- UK (band)
Infobox musical artist |
Name = U.K.
Background = group_or_band
Alias =
Origin =England
Genre =Progressive rock
Years_active = 1977-1980
Label =E.G. Records Polydor Records Virgin Records
Associated_acts = Asia,Roxy Music ,Frank Zappa ,King Crimson ,Bruford
URL =
Past_members =John Wetton Bill Bruford Eddie Jobson Allan Holdsworth Terry Bozzio U.K. were a short-lived British
progressive rock supergroup active from 1977 through 1980.In September 1976, singer/bassist
John Wetton and drummerBill Bruford , alumni ofKing Crimson ,worked on forming a band with Yes keyboardistRick Wakeman . The project was stopped by Wakeman's label. According to Bruford, "A&M Records were unwilling to let their 'star,' Wakeman, walk off with a used, slightly soiled King Crimson rhythm section, and the idea failed." [ [http://www.dprp.net/proghistory/index.php?i=1978_03 DPRP : Counting Out Time : UK - UK ] ]Determined to work together, Bruford and Wetton next asked guitarist
Robert Fripp to reform King Crimson [ [http://www.dgmlive.com/archive.htm?artist=25&show=1172 Robert Fripp on June 18, 1979 in Chicago ] ] which Fripp had disbanded in 1974. [ [http://www.dgmlive.com/kc/index.htm?group=wetton&bio=true King Crimson ] ] When Fripp declined, Bruford and Wetton decided that each would bring in a musician of his choice to formulate a band.Wetton brought in keyboardist/violinistEddie Jobson , whom Wetton knew from his work withRoxy Music in 1976 – "stealing" him fromFrank Zappa . [ [http://www.geocities.com/SunsetStrip/8827/uk.html U.K. Humbled in U.S.A ] ] Bruford recruited guitaristAllan Holdsworth (formerly ofSoft Machine and Gong) who had played guitar on Bruford's 1977 debut solo album, "Feels Good to Me ".U.K. released their self-titled début album in 1978 and followed it with a supporting tour.
Following two lengthy American tours (June-October 1978), first Holdsworth and then Bruford departed U.K. over musical differences, [ [http://www.dprp.net/proghistory/index.php?i=1978_03 DPRP : Counting Out Time : UK - UK ] ] going on to form the jazz rock fusion group
Bruford . After the departure of Bruford and Holdsworth, U.K. didn't bring in another guitarist. DrummerTerry Bozzio (another one-timeFrank Zappa band member) joined Wetton and Jobson, and as a result U.K. became a trio with aprogressive rock lineup of keyboards/bass/drums (albeit supplemented by Jobson's violin). The trio recorded the album "Danger Money ", released in March 1979, and spent much of that year touring North America as opening act forJethro Tull . A live album, "Night After Night", was recorded in Japan that Spring and released in September. Following a final European tour in December 1979, and in spite of plans to record a new studio album in America in March 1980, U.K. disbanded. The reason for this was Jobson's and Wetton's different ideas on how the band should have gone on. Jobson wanted UK to go on with more long instrumental pieces, while Wetton thought that performing shorter songs was a better idea. [ [http://www.elephant-talk.com/wiki/Interview_with_John_Wetton_in_Big_Bang_Magazine Interview with John Wetton in Big Bang Magazine ] ] Jobson stated that one song in particular was the reason of the band to disband: "When Will You Realize" [ [http://www.eddiejobson.com/forum/read.php?f=3&i=1204&t=1178#reply_1204 New UK bootleg / New editions ] ] , a non-LP B-side (to date still unavailable on CD) featured on the "Night After Night" single, which Wetton would re-record (with slightly different lyrics) in 1980 on his solo albumCaught In The Crossfire .Jobson worked with Jethro Tull on the album "A" and went on to a solo career. Wetton, following a brief stint with
Wishbone Ash (October-December 1980), and the recording of his solo album "Caught In The Crossfire " (Summer 1980), eventually left E.G. Records to sign withGeffen Records and ex-Yes manager Brian Lane and started Asia with Steve Howe,Carl Palmer andGeoffrey Downes . Bozzio formed Missing Persons with his then-wifeDale Bozzio , guitaristWarren Cuccurullo and bassistPatrick O'Hearn - all four also from line-ups with Zappa.Throughout their brief existence, U.K.'s music was characterised by skilled musicianship, jazzy harmonies, close harmony vocals, use of odd time signatures (like 7/4 on the song "In the Dead of Night"), electric violin solos, and unusually varied synthesiser (
Yamaha CS-80 [ [http://www.dprp.net/proghistory/index.php?i=1978_03 DPRP : Counting Out Time : UK - UK ] ] ) sonorities.From 1995 to 1998, Jobson and Wetton worked together on a proposed U.K. reunion album, also recording contributions by Bruford,
Tony Levin ,Steve Hackett and Francis Dunnery. However, when Wetton departed, "Legacy" became an Eddie Jobson solo project, with Wetton replaced on lead vocals by Aaron Lippert. Two tracks intended for the project found their way onto "Voices of Life", a collaboration between Jobson and the Bulgarian Women's Choir. [ [http://mixonline.com/mag/audio_edge_eddie_jobson/ On The Edge With Eddie Jobson ] ]In October 2007, Jobson announced a new band,
UKZ , with Lippert and former King Crimson bassist/guitaristTrey Gunn among others. They are recording an album for release in early 2008, with a debut (and perhaps one-off) performance on January 25th in Los Angeles.Discography
* "U.K."
1978
* "Danger Money "1979
* "Night After Night"1979 - Live
* "Concert Classics, Vol. 4 "1999 - Live 1978References
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