Pothead pixie
Daevid Allen has been a major scene-maker since the late 1950s, when he landed in Paris from his native Australia and collaborated with minimalist
Terry Riley and beat guru
William S. Burroughs, and then journeyed to Canterbury, where he eventually recruited
Robert Wyatt,
Hugh Hopper,
Kevin Ayers, and
Mike Ratledge for a band that
Allen christened
the Soft Machine after one of
Burroughs' controversial cut-up novels (with naming approval conferred by
Burroughs himself). Denied reentry to Great Britain in 1967 at the height of
Soft Machine's popularity because of a Visa violation, the tireless
Allen then moved back to Paris and formed
Gong, around which he developed an elaborate, spaced out, psychedelic mythology. The original
Gong lineup disbanded in 1974, but
Allen has been conducting a kind of shambolic musical/philosophical traveling circus ever since, with solo projects, various
Gong offshoots (
Mother Gong, Gongzilla, Planet Gong, etc.) and his most recent group, the
University of Errors, which he impulsively formed in 1999 with a group of San Francisco musicians probably not half his age. On this, their fourth CD,
Allen has decided go back to the source, reprising the very early history of
the Soft Machine with nine songs originally recorded on a
Soft Machine demo. (
Allen had actually been separated from the group even before it recorded its first "proper" LP.) Also included are the "A" and "B " sides of the first
Soft Machine 45" single release, and one song each from the first
Soft Machine LP, and the first
Kevin Ayers' solo CD, all of which were part of
the Soft Machine's early set list. The Canterbury School in general, and
Soft Machine in particular (as well as
Allen's
Gong) are often associated with long, spacey instrumental jams, but
Wyatt,
Ayers,
Allen, and mutual friend
Syd Barrett of
Pink Floyd all had an interest in whimsical, psychedelic pop tunes that featured clever wordplay and slightly skewed arrangements.
Ayers and
Wyatt even flirted with commercial acceptance, and they both seemed vaguely surprised and annoyed, at first, that their music was not embraced by the record-buying masses. However, the objective truth is that the tricky rhythms, unexpected chord changes, and inscrutable lyrics were typically too eccentric to qualify as radio-friendly soundbytes. On his own recordings, and those with
Gong,
Allen himself has often been whimsical and eccentric to the point of self-indulgence, but on this CD, he handles the vintage
Soft Machine repertoire with a perfect balance of respect and fresh energy. He even yields his lead guitar role to young bandmember Josh Pollock and concentrates on vocals, choosing (as he explains it) to let Pollock carry the day instrumentally with his superior guitar skills.
Allen's reedy, cheerful voice is sometimes a dead ringer for
Wyatt's, but this is no mere nostalgia trip.
Allen's animated singing, together with Pollock's tart, wailing guitar, and the strong rhythm section of Michael Clare on bass and Warren Huegel on drums, reinvigorate early
Soft Machine classics such as "I Should've Known" and the brilliant "Hope for Happiness," as well as many others. There's nothing musty and quaint about any of the music on this CD. It's still strangely compelling 40 years later, and for this,
Allen certainly deserves some major credit. ~ Bill Tilland