Shooting At The Moon
by Kevin Ayers And The Whole World

favourite songs: Red, Green And You Blue, Rheinhardt and Geraldine / Colores para Dolores
least favourite songs: Lunatics Lament, Shooting At The Moon
probably my favourite album, I love every song (even track 4 and 6, atmospheric masterpieces), very unique, entertaining, it really is something else. pisser dans un violon took some time to appreciate for me. the flamenco sounding guitar parts in that song remind me of how moonchild by king crimson becomes a great song after almost 10 minutes of improvisation which is a bit similar to track 4 on this album.
the obviously fantastic songs (which are the pop songs) are the first three tracks. the oyster and the flying fish, underwater and clarence in wonderland are part of a thematic kind of "suite" using water and bird sound effects. red green and you blue is also one of my favourite songs of all time, the title track is alright, a bit too long I think, still a really good song from the early days of soft machine (shooting at the moon and clarence in wonderland were first recorded in 1967 by soft machine, could have been part of the first album with david aellen.)
the tracklist here is wrong because every track after track 9 is a bonus track (gemini child and butterfly dance could have been fine additions to the album, though I'm not complaining). almost perfect album

Another great Kevin Ayers record. Like, joy of a toy, and, whatevershebrings, it's another quirky classic. All these albums are so unique and inventive it's incredible to think they're not more highly thought of. The again, when it comes to music most people are clueless and ignorant. This record is a bit undelgent in places but this was the early seventies when a lot of experimentation was going on, but the best stuff here is a good as anything. If you don't know this music, check it out.

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.

Kevin Ayers produced two quirky and eccentric masterpieces - 'Joy Of A Toy', his debut, and the follow-up 'Shooting At The Moon'. Although both albums were in the innocent and playful tradition of Syd Barrett, it was the latter that stamped his claim as one of the greatest and most original British artists of all-time. Themes of existential melancholy, humour and nostalgia that emphasize Parisian decadence and eastern exotica, overlay an enchanting and often unsettling psychedlic underbelly assentuated by Ayer's use of accordian, clarinet, strings and percussion.
This is a gem of an album.