,performing delicate passages,later exchanged with dynamic interplays with the rhythm section.The most energetic passages will just leave you speechless with their professionalism and pure inspiration,the smoother ones contain psych leanings and jazzy arrangements with great flute work and dark guitar playing,not far from the Canterbury-based bands.This is certainly one of the best early progressive rock releases and a personal highlight for me,regarding the year 1970.A highly recommended album of maximum historical and musical importance!
Gringo Canterbury Scene
Review by toroddfuglesteg
If you believe this is a normal Canterbury scene album with all the trimmings, you will be
disappointed.The music here is a mix of musicals (Hair), Eurovision, 1970's pop music, Curved Air and Caravan. Gringo did one tour with both bands and there was an affinity between these groups. The first two tracks Cry The Beloved Country and I'm Another Man sounds like Caravan at their most accessible. Both tracks have a jazzy keyboard theme. Only those two tracks has any quality. The rest of the album is very commercial pop-rock. Commercial without any good songs. The vocals and the musicians are OK. But the songs are really letting them down. No quality and no purpose. Gringo only released one album. I cannot say I am in mourning.
2 stars
The Soft Machine Canterbury Scene
Review by toroddfuglesteg
Soft Machine never ever repeat them selves from album to album. That's why this band is
both frustrating and fascinating.Allan Holdsworth left the band after Bundles and in came another Nucleus member; John Etheridge. Mike Ratledge, the only remaining Soft Machine member left halfway through the recording and Karl Jenkins took over the tangents in addition to writing most of the material here. Alan Wakeman took over Karl Jenkins old job.
Gone too is most of the quirky avant-garde jazz Soft Machine pioneered. Softs is more or less a straight jazz-rock album with some added Soft Machine quirkiness. It can also be compared to their previous album Bundles. Both in style and quality wise.
Most of the material on Softs is simply stunning. The songs from The Tale of Taliesien to Kayoo is simply jazz-rock heaven. Excellent guitar solos backed up by outstanding saxophone and keyboards work. Fabelous ! The material changes between lyrically soft jazz to swinging jazz-rock. Everything here is very melodic, but still very Soft Machine. The rest of the album is the normal Soft Machine quirky fare, including a drum solo and an accoustic guitar piece.
By all standards; this is an excellent album. I still miss some of Karl Jenkins flutes and saxophones. Bundles is still a better album than this, but just by some inches. I love this album.
4 stars
Canterbury Scene bands/artists list
| Bands/Artists | Country |
| DAEVID ALLEN | Australia |
| ANTIQUE SEEKING NUNS | United Kingdom |
| KEVIN AYERS | United Kingdom |
| BRAINVILLE | United Kingdom |
| CARAVAN | United Kingdom |
| CLEAR FRAME | United Kingdom |
| COS | Belgium |
| DELIVERY | United Kingdom |
| EGG | United Kingdom |
| MICHAEL GILES | United Kingdom |
| GILGAMESH | United Kingdom |
| GONG | Multi-National |
| MILLER, SINCLAIR, TOMKINS GOWEN | United Kingdom |
| JOHN GREAVES | United Kingdom |
| NICHOLAS GREENWOOD | United Kingdom |
| GRINGO | United Kingdom |
| HATFIELD AND THE NORTH | United Kingdom |
| STEVE HILLAGE | United Kingdom |
| HOPPER DEAN TIPPETT GALLIVAN | United Kingdom |
| HUGH HOPPER | United Kingdom |
| JAKKO M. JAKSZYK | United Kingdom |
| KHAN | United Kingdom |
| THE LODGE | United States |
| MATCHING MOLE | United Kingdom |
| PHIL MILLER | United Kingdom |
| MOVING GELATINE PLATES | France |
| MR. SIRIUS | Japan |
| THE MUFFINS | United States |
| NATIONAL HEALTH | United Kingdom |
| PANTHEON | Netherlands |
| PAZOP | Belgium |
| JOHN G. PERRY | United Kingdom |
| PICCHIO DAL POZZO | Italy |
| PIP PYLE | United Kingdom |
| QUANTUM JUMP | United Kingdom |
| QUIET SUN | United Kingdom |
| RICHARD SINCLAIR | United Kingdom |
| SOFT HEAP | United Kingdom |
| SOFT MACHINE LEGACY | United Kingdom |
| THE SOFT MACHINE | United Kingdom |
| SOFT MOUNTAIN | Multi-National |
| SOFT WORKS | United Kingdom |
| SUPERSISTER | Netherlands |
| TORTILLA FLAT | Germany |
| TRAVELLING | France |
| VOLARÉ | United States |
| THE WILDE FLOWERS | United Kingdom |
| ROBERT WYATT | United Kingdom |
| ZYMA | Germany |
Canterbury Scene Specialists
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Alucard (Martin Horst)
Band Submissions/Canterb. /J-R Team
Joined date: 9/10/2004 | Posts: 3406 | Last visit: 11/19/2009 3:29:36 PM EST
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Zac M (formerly meurglysIII)
Canterbury/Jazz-Rock Specialist
Joined date: 7/3/2005 | Posts: 3578 | Last visit: 8/18/2009 5:20:03 PM EST
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Chus (Jesus Brea)
Joined date: 10/16/2006 | Posts: 1993 | Last visit: 5/8/2008 3:32:27 PM EST
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