Shooting At the Moon

Shooting at the Moon’s title aptly describes its high ambition. This 1970 release stands as the sole album made by singer/songwriter Ayers with The Whole World, a touring combo featuring such prog-rock luminaries as David Bedford, Lol Coxhill, and a young Mike Oldfield. The chemistry captured here is frothy and volatile, spilling over from slightly bent pop-rock into avant-garde vaudeville and experimental jazz. Ayers’ seductive baritone is in fine form, lending whimsical pieces like “Clarence in Wonderland” and the Bridget St. John duet “The Oyster and the Flying Fish” a sly charm that never descends into irony. “Lunatics Lament” rocks out with its tongue firmly in its cheek, while “Red Green and You Blue” spices its tropical lounge sounds with a tasty sax solo by Coxhill. When he chooses to play it straight—as he does in the disarmingly romantic “May I?”—Ayers shows real mainstream pop potential. Genial prog-rockers like “Rheinhardt and Geraldine” and “Butterfly Dance” let Ayers and his cohorts stretch out and get pleasantly weird. Whether its songs are inviting or obscure, Shooting at the Moon remains a high point in Ayers’ idiosyncratic oeuvre.