SPACE SHANTY

My slow and gradual testing of the waters of Canterbury Scene of 1970s progressive rock music is now up to nine records: Caravan's "Grey and Pink" and "Girls Who Plump," Soft Machine's "Third," Steve Hillage's "Fish Rising," Hatfield and the North's "Rotter's Club," Robert Wyatt's "Rock Bottom," Gong's "You," and Zyma's "Thoughts" (though I might also ask to include Camel's "Mirage"). Overall, I am very much enjoying the sub-genre's light, upbeat, happy-go-lucky feel?it makes me wish I'd been in the thick of the 60s' psychedlic hippie generation. Of the above albums I must say that "Space Shanty" is my favorite. Why? It's the vocals! There is something very special in the vocals of both Steve Hillage and Nick Greenwood. "Stranded" (10/10), "Mixed Up Man of the Mountains" (10/10), and "Driving to Amsterdam" (10/10), and "Hollow Stone" (10/10) are all/each absolutely gorgeous masterpieces. The vocals in "Stranded" and "Stargazers" remind me so much of why I love MOTH VELLUM, while "Mixed Up Man" reminds me of my friend MARK FARNER's "I'm Your Captain/Closer to Home/" from his GRAND FUNK RAILROAD days. Absolutely beautiful works!

My only reservation in giving this album five stars is that I never like it when an album is so reliant on a guitarist's use of multiple tracks (à la "Thick as a Brick"). At times I found myself thinking (wishing) it was two guitarists that I was listening to. And the compositions are not perfectly polished but, again, these amazing vocals and melodies make it such a transendent listening experience I cannot really rate it anything less than a masterpiece. I am in awe. And in love.