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Soft Machine

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English rock & jazz band from Canterbury formed in mid-1966, named after the novel The Soft Machine by William S. Burroughs. Years active: 1966–1968 1969–1978 1978–1983 (offshot band Soft Head), followed by Soft Heap 1980–1984 1999–2002 (pre-reformation band Soft Ware) 2002–2004 (pre-reformation band Soft Works) 2004–2015 (as Soft Machine Legacy) 2015–present Other offshot bands featuring core members Hugh Hopper and Elton Dean were briefly created during the 2000s: Soft Bounds & Soft Mountain. Current members: ● John Etheridge – guitar (1975–1978, 2015–present) ● Theo Travis – saxophone, flute, piano (2015–present) ● Fred T. Baker - bass (2022–present) ● Asaf Sirkis - drums (2023-present) Guest/Substitute musicians: ● Nic France – drums, percussion (at least for one show: on 26 March 2016 in Sheffield Green, East Sussex, UK; substitute for John Marshall) ● Fred T. Baker - bass (substituted for Roy Babbington for 2022 dates, prior to becoming a full member) Former members: ● Mike Ratledge – keyboards, flute (1966–1968, 1969–1976; died 2025) ● Robert Wyatt – drums, vocals, keyboards, bass (1966–1968, 1969–1971) ● Kevin Ayers – bass, vocals, guitar, keyboards (1966–1968; died 2013) ● Daevid Allen – guitar, vocals, bass (1966–1967; died 2015) ● Larry Nowlin – guitar (1966) ● Andy Summers – guitar (1968) ● Hugh Hopper – bass, saxophone, guitar (1968–1973; died 2009) ● John Marshall – drums, percussion (1971–1984, 2015–2022) ● Elton Dean – saxophone, keyboards (1969–1972; died 2006) ● Lyn Dobson – flute, saxophone (1969–1970) ● Mark Charig – cornet (1969) ● Nick Evans – trombone (1969) ● Phil Howard – drums (1971) ● Karl Jenkins – oboe, saxophone, keyboards, synthesisers (1972–1984) ● Allan Holdsworth – guitar (1973–1975; died 2017) ● Roy Babbington – bass (1973–1976, 2015–2022) ● Alan Wakeman – saxophone (1976) ● Ray Warleigh – saxophone (1976; died 2015) ● Ric Sanders – violin (1976–1978) ● Percy Jones – bass (1976–1977) ● – bass (1977–1978)