‘5’ Was the first album after the departure of Robert Wyatt, which was a major blow for sure for ‘Soft Machine’. With Wyatt leaving he took not only his great drumming abilities, but his sense of anarchy, eccentricity, and warmth with him. Here begins the post Wyatt jazz/fusion/progressive era of ‘Soft Machine’, a very much underrated period from a band that was far ahead of its time. With the ‘Fifth’ (‘5’) they recorded a jazz rock classic! Great playing from Hugh Hopper, Elton Dean, Phil Howard, John Marshall, and Roy Babington. ‘Five’ is a great record, filled with all the invention you expect from a top flight progressive band of the early 1970s.
