This three-CD boxed set of numerous Bruford projects, well-presented with accompanying liner notes, highlights the frequently strong jazz bias of Bruford’s work. The drummer, who first attracted international attention as a member of the progressive rock group Yes on albums such as the highly-regarded Close to the Edge, and art rockers King Crimson’s Larks Tongues in Aspic, now presents an excellent overview of his work for on his own Winterfold Records (for his plugged-in work) and Summerfold Records (for his acoustically based, improvisation-centric projects). For those whose representation of Bruford’s work maybe scarce, incomplete or indeed non-existent, this collection is a great place to start. Inevitably, from this magazine’s perspective, the tracks with Django Bates and Iain Ballamy have considerable interest, and in many ways their playing here is more focussed and (whisper this softly) interesting than on several of their own projects – Ballamy in particular shines on ‘My Heart Declares a Holiday,’ “Pilgrim’s Way’ and ‘Stromboli Kicks,’ like, “Is this really Iain Ballamy????”, while Bates too, is something of a revelation as each musician rolls up their sleeves and really immerses themselves in Bruford’s musical vision.

With only one track from Tim Garland’s Underground Orchestra (a telling one, nevertheless) Garland himself features on ‘Random Acts of Happiness’ and ‘Beelzebub.’ Annette Peacock features on three tracks while Allan Holdsworth on six, which when placed alongside Bruford’s work for Winterfold creates a nicely-balanced anthology.