The Psych Ward–Joy of a Toy by Kevin Ayers
The Psych Ward–Joy of a Toy by Kevin Ayers
After first hearing former Soft Machine member Kevin Ayers’ Joy of a Toy album, I was shocked that he or the album wasn’t more well-known. Recorded at Abbey Road Studios in London, it’s an excellent record full of playfulness and whimsy, much like the title suggests, and it seemed like it would have been a hit. It wasn’t, of course, but Kevin Ayers did endear himself to many listeners with this effort and consequently gained a loyal cult following.
Ayers had a baritone voice that was limited. In fact, he probably couldn’t have sung lead in most bands, but his voice was perfect for his own songs and nowhere is that more evident than on Joy of a Toy, his debut album. It’s a beautiful, clever album that gets psychedelic at times, particularly on what I consider to be the two best songs (“Girl on a Swing”, “Lady Rachel”) and the non-sensical romp “Oleh Oleh Bandu Bandong”.
The title track, with its horns and woodwinds, is upbeat and triumphant. Although this song doesn’t have words (except “la la la”), it’s easy to picture a child parading around the house with a new toy. It’s also an excellent introductory track for the album
Ayers was an enthusiastic fan of erstwhile Pink Floyd frontman Syd Barrett and managed to solicit Barrett’s participation on this record. The song “Religious Experience (Singing a Song in the Morning)” did not appear on the original album because Ayers felt, after a ample consideration, that the guitar track was too non-commercial. Years later, he decided the cut was too historically significant to omit, so it was included as the first bonus track on the CD.
In “Song for Insane Times”, Ayers illustrates his knack for writing fanciful, yet though-provoking lyrics (e.g., The scientist talks and he knows what he means/He sits on the floor and has beautiful dreams/Then he gets brought down by a woman who screams/But he knows it’s only a record).
His lyrics, in fact, were collected by his daughter into a book called Shooting at the Moon: The Collected Lyrics of Kevin Ayers. At the beginning of the section for Joy of a Toy is a quote from yours truly, which offers my summation of the album.
“A delightful romp through a psychedelic playground of uncalculated pop by an unsung genius.”
Indeed.
Related: The 100 Best Psychedelic Albums of the Golden Era
Jason LeValley
Gallery
Recent Articles
