At what point does Jazz-Rock become Jazz-Rock Fusion or even that word dreaded by all jazz fans, Fusion? This album straddles all three, but in a way that does not imply sell-out, cop-out, or dumbing down. In other words, there comes a point where pigeonholing Bruford is not helpful since the integrity of the product on offer is powerful, accomplished, rock based electronic music that can be comfortably labelled ‘For Enjoyment Only.’

The band emerged in 1979 as a breakaway element of UK, formed in 1977 by bassist John Wetton and Bill Bruford, the former heartbeat of King Crimson. When Holdsworth and Bruford left to do their own thing, One of a Kind was the band’s second recording, originally on EG Records, and re-released on Bruford’s own label, remixed by Jakko Jakszyk.

It holds up well with the passage of time, although the Yamaha synth sound, new at the time but suddenly ubiquitous in the 1980s, does need to be heard in the context of the music’s time. Bruford presides over a very able rhythm section, the drummer hugely under appreciated in jazz circles, while Jeff Berlin’s role is not to be understated as it was his spell in this short lived group that gave his career an upwards step change. Holdsworth, as ever, displays his impressive guitar technique that some complain is one dimensional, but here is what the music demands.

A shame this group appeared at the end of the rock influenced era in jazz, short lived though it was – there is enough here to suggest it could have made a more significant mark on the ledger six years earlier.