Formed in Canterbury, England, during the mid-1960s, Soft Machine (originally The Soft Machine) became one of the most innovative and uncompromising forces in British music. While many of their contemporaries expanded rock through symphonic grandeur or classical influences, Soft Machineblazed a more unconventional course - one shaped by jazz improvisation, avant-garde experimentation, dynamic instrumentation and a commitment to musical freedom. Sitting comfortably alongside other experimental giants such as Pink Floyd, Caravan, Van der Graaf Generator and Can, Soft Machine established themselves as one of the most important and influential progressive rock groups of the late ‘60s / early ‘70s. Their influence today can easily be traced through the music of Radiohead, Portishead and also longtime fan Damon Albarn who upon hearing about this forthcoming collection, said "This is a treasure trove for anyone wanting to deep dive into the wonderful world of Soft Machine."

A Soft Machine boxed set ‘Slightly All The Time Recordings 1970-1974’ is being released by Sony Music on 30th October 2026. It is the most comprehensive anthology of Soft Machine ever released, alavish collection featuring 14 CDs and 3 Blu-Ray discs. It covers the most vital period in their story and collates the five albums (‘Third’, ‘Fourth’, ‘Fifth’, ‘Six’ and ‘Seven’) they recorded for CBS with each one newly remastered from the original ¼” tapes. In addition, it includes all of their extant BBC sessions (half of which are unreleased) and a generous selection of rare and previously unavailable concert recordings from Europe (UK/France/Switzerland).

Soft Machine fans will be enthralled by the wealth of bonus material present including previously unreleased studio material from Sony’s UK archive. Compiler Mark Powell has unearthed an entirely different set of recordings of their ‘Fifth’ album, as well as over 6 hours of superb audio-visual material gathered from European TV broadcast archives, almost all of which has never been issued before.There are some outstanding performances to savour such as Paris 1970, Brussels 1971, the complete Berliner Jazztage performance and the BBC TV appearances on ‘An Anatomy of Pop’ and ‘Full House’.

With an initial line-up comprising Robert Wyatt (drums, vocals), Kevin Ayers (bass, guitar, vocals), Daevid Allen (guitar) and Mike Ratledge (organ), they emerged from the UK underground in 1967, featuring prominently at epoch-making London venues such as the UFO Club and Middle Earth. In 1968, they earned a support slot Stateside for the Jimi Hendrix Experience tour. Playing guitar for Soft Machine on those dates was Andy Summers who would later would strike gold with The Police. ‘The Softs’ quickly established a powerful reputation over the next decade with a series of accomplished records and some wildly innovative concert performances most notably in the UK and France.

After two albums for ABC/Probe – ‘The Soft Machine’ and ‘Volume Two’ – they signed to CBS with a line-up consisting of Wyatt, Ratledge, saxophonist Elton Dean and fuzz bassist extraordinaire Hugh Hopper, releasing their most successful long player, ‘Third’, in 1970. This was followed by four more CBS albums during a period of significant acclaim across Europe and a frequently evolving line-up, which came to included noted Welsh composer and multi-instrumentalist Karl Jenkins.

Soft Machine disbanded in 1978, apart from the occasional reunion, before relaunching as Soft Machine Legacy (which united veteran members of the band with connections to their early ‘70s heyday) in 2004, touring and recording extensively. Since 2016 they have been known simply as Soft Machine and this year they have dates and festival appearances scheduled in the UK and across Europe from The Netherlands to Romania.

Soft Machine – Slightly All The Time Recordings 1970-1974

Released by Sony Music 30th October 2026

Perhaps more than anyone, Pink Floyd’s Nick Mason is in a good position to sum up the unequivocal magic of Soft Machine, having been around them in their early days. Nick observes:

“If there really was a UFO Club house band, it was a title shared between The Soft Machine and (the) Pink Floyd. Even though the musical influences could not have been more different, I tend to think that the one ingredient that both bands were unique in providing was playing music that was simply impossible to dance to.

I don't think there was any rivalry between us. I think we probably huddled together for comfort as Northern Soul music and the Top Rank ballrooms topped the bill. We did become friends, and I have happy memories of spending time - I think in the Chelsea Hotel, or Max’s Kansas City in NYC – waiting to head out to attempt to conquer the American mid-west. And in later years I had the privilege of producing Robert Wyatt’s Rock Bottom album as well as appearing on Top Of The Pops with Andy Summers in pre-Police mode as a fill in guitar player to accompany Robert.

Although Pink Floyd were to head down a very different musical path in the years to come, I do clearly remember being deeply impressed by the musicianship of Soft Machine. That modern jazz influence was something I could only wonder at and certainly couldn’t emulate!

I’m looking forward to re-acquainting myself with some happy memories as well as good music.”