UK 1974 KEVIN AYERS DR DREAM + Nico SOFT MACHINE Prog

$

38

ATTENTION: International shipping rates changes (see below listing under shipping)

NOTE: eBay has implemented its new FEEDBACK policy to which ANY customer for ANY reason or ANY excuse can give sellers (i.e. "us") negative feedback. Please understand, we have served thousands of "satisfied" customers and processed thousands of orders - far more than our feedback records indicate - It is our intention to give EACH and EVERY buyer our best possible service and we are known to ALWAYS deliver your purchased item. ALL items paid for are processsed 'outbound'  to each and EVERY customer, satisfaction guaranteed.  Keep in mind we have serviced THOUSANDS of satisfied customers and our aim is to continue to do so.

We make every effort to mail all orders out Friday of each week.  Keep in mind our listings are time consuming in detail and we are often traveling to find these gems, which at times delays the delivery schedule by a day or two at most.   We also strive to keep our shipping and handling costs as close to actual charges as reasonable.  

 TO OUR REPEAT CUSTOMERS:  We often get requests to hold orders to save on shipping.  We are happy to do that.  Please pay your current invoice within five days of auctions ending and IF YOU REQUEST we will hold your order and reflect a shipping discount for each additional order shipped together in the same parcel.   To receive continual shipping discounts, we will hold your orders as long as you want, but it is necessary to pay each invoice you receive to stay current.   Most importantly, we appreciate your business.

          CLEAN 1975 BRITISH ORIGINAL

                  The Highly Rated:

           KEVIN AYERS 

  The Confessions Of Dr Dream 

               UK  - (pink rimmed) ISLAND RECORDS - ILPS - 9263 

CLEAN....ORIGINAL 1974 BRITISH first pressing only release by original member of the SOFT MACHINE and considered of his best...In 1973, or thereabouts, Nico, Mike Oldfield, Mike Ratledge (from the Soft Machine), Michael Giles (ex-King Crimson), Geoff Richardson (from Caravan) and many others lined up to help Kevin Ayers a stab at greatness, 1974' s THE CONFESSIONS OF DR DREAM. Until 1974, Ayers' albums had been a mixture of cheerful pop ditties, psychedelic experiments, and sultry ballads that particularly suited the artist's deep bass voice. But DR DREAM turned out to be a different kettle of fish.

The A-Side contains as perfect a sequence of songs as you can imagine. 'Day by Day', the funky opener is followed by a brief (but philosophical!) acoustic mini-song, which leads straight into the album's rocking tour de force, "Didn't feel lonely till I thought of you", one of Kevin's all-time classics, with fiery lead guitar by Ollie Halsall. Poetic relief is then provided by a dreamy blues song with a terribly long title (typically Ayers) and with a crystalline guitar solo by Mike Oldfield. We guarantee all prog freaks that this superb solo alone warrants purchase of the album. The best is yet to come, though, for Ayers (almost) concludes the A-side with a souped-up version of his signature tune, "Why are we sleeping?", the original of which can be found on the Soft Machine's debut album. Utterly bombastic, by turns scary, furious and funny, this track contains a louche night club interlude (with reeds provided by Lol Coxhill) and a grandiose church organ-driven climax. To reduce the horror, and send the listener to bed with a smile, Ayers has it all followed up with the brief but unforgettable "Ballbearing blues".

It's on the B-side, however, that the nightmare really begins in the title track ''The Confessions Of Dr Dream'', a 18 mn extravaganza sliced in 4 parts. 4 distinct songs which have been bridged together to make it look like a ''suite''.  This is a pleasant piece of music, the most progressive AYERS would record. It starts with a haunting vocal duet with NICO of VELVET UNDERGROUND fame, kind of creepy athmosphere with its repetitive acoustic guitar line and weird synth sounds. INVITATION part 2 is AYERS once again at his best with a very nice melody and a few...time changes (not very Ayers usually) followed by another great organ solo from his old bandmate from SOFT MACHINE, the genial MIKE RATLEDGE. Intertwined acoustic guitars, eerie sound effects, Michael Ratledge's fuzz organ and Nico's spooky vocals dominate this first section in a multi-movement suite that can be interpreted as a warning against the self-delusion of young lovers, the dangers involved in taking too many drugs, or both. The middle section of this suite is dominated by some delightfully jazzy electric piano, and the final riff is so dark, long drawn-out and menacing that it will haunt you for days. But once again, Kevin refuses to leave the listener with a curse, and he concludes the album with "Two goes into four", one of his loveliest acoustic ballads.

Anyone interested in the so-called Canterbury Scene, or in British psychedelic rock, will find this album invaluable.

• - Kevin Ayers / Guitar, Vocals
  - Cal Batchelor / Guitar
  - Ray Cooper / Percussion
  - Lol Coxhill / Saxophone
  - Henry Crallan / Piano
  - Michael Giles / Drums
  - John Gustafson / Bass
  - Ollie Halsall / Guitar
  - Rosetta Hightower /Vocals
  - Rupert Hine / Keyboards
  - Hulloo Choir / Vocals
  - Trevor Jones / Bass
  - Sean Milligan / Vocals
  - Sam Mitchell / Guitar
  - Mike Moran / Piano
  - Nico / Vocals
  - Steve Nye / Organ
  - Mike Oldfield / Bass, Guitar, Vocals
  - John G. Perry / Bass
  - Mike Ratledge / Keyboards
  - Geoff Richardson / Viola
  - Doris Troy / Vocals
  - Mark Warner / Guitar
  - Joanne Williams / Vocals
  

1. Day By Day
2. See You Later
3. Didn't Feel Lonely Till I Thought Of You
4. Everybody's Sometime And Some People's All The Time Blues
5. It Begins With A Blessing/ Once I Awakened/ But It Ends With A Curse
6. Ballbearing Blues
7. The Confessions Of Doctor Dream a. Irreversible Neural Damage b. Invitation c. The One Chance Dance d. Doctor Dream Theme
8. Two Goes Into Four

CONDITION: The cover is richly laminated and clean,"EX" (excellent) having no more than a little minor shelf rub to the lamination, otherwise a nice collectible with no need to upgrade, nice sharp corners, no bends, no writing and no split seams... 

The vinyl is all shiny clean and clear M- looks and plays TOP level...play tested MINT ... both Island labels are clean 

                keeper copy!

SEE: SELLERS OTher items for more & more of similar cool sounds for "head" people...

EFFICIENT/CAREFUL GRADING

All imperfections are noted both cover & record