His first serious band was The Wilde Flowers (1964-1967) with Hugh Hopper, Robert Wyatt and Richard Sinclair. This early hippie group transformed into Soft Machine. While the Softs went on, others split to form Caravan and Gong. Ayers put together his own band Kevin Ayers & The Whole World featuring Lol Coxhill, David Bedford and a very young Mike Oldfield.
Ayers' career was littered with great music and fine collaborations with more fine artists like Danny Thompson, John Cale, Nico, Brian Eno, Ollie Halsall and Wizards of Twiddly. With 18 albums to his credit Kevin Ayers was the Guru Banana
In 2007, Ayers recorded in a Glasgow studio with long-time admirers Teenage Fanclub, contributions came from Euros Childs from Gorkys Zygotic Mynci, Francis Reader from the Trash Can Sinatras, Robert Wyatt provided his eerie Wyattron in the poignant Cold Shoulder. Phil Manzanera contributed to the brooding Brainstorm, Hugh Hopper from Soft Machine played bass on the title track Unfairground and Bridget St. John, a British Folk singer beloved of the late John Peel, duetted with Ayers on Baby Come Home, the first time they had sung together since 1970 on Shooting at the Moon. The resulting album Unfairground was released in September 2007.
Ayers died, apparently in his sleep, at his home in the South of France on the 18th of February 2013. He was 68.
Thank You Very Much
Kevin Ayers Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Dedicated to you
Don't believe that I'm sad
Oh no I'm only dreaming
And the taste of your kiss
I remember and miss
But at least now I know
And if you feel any pain
In this sleepy refrain
It's only my imagination
In the song "Thank You Very Much" by Kevin Ayers, the lyrics "If I sing something blue, Dedicated to you, Don't believe that I'm sad, Oh no I'm only dreaming" convey the message that the singer is not necessarily sad or melancholic, but rather he is just dreaming. He is perhaps reminiscing about something or someone that he misses and is in a state of daydreaming. This is a common state for a person who is thinking about someone they miss, lost or had to leave behind.
The lines "And the taste of your kiss, I remember and miss, But at least now I know, What it's like to have kissed you" reveal that the singer is thinking about a past experience where he had intimacy with someone. He remembers the feeling of their kiss and what it was like to be with them. It could be interpreted that this person has moved on or is unavailable now, but he is grateful for the experience they shared. The closing line "And if you feel any pain, In this sleepy refrain, It's only my imagination" is kind of a disclaimer or apology to the person he is singing to. He is saying that if his words's meaning causes pain or discomfort to them, then it is only his imagination and not intended to cause them any harm.
Line by Line Meaning
If I sing something blue
If I sing a sad song
Dedicated to you
As a way of expressing my feelings towards you
Don't believe that I'm sad
Don't think that I'm unhappy
Oh no I'm only dreaming
It's just a dream, nothing more
And the taste of your kiss
I remember how your kiss tasted
I remember and miss
I remember it fondly and I long for it again
But at least now I know
But at least now I have experienced
What it's like to have kissed you
What it feels like to have kissed you
And if you feel any pain
If this song makes you sad
In this sleepy refrain
In this slow and gentle melody
It's only my imagination
It's just my imagination, nothing to worry about
Contributed by Aaron M. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
Pascal Pelletan
Que de beaux souvenirs rejaillissent à l'écoute de ce titre.
Merci du partage ! :)
hanalu23kala
Love this version!
Martin Buck
Like many Kevin Ayers songs, the demo version (released as a B-Side to "May I?") is superior in every way, being rougher and more honest in approach. The same applies to his Soft Machine work. Maybe the strings sucked the life out of his voice, the guitar is definitely less lively.
Joz
Oh wow, that voice...
andreas glumm
"And if you feel any pain
in this sleepy refrain
it's only my
imagination
..."
andreas glumm
Sollte ich bald abtreten, erteile ich hiermit offiziell Spielbefehl dieses Songs für die Trauerfeier. Glumm.