This wacky, whimsical musical cartoon emerged several years after
Daevid Allen
left the legendary
Soft Machine
, and soon after he'd launched his classic hippie
prog rock
band
Gong
. It was initially released on the French label
Byg
in 1971, and re-released in England on the
Virgin
subsidiary
Caroline
in '75. Joining
Allen
here is an all-star troupe that includes
Robert Wyatt
(
and
Matching Mole
),
Gary Wright
Spooky Tooth
Maggie Bell
Stone the Crows
), and
members "Submarine Captain"
Christian Tritsch
,
Pip Pyle
, and
's girlfriend
Gillie Smyth
(aka "Shakti Yoni"). It's no surprise that the musical anarchy here resembles early
, as opposed to the artist's later, more reflective solo recordings. With a smile and wink, the irrepressible, mischievous
has the ability to sound completely stoned yet totally likeable. He also shreds a few guitar strings on the balls-out rocking
"It's the Time of Your Life."
And the moody version of
"Memories,"
sung here by
Wyatt
, is probably the best of at least a half-dozen floating around the Canterbury scene. Suffice to say,
Banana Moon
is quite weird, but it's also non-threatening and a great deal of fun. Also recommended and of a similar vein are
's
Camembert Electrique
, which is a bit more
avant-garde
Magick Brother
, which is slightly more
psychedelic
. ~ Peter Kurtz