In the 1972 Monty Python Flying Circus skit "Are You Embarrassed," the announcer reads the lines, "Are you embarrassed easily? I am. But it's nothing to worry about; it's all part of growing up and being British." The announcer goes on to describe embarrassing words like "Shoe" ..... "Megaphone" ..... "Grunties," to test the listener's discomfort level. Somehow, even though the words spoken (in English) by the troupe were in a common language, the humor was quite alien to American audiences. The same can be said of British free improvisation. Born of a common language, American jazz, then free jazz (and New Music), the British equivalent has always been different, non-American, and even non-European.

This marvelously produced four-LP box on 180g vinyl (with accompanying digital download) documents three days of concerts in Berlin from October 2011, features sixteen British improvisers in differing combinations—duos, trios, quartets, and quintets. The meticulous presentation includes two essays, one historical by Brian Morton and another contextual by Wolfgang Seidel. The elaborate booklet also contains plenty of photographs, artist bios, and a lengthy interview of the players with Stewart Lee.

There are many notable British musicians missing here,