Shooting at the Moon [Extra tracks, Import, Original recording remastered]

Kevin Ayers | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Audio CD (June 16, 2003)
• Number of Discs: 1
• Format: Extra tracks, Import, Original recording remastered
• Label: EMI Import
• ASIN: B00008Y2IV
• In-Print Editions: Audio CD  |  MP3 Download
• Average Customer Review: 4.2 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (5 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #158,128 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)

Editorial Reviews

2003 remastered reissue of 1970 album includes five bonus tracks, 'Gemini Child', 'Puis Je?', 'Butterfly Dance', 'Joile Madame', & 'Hat' (previously unreleased). Guests include Mike Oldfield, Lol Coxhill, & David Bedford. Harvest.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

15 of 15 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars best moonshot since Apollo, June 22, 2003

By 

happydogpotatohead "happydogpotatohead" (New Orleans, LA USA) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)   

This review is from: Shooting at the Moon (Audio CD)

Ayers' first album, "Joy of a Toy," was more or less a solo effort, but "Shooting" was recorded with his band of the time, The Whole World, and the input of the other members of the band diversifies but doesn't dilute the Kevin Ayers sound. It would be tempting to say that this is what Soft Machine might have sounded like if Ayers hadn't left the group. Ayers' songs are given subtle and tricky arrangements, and alternate with almost Sun Ra-like instrumental freakouts (notably "P*sser Dans Un Violon," which goes on too long, and "Underwater," which doesn't). A very young Mike Oldfield adds guitar and bass playing here, notably the fabulously freaked-out guitar solo in "Lunatics Lament." Lol Coxhill adds suitably demented and interesting (but never overbearing) electric sax and woodwind work.

Ayers' songs, as usual, seem almost casual on the surface but on closer inspection reveal an intelligence and direction that bring him fairly close to his contemporary and friend, Syd Barrett. Ayers' dark, luminous baritone voice is his own, however, and his worldview, although sometimes a bit demented, is not burdened with the overtones of paranoia and fear that edge Barrett's work. Ayers' pastoral and carefree view of life informs everything he writes, but don't be decieved by the surface. There's a lot going on underneath, and repeated listenings will reveal more.

The extra tracks are terrific. One could argue that "Hat" might go on too long but it gets irrevocably stuck in your head, as do many of the songs here. The remastering is quite good.

Kevin Ayers is something of a forgotten jewel in the British crown of eccentric rock, but he has been a hidden influence on many, including Robyn Hitchcock and Julian Cope. The reissues of Ayers' first four albums (arguably his best) are more than welcome, and anyone interested in a very different yet accessible musical view of the world will want this CD.

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars A Strange Timepiece with Bedford, Oldfield and others., June 6, 2002

By 

Ian R. Bruce "Ian B" (Natick, MA United States) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Shooting at the Moon (Audio CD)

There's more going on in a typical Ayers song than in most music of the time - or of today. Very "progressive" in the best and worst sense of the term, but with moments of brilliance. Several tracks give Oldfield room to show what he would accomplish in his later solo work. Try Joy of a Toy first, but this is fun too.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars An Unusual Album, December 28, 2010

By 

Morten Vindberg (Denmark) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Shooting at the Moon (Audio CD)

I was recommended to listen closer to Kevin Ayers, since, especially his early albums should be compareable to artists such as Syd Barrett and John Cale. I chose to give this album a chance, since it apparently is considered to be one his best. I obviously had noticed that the label "avant-garde" often was attached to his music, but assumed that this was meant positively.

The album "Shooting to the Moon" is his second, and it was originally released in 1970. It starts off very promising, with the melodic "May I" ppresented in the best John Cale style, but from here real highlights seems to be few - okay, there are fine passages with glimpses of what could have been Syd Barrett, but an apparent desire to be "avant garde" often becomes a bit of a drag on on songs that may otherwise have been nice numbers.

Dissonant harmonies, and long passages where more or less only strange sounds and noises can be heard, ruin several numbers. Other songs seem almost silly, although there is also an obvious charm to them - this applies to songs like "Oyster And The Flying Fish" and "Clarence in Wonderland".

The five bonus tracks fall well into the whole, and "Gemini Child" definitely belongs among the best tracks on the release.

It's an album that is difficult to give stars - primarily because it seems somewhat uneven and at times too typical of its time - I settle for three stars because, despite obvious flaws, you can hardly call the album predictable or boring.