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Thread: The Kinks - Arthur: Or The Decline And Fall Of The British Empire

  1. #26
    Member Bungalow Bill's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by chalkpie View Post
    Are these the best Kinks albums(?):

    Face to Face
    Lola Versus Powerman and the Moneyground part One
    Muswell Hillbillies
    The Kinks are the Village Preservation Society
    Something Else by The Kinks
    Arthur or a Decline and Fall of the British Empire
    I suspect I'll be in the minority here. I was in high school 1979-1983 and, I knew all of The Kinks popular radio singles, but I'd never heard an album straight-through. (I was just getting into albums then.) The first album I listened to start-to-finish was Give the People What They Want, which I still love - it might just be nostalgia but the combination of smart writing and punky attitude won me over. "Art Lover" is REALLY scary until you know what Ray's actually singing about. And "Better Things" is beautiful.

    I subsequently made a long journey through The Kinks' catalog. I prefer the Sleepwalker through State of Confusion era (including One for the Road). I can listen to Misfits, Low Budget and GtPWTW at any time. I jumped off after SoC although I've heard Word of Mouth (OK), Road (meh) and To the Bone (pretty good). I also liked Ray's Other Peoples' Lives quite a bit.

    I never listen to the first three (UK versions) but the singles from that era are stellar.

    Face to Face gets a lot of praise but I never warmed to it. That said..."Sunny Afternoon" is probably my favorite Kinks song.

    I like Something Else but IMO Village Green is the strongest, most satisfying thing The Kinks came out with up to that point. I don't dislike any of the songs and and I love how pastoral it is in light of the big psychedelic happenings going down at the time.

    I have to confess I haven't spent a lot of time with Arthur or Lola. (This thread will help me rectify that!) Lola is worth the price for "Apeman" alone.

    I get hugely back on-board with The Kinks on Muswell Hillibillies - there's no song that I skip when I listen to it. Ray sounds pretty close to the edge, lyrically, but he always keeps this wry, fragile, charming but dark-edged veneer to his songs.

    I was much older when I found out about the theatrical concept albums. I've heard each several times. They're flawed, no question, and probably over-ambitious, but I honestly was and still am impressed but what the band did in that four album run - a true adventure into making "progressive" music. Adding the horns was a stroke of genius. The albums deserve way more consideration than they get. My favorite is probably Schoolboys.

    I'll try to rank the albums (top ten) but it's hard.

    Give the People What They Want
    Misfits
    Muswell Hillbillies
    Village Green
    Low Budget
    Something Else
    State of Confusion
    Sleepwalker
    Schoolboys in Disgrace
    Lola


    I've never listened to a Kinks album that didn't make me come away happy about something on it...
    For that which is not,
    there is no coming into being
    and for that which is,
    there is no ceasing to be;
    yea of both of these the lookers into truth have seen an end.
    Bhagavad Gita

  2. #27
    Member Jerjo's Avatar
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    I have to give some props to the live album To The Bone. It lurches between an arena show and an acoustic performance at Konk but man, there is just some stellar work on it. "I'm Not Like Anybody Else" is just defiant and the sweetest version of "Days", with Ray singing the intro acapella before the band swings in.
    I don't like country music, but I don't mean to denigrate those who do. And for the people who like country music, denigrate means 'put down.'- Bob Newhart

  3. #28
    Member chalkpie's Avatar
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    Diggin Lola and Village Green today. Nice.

  4. #29
    Dave Smith from Guapo is a huge Kinks fanboy
    I only know and love the famous obvious ones Waterloo Sunset , Sunny Afternoon , Lola , you really got me , all day and all of the night , autumn almanac
    Frankie care to compile a favorite Kinks songs list ?

  5. #30
    They had many great albums, particularly in the sixties, but for me Village Green reigns supreme. One of my favorite albums ever, by any artists. And 15 songs!

  6. #31
    Glad to see some discussion about The Kinks here – they're my favorite 60s band bar none. I agree that the run from Face to Face up to Muswell Hillbillies was their strongest. My top 20 songs by The Kinks would be:

    Autumn Almanac
    Mr. Pleasant
    Dead End Street
    Sunny Afternoon
    Shangri-La
    Alcohol
    Village Green
    Apeman
    Well-Respected Man
    Till the End of the Day
    Two Sisters
    Harry Rag
    Some Mother's Son
    Rosy Won't You Please Come Home
    Waterloo Sunset
    Do You Remember Walter
    Dedicated Follower of Fashion
    Set Me Free
    Lazy Old Sun
    You Really Got Me (well duh)

    Also of note: Cardiacs' cover of "Susannah's Still Alive" (the only cover song they ever did?) KILLS.

  7. #32
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    Quote Originally Posted by Bungalow Bill View Post
    I suspect I'll be in the minority here. I was in high school 1979-1983 and, I knew all of The Kinks popular radio singles, but I'd never heard an album straight-through. (I was just getting into albums then.) The first album I listened to start-to-finish was Give the People What They Want, which I still love - it might just be nostalgia but the combination of smart writing and punky attitude won me over. "Art Lover" is REALLY scary until you know what Ray's actually singing about. And "Better Things" is beautiful.
    This is my early experience with the Kinks as well. I still love GTPWTW. Great hooks and writing. It is surprising how popular they were in the suburban USA at the time. Constantly on rock radio. Most of my friends owned "One for the Road". I knew every minute of that thing even though I never owned it.

    I then bought a UK import 2LP compilation of all their 60s classics. I thought that was the greatest thing ever. Days. Waterloo Sunset. Wow! Somehow my HS friends wouldn't go there with me no matter how many times I played those LPs for them. They just wanted the OFTR Kinks.

    But, at the time, all the concept albums were out of print and never got radio play. So I haven't heard them to this day. Will have to rectify that...

    NB: Just Googled the Kink's discog. They never charted in the UK after Something Else! in 1967. Strictly US success after that point. WTF?

  8. #33
    Jazzbo manqué Mister Triscuits's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by arturs View Post
    NB: Just Googled the Kink's discog. They never charted in the UK after Something Else! in 1967. Strictly US success after that point. WTF?
    Hard to believe that's correct. "Lola" and "Apeman" both went Top 10 there as singles; how could the album they were from not chart at all?
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  9. #34
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    Quote Originally Posted by Mister Triscuits View Post
    Hard to believe that's correct. "Lola" and "Apeman" both went Top 10 there as singles; how could the album they were from not chart at all?
    Yes it is hard to believe. But an independent source tells the same thing. Even though the Kinks had several singles charting in the 70s, no albums charted in the UK. Several later compilations charted...

    http://www.officialcharts.com/artist/11246/kinks/

  10. #35
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    It gets worse; Village Green and Arthur also bombed on release. That link shows that they never had one new album in the UK chart after Something Else. Just best-of after best-of. Their big-time resurgence in the US during the 70s and 80s must have made up for it- good for them. God knows what Pye and RCA were doing here.

    Anyone looking for a best of, check out the 2004-ish 2cd The Ultimate Collection. I'd have preferred a fully chronolgical approach across two disc rather than each disc being chronological (it's loosely hits on one disc, album tracks/B sides etc. on the other disc). But they pretty much completely nailed the track selection- it encompasses their work for Pye, RCA and Arista, most don't. Good sound too.

  11. #36
    Quote Originally Posted by Bungalow Bill View Post
    I suspect I'll be in the minority here. I was in high school 1979-1983 and, I knew all of The Kinks popular radio singles, but I'd never heard an album straight-through. (I was just getting into albums then.) The first album I listened to start-to-finish was Give the People What They Want, which I still love - it might just be nostalgia but the combination of smart writing and punky attitude won me over. "Art Lover" is REALLY scary until you know what Ray's actually singing about. And "Better Things" is beautiful..
    I don't own anything past Muswell. At some point, I need to fix that. I suspect I've been saying that for years.

    Anyway, apropos of basically nothing, here's The Melvins covering The Kinks (that's Clem Burke of Blondie on drums):

    I want to dynamite your mind with love tonight.

  12. #37
    Member Jerjo's Avatar
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    A friend just sent me this. A half hour of The Kinks circa 1973. Pretty damn big band you had there, Ray.

    I don't like country music, but I don't mean to denigrate those who do. And for the people who like country music, denigrate means 'put down.'- Bob Newhart

  13. #38
    Member Vic333's Avatar
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    They have so many great songs, but I don't feel the Kinks ever made a truly great album. Perhaps I just lose patience with some of their stuff.
    Arthur comes pretty close.

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