KEVIN AYERS/ WHATEVERSHEBRINGSWESING SHVL 800 (-72) UK

 

 Ayers third solo album after leaving Soft Machine  https://monolover.blogspot.com/2016/11/the-soft-machine-cplp-4500-68-us.html and by most critics and fans considered his absolutely best. Recorded at Abbey Road studios 1971 with help from Mike Oldfield, old Soft Machine buddy Robert Wyatt plus Gong men Didier Malherbe and Gerry Field among others.  Orchestral arrangements by music master David Bedford and co-produced by Ayers and Andrew King. I like this a lot for the quality and the adventure.  A well harmonized trip offering enough memorable moments to please any intrepid listener. For exemple the side one orchestral intro "There Is Love" is both adventuros and gripping, "Song From The Bottom Of A Well" fiercely dark with very scary guitars, "Stranger In Blue Suede Shoes" with a creamy guitar lick that's instantly gripping.  All that said - my Kevin Ayers favorite has always been the Island album "The Confessions Of Dr. Dream", where he's guested by the lovely Nico  https://monolover.blogspot.com/2012/08/kevin-ayersthe-confessions-of-dr-dream.html , but this is not far behind.  Originally issued on vinyl all over Europe and in Japan. EU 2003 CD on Harvest (07243 584354 29) came with four bonus tracks.  Very first UK copies came without EMI logo on label, but as this, with the logo, has the first A-1/B-1 matrixes and 1/O 1/O mother/stampers in the original fully structured cover it could be counted as original.  (HÄVL*)  (ÖYÄL*)