Nice feature choice.
UK was actually supposed to be a band in the ELP mode, with Wetton fulfilling the role of Greg Lake as singer, (bass) guitarist, and lyricist, Rick Wakeman handling the keyboards, and Bruford on drums. Wetton, Bruford, and Wakeman worked on some demo tracks together (Wetton lifted the idea for "Thirty Years" from these sessions) and even had photos taken on the set of a James Bond movie. Supposedly Wetton and some companions went to Wakeman's house to finalize the deal, and Wakeman refused to answer the door, though they could see him behind the curtains. Bruford pins some of the blame on A&M records, who refused "to let their 'star,' Wakeman, walk off with a used, slightly soiled King Crimson rhythm section...." With Wakeman out of the picture, Bruford and Wetton agreed to each bring in a musician of their choice. Bruford brought in Allan Holdsworth to play guitars, and Wetton brought in ex-Roxy Music mate Eddie Jobson, who came in to play keyboards and violin.
The first album is very, very good; I think a lot of people tend to overlook Holdsworth's contributions to the music.
After the first album, Bruford left to record music on his own, and took Holdsworth with him. Ex-Zappa drummer Terry Bozzio replaced Bruford and Jobson took over the entire melodic structure of the band, letting the keyboards and violin replace the guitar. Wetton was already simplifying his bass style enormously, and the second album saw him really getting down to simple song structures as opposed to the beautiful, beautifully complex musical edifices he helped create with Crimson and on the first UK album. You can hear the musical direction Wetton was heading in; after listening to the 2nd and 3rd albums, Asia doesn't come as such a shock. The band split up; the live Night After Night was released posthumously. Jobson went on to briefly join Jethro Tull and then go solo, carving out a career making TV and movie music among other ventures (including a really bad album called "Zinc" that some people really liked). Wetton formed Asia, and Bozzio joined his sister to form Missing Persons.
A 1978 "Concert Classics" tour recording from the first lineup surfaced a few years ago. Additionally, a reformation of the original lineup took place in 1997, along with contributions from Tony Levin, Steve Hackett, and Frances Dunnery. Wetton withdrew his support for the album and it wasn't released. The album may be released one day under the title "The Legacy," but it probably won't be a UK album. As for the 1978 album, both Jobson and Wetton threatened lawsuits if the album wasn't yanked, so there aren't many copies out there. Snag it if you can. Then send me the MP3s!
