...SIŁA I PIĘKNO MUZYKI TKWIĄ W JEJ RÓŻNORODNOŚCI...


..::OPIS::..

NEW REMASTERED 6CD CLAMSHELL BOX SET FEATURING THE RECORDED WORK OF KEVIN AYERS BETWEEN 1974 AND 1980.

INCLUDES THE ALBUMS ‘THE CONFESSIONS OF DOCTOR DREAM’, ‘SWEET DECEIVER’, ‘YES WE HAVE NO MANANAS’, ‘RAINBOW TAKEAWAY’ AND ‘THAT’S WHAT YOU GET BABE’.

PLUS SINGLES, BBC RADIO SESSIONS AND 13 PREVIOUSLY UNRELEASED LIVE RECORDINGS.

In 1974 Kevin Ayers departed EMI’s Harvest, his label home since 1969, and moved to Island Records, recording the classic album ‘The Confessions Of Doctor Dream’ the same year.

Produced by Rupert Hine, the album included the lengthy title track, a reworking of the Soft Machine track ‘Why Are We Sleeping?’ and saw guest appearances from Mike Oldfield and Mike Ratledge, among others. It was also the first album to feature Kevin’s long-time musical collaborator Ollie Halsall on guitar and was greeted with praise from both critics and fans alike.

The ‘Sweet Deceiver’ album was released in 1975 and featured contributions from Elton John, following which, in 1976, Kevin returned to EMI Harvest to record ‘Yes, We Have No Mananas – So Get Your Mananas Today’ another highly acclaimed record. To promote the album Kevin formed a new live band which included future Police guitarist Andy Summers within its ranks. ‘Rainbow Takeaway’ appeared in 1978 and Kevin’s final album for Harvest, ‘That’s What You Get Babe’ appeared in 1980.

This new box set covering Kevin's work from the latter part of his career with Island and EMI Harvest has been remastered from the original master tapes and features all of the aforementioned albums, along with a further 35 bonus tracks drawn from singles, BBC Radio sessions and 13 previously unreleased live recordings from Paris in 1975 and Bremen in 1976. ‘Where Do The Stars End’ also includes an illustrated book with a new essay.




I must admit up front that i am a huge Kevin Ayers fan so I guess my reviews will be shaded but he is one of the real innovators and is so sadly uunderrated. By the mid 70's Kevin was well past his Harvest record days and wrote and recorded 3 further and very interesting albums on Island Records. I think of the 3 this album is the most complete Ayers album of the lot for me. Side two of this album is a side long epic "The Confessions of Dr. Dream" which is simply a whole new story. Kevin is joined with Crimson;s Mike Giles, Steve Nye on the organ and Rupert Hine on the synth. Ayers uses space nicely here with some great interludes and musical montages. A highly well crafted album

loserboy


By 1974, Ayers was firmly ensconced in his solo career, with a string of credible releases in the bag. "The confessions of Dr. Dream and other stories" was his first album for Island records, his move to a major label allowing him to populate the tracks with many famous musicians. Luminaries of the Canterbury scene and further afield, such as Mike Ratledge (Soft Machine), Geoff Richardson (Caravan), Nico and Mike Oldfield, along with a host of others, all grace the album at various points.

With just 8 tracks including an almost side long suite, this is arguably Ayers' most ambitious release. Such an observation is diluted to some extent when we find that the suite is in fact four separate tracks linked together, but this is nevertheless a key album in Kevin's discography.

The opening track "Day by day" sets the tone for the album with a funky pop orientated song complete with girlie voices and a catchy hook. Prog it most certainly ain't; but enjoyable? Well yes. "See you later" sounds for all the world like a short Bonzo Dog Band track. It quickly links via some superfluous whistles etc. and some hard rock guitar into "I didn't feel lonely till I thought of you", another song peppered with a girlie vocal backed chorus. There is some fine guitar work concealed within the song, but overall it is little more than a commercial pop number.

It is only when we get to the melancholy "Everybody's sometime and some people's all the time blues", that we find the type of song we expect from Ayers, and for my money the style he is best at. This slow, moody number offers him the opportunity to add a fine vocal performance.

The three part "It begins with a blessing/Once I awakened/But it ends with a curse" reverts to the soft downbeat style again, supported by some delightful organ. The song includes a combination of incoherent mumbling by Kev and loud vocalised choruses by his female accompaniment. Side one is rounded out by the brief throwaway "Ballbearing blues", an amusing but inconsequential ditty.

The four part title suite may be something of a wolf in sheep's clothing, but it is still the highlight of the album. The four songs are far more adventurous and imaginative that anything else here, featuring some fine instrumentation (including Canterbury keyboards). There are hints of Hawkwind, Krautrock and a myriad of other styles throughout the suite, which hangs together surprisingly well as a major piece.

The album concludes with "Two goes into four", a brief acoustic variation of "Hey Jude" with alternative lyrics.

In all, an album which probably pleased Ayers' new record company, since it contained some pretty commercial material. Long term fans, and progheads generally, are best advised to head for side two and in particular the suite which give the album its name. Noted producer Rupert Hine does a fine job with the material he is presented with, the sound being clean and uncluttered.

Easy Livin



..::TRACK-LIST::..

CD 1 - The Confessions Of Doctor Dream And Other Stories (Released May 1974):
1. Day By Day 3:50
2. See You Later 0:28
3. Didn't Feel Lonely Till I Thought Of You 4:10
Guitar [Solo] – Ollie Halsall
4. Everybody's Sometime And Some People's All The Time Blues 3:08
Guitar [Solo] – Mike Oldfield
5. It Begins With A Blessing / Once I Awakened / But It Ends With A Curse 8:17
6. Ballbearing Blues 0:58
The Confessions Of Doctor Dream
7. Part One: Irreversible Neural Damage 4:42
Backing Vocals – Nico
8. Part Two: Invitation 1:11
9. Part Three: The One Chance Dance 7:47
10. Part Four: Dr. Dream Theme 5:13
Organ – Mike Ratledge
11. Two Goes Into Four 1:48

Bonus Tracks:
12. The Up Song 3:17
13. After The Show 2:37
14. Thank You Very Much 3:01



..::OBSADA::..

Kevin Ayers – guitars, vocals; piano & organ (track 7)
Mark Warner – electric guitar (tracks 1, 3, 5, 10), acoustic guitar (tracks 2, 7)
Sam Mitchell – electric guitar (tracks 1, 3–4)
Ollie Halsall – electric guitar solo (track 3)
Cal Batchelor – electric guitar (track 4)
Mike Oldfield – electric guitar solo (track 4)
John Perry – bass (tracks 1–3, 5)
John Gustafson – bass (track 8)
Trevor Jones – bass (track 9)
Michael Giles – drums (tracks 1–3, 5, 7–10)
The G'Deevy Ensemble – percussion (track 1)
Ray Cooper – percussion (tracks 2, 9)
Henry Crallan – piano (track 4)
Rupert Hine – keyboards (tracks 5–10)
Mike Moran – piano (track 5)
Steve Nye – organ (track 5), electric piano (track 8)
Mike Ratledge – organ (track 9)
Lol Coxhill – alto saxophone (track 5)
Nico – vocals (track 7)
Doris Troy, Rosetta Hightower, Joanne Williams – backing vocals (tracks 1, 3)
Sean Milligan – backing vocals (track 2)
Hulloo Choir – backing vocals (tracks 5, 10)



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