Michael Ronald Ratledge (6 May 1943 – 5 February 2025) was a British musician. A part of the Canterbury scene, he was a founding member of Soft Machine. He was the last founding member to leave the group, doing so in 1976.
Early life Ratledge was born in Maidstone, Kent, the son of a Canterbury secondary modern school headmaster.Different Every Time: The Authorised Biography of Robert Wyatt, Marcus O'Dair, Serpent's Tail, 2014Soft Machine: Out-bloody-rageous, Graham Bennett, SAF Publishing Ltd, 2005, p. 30 As a child, he was educated in classical music, the only kind of music played in his parents' home. He learned to play the piano, and with his friend Brian Hopper, whom he had met at Simon Langton Grammar School for Boys in Canterbury, played classical piano and clarinet pieces.
Ratledge also met Brian's younger brother Hugh, and Robert Wyatt. In 1961, he met Daevid Allen, who interested them in playing jazz. Through Cecil Taylor's piano pieces Ratledge became familiar with the music of Thelonious Monk, Miles Davis and John Coltrane. In 1963, he played in the Daevid Allen Trio. Unlike his friends, Ratledge wanted to further his education, and studied at University College, Oxford on a scholarship, where he earned a degree in psychology and philosophy. He won a college prize in philosophy.
At the same time, Ratledge attended music lessons, and was educated by avant-garde musicians Mal Dean and Rab Spall. After his graduation, Ratledge intended to pursue American poetry at university in the United States, but his application for a scholarship was filed too late.Biography, Calyx.club.fr; accessed 25 June 2014.
Career In 1966, Ratledge's friends were forming a new band, Soft Machine, and asked him to join. The band included Robert Wyatt, Daevid Allen, and Kevin Ayers. There were many personnel changes over the years. Wyatt's departure in 1971 left Ratledge as the only remaining founding member, while the 1973 departure of Hugh Hopper (who joined in 1968) left Ratledge as the only member from the 1960s to still be in the band.
In November 1973, Ratledge participated in a live performance of Mike Oldfield's Tubular Bells for the BBC. In 1976, Ratledge decided to leave Soft Machine to build a solo career, leaving the band under Karl Jenkins' leadership. Ratledge built himself a studio and composed a score for the film Riddles of the Sphinx, which utilised a prototype synthesizer which he constructed with his friend Denys Irving.
As Soft Machine's longest-lasting member, Ratledge was a part of the band's changes in musical direction from psychedelic music to jazz-rock. In the 1980s, Ratledge was active as a composer and musical producer for commercials and the theatre. In 1995, Adiemus (Ratledge, Karl Jenkins and Miriam Stockley) released Songs of Sanctuary, which Ratledge co-produced with Karl Jenkins and for which he programmed the electronic percussion.Biography , Hulloder.nl; accessed 25 June 2014.
Personal life and death Ratledge married Marsha Hunt on 15 April 1967. On 5 February 2025, Ratledge died after a short illness. He was 81. John Etheridge announced his death on Facebook.
Discography
YearAlbumArtist1963Live 1963Daevid Allen Trio1964–68Canterburied Sounds Vols. 1-3Various artists1967-68The Wilde FlowersWilde Flowers1969Joy of a ToyKevin Ayers1970The Madcap LaughsSyd Barrett1971Just UsElton Dean & Just Us1972BananamourKevin Ayers1974The Confessions of Dr. Dream and Other StoriesKevin Ayers1977Instructions For AngelsDavid Bedford1978Planet EarthPlanet Earth1978Star Clusters Nebulae & Places in Devon / The Song of the White HorseDavid Bedford1979Push ButtonRubba1980Wonderin' Rollercoaster1981Cuts for Commercials Vol. 3Karl Jenkins & Mike Ratledge1981For Christmas, for ChildrenKarl Jenkins & Mike Ratledge1982Crystal Gazing (unreleased soundtrack)Mike Ratledge1983The Bad Sister (unreleased soundtrack)Mike Ratledge1995Adiemus: Songs of SanctuaryKarl Jenkins2010MovementKarl Jenkins & Mike Ratledge2010Some Shufflin' Karl Jenkins & Mike Ratledge2013Riddles of the Sphinx (soundtrack recorded in 1977)Mike Ratledge
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