KEVIN AYERS

KEVIN AYERS
JOY OF A TOY (1969)
320 KBPS

This is a delightfully odd and whimsical album from a genuine English eccentric. It is also an album of rare beauty full of unexpected twists and turns. This is the sort of album we wish Syd Barrett had made after leaving Pink Floyd. From the opener, a cheerful hum-a-long version of Ayers' Joy of a Toy (a radical reworking of the tune originally on the first Soft Machine album), we know this is not going to be typical rock fare. It does not however prepare us for the strange twiddly fragile gorgeousness of Town Feeling or Song For Insane Times, which must be up there in the top 20 most beautiful recordings ever. Then there is sonic locomotive trip of Stop This Train and the simply undefinable Oleh Oleh Bandu Bandong...WOW.
This CD has 16 tracks on it but titles 1-10 (the original Joy of a Toy album) should be listen to as a unit on its own and the bonus cuts regarded as a separate listening experience. Of the bonus cuts Soon Soon Soon, sounding like something from some magnificent but very odd stage musical, is the most fun.
This is the sort of album you want to have in reserve incase you need just the thing to brighten up a dull and ordinary day at home. Magical.

1. Joy Of A Toy Continued
2. Town Feeling
3. The Clarietta Rag
4. Girl On A Swing
5. Song For Insane Times
6. Stop This Train (Again Doing It)
7. Eleanor's Cake (Which Ate Her)
8. The Lady Rachel
9. Oleh Oleh Bandu Bandong
10. All This Crazy Gift Of Time
Bonus Tracks
11. Religious Experience (Singing a Song in the Morning)
12. The Lady Rachel (Exented First Mix)
13. Soon Soon Soon
14. Religious Experience (Singing A Song In The Morning)
15. The Lady Rachel (Single Edit 1972)
16. Singing A Song In The Morning (Single Version)