Daevid Allen, lightened his touch here. He even contributes one of the album's highlights with Pig (Virgins are boring\u002Fthey should be grateful for the things they're ignoring). But it's Wyatt who lifts this odd musical jewel to its artistic heights. He uses his tender voice like a jazz instrument, scatting (in Spanish!) on Dada Was Here, and sounding entirely heartfelt in Have You Ever Bean Green, a brief tribute to the Jimi Hendrix Experience, with whom the Softs toured (Thank you Noel and Mitch, thank you Jim, for our exposure to the crowd). Fans of the Canterbury scene will also relish As Long As He Lies Perfectly Still, a loving tribute to ex-bandmate Ayers. This is the one record that effectively assimilates rock, absurdist humor, jazz, and the avant-garde, and it misses classic status only due to some dissonant instrumentation on side two.