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Joined: September 21 2004
Location: plugged-in
Status: Offline
Points: 5502
Topic: Best Band Of All Time Posted: May 09 2010 at 16:22
My Favourite Band Of All Time (at this moment naturally) Even better than the Beatles (current opinion, likely to revolve back to considering The Beatles the best, or maybe even switching to Rolling Stones, The Who or even Bob Dylan for all I know or care, just at this moment in time it's .....).
The Kinks.
Best Albums: (all worthy of five Stars if I could review them on this site)
1. ARTHUR (OR THE DECLINE AND FALL OF THE BRITISH EMPIRE)
released 1969. Best Songs are Shangri-La, Arthur and She's Bought a Hat Like Princess Marina
2. THE VILLAGE GREEN PRESERVATION SOCIETY
released 1968. Best Songs are The Village Green Preservation Society, Do You Remember Walter? and Village Green
3. LOLA VERSUS POWERMAN AND THE MONEYGOROUND, PART 1
released 1970. Best Songs are Lola, Apeman and Got To Be Free
4. MUSWELL HILLBILLIES
released 1971. Best Songs are 20th Century Man, Here Come The People In Grey and Complicated Life
5. FACE TO FACE
released 1971. Best Songs are Sunny Afternoon, Dandy and Session Man and nice bonus tracks: Mr Pleasant and Dead End Street
aside this great albums they of course made numerous other albums, I haven't ventured far into their 80's and 90's albums, some nice songs scattered through those albums. their earlier 60's albums are mostly based on a couple hitsongs with lots of filler, but when the songs are great they trully are great. 70's Kinks is pretty pretensious but has some nice moments for the dedicated Kinks fan
The albums that don't get 5 stars, but still are interesting list. (in order of release date)
1964 Kinks (debut), 2 stars
best songs. You Really Got Me Now, All Day And All Of The Night (available as bonus track) Things Are Getting Better (available as bonus track)
1965 Kinda Kinks 3 stars
best songs. Tired Of Waiting For You, Set Me Free (available as bonus track), A Well Respected Man (available as bonus track)
1966 The Kink Kontroversy 2,5 stars
best songs. Till The End Of The Day, Were Have All The Good Times Gone, A Dedicated Follower Of Fashion (available as bonus track)
1967 Something Else By The Kinks 4 stars
best songs. David Watts, Death Of A Clown, Waterloo Sunset
1971 Percy (soundtrack) 2 stars
best songs. God's Children, Lola (instrumental)
1972 Everybody's In Show-Biz 3,5 stars
best songs. Celluloid Heroes, Here Comes Yet Another Day, Supersonic Rocket Ship
1973 Preservation Act 1 3 stars
best songs. Preservation, One Of The Survivors, Here Comes Flash
1974 Preservation Act 2 3 stars
best songs. Introduction to Solution, Mirror Of Love, Flash's Confession
1975 A Soap Opera 3 stars
best songs. Everybody's A Star (Starmaker), Holiday Romance, You Make It All Worthwhile
1975 Schoolboys In Disgrace 3 stars
best songs. Schooldays, Jack The Idiot Dunce, The Hard Way
The Rest of The albums I haven't yet really rated or anything so I'll Add those later.
Maybe even going so far as to actually reviewing the albums themselves.
Just interested what your thoughts on The Kinksare
Joined: November 03 2008
Location: Montreal
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Points: 6521
Posted: May 09 2010 at 19:00
My favourite band. Criminally underrated. So is Ray Davies as a songwriter and frontman... I mean don't even get me started.
For me, the number one album is Muswell Hillbillies. That album just keeps on getting bet with every spin.
You totally need to check out Misfits quick. I was liking the Kinks until I heard the song Misfits after a sh*t day at work and felt it was talking about me and I became an unconditional. We've all been there, I'm sure, but it's just that kind of song.
Joined: August 21 2004
Location: Germany
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Points: 3563
Posted: May 10 2010 at 10:51
You, Tuxon, are a serious music lover. Thanks for turning my thoughts to The Kinks again. They are, as has been stated before, often underrated. To your great list I would add Low Budget (released in 1979) simply for the fantastic (and oh so true) (I wish I could fly like) Superman.
Joined: September 21 2004
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Points: 5502
Posted: May 10 2010 at 13:51
Yeah Low Budget is quite alright indeed, the sound getting into New Wave style of rock, Superman being the best song on the album, I guess Ray listened to quite some David Bowie (Low, Heroes) at the time (not to mention Rolling Stones (Some Girls). Pretty straight forward, and a little scarse on the melody department (still enough to provide an enjoyable listening).
I prefer the album Misfits slightly, more Jazz/brass even reggaeish/Ska backing, you just have to love the energetic Live Life, all in al even less melodic, so maybe Low budget should be the choice for late 70's Kinks afterall.
Thanks to Peter for providing some nice clips of Live performances. surely enjoyed the stripped down performance of Waterloo Sunset.
Something Else I gave 4 stars till now, but I'm seriously considering upgrading it to 5 stars, if only because David Watts is my fav Kinks song (I wish I could be like david watts Fa-fa-fa-fa-fa-fa-fa-faFa-fa-fa-fa-fa-fa-fa-fa)
The Kinks and especially Kinda Kinks displayed a unique writing style for the British Invasion times. The Kink Kontroversy was one of my favorites as well. Sittin' On My Sofa" and "Plastic Man" are truly sarcastic and Ray Davies I believe was addressed in court over his various lyrical creations. Face to Face, Something Else, and The Village Green Preservation Society are brilliant. Arthur or the Decline and Fall of the British Empire was the album for me. That was a start of yet another brilliant run of albums. Lola VS. Powerman and the Moneygoround, Percy, Muswell Hillbillies, Everybody's In Showbiz and Preservation Act I. Misfits was one of my later favorites. I also have the BBC, Kinks Kronikles, and Ultimate Collection. I was not particularly fond of Sleepwalker, Soap Opera, Preservation Act II, Schoolboys In Disgrace, and Low Budget. However there are some great tracks off those records like "Education" was a blast and it reminded me of the style on the Rocky Horror Picture Show. My favorite period was with the horn section. The concert from Carnegie Hall on Everybody's In Show Biz is with the horn section. It's a beautiful event. I especially enjoy the live version of "Victoria" from the BBC cd on the Sanctuary label. I own about 16 or 17 cd's by the Kinks and enjoy them greatly. They were very misunderstood by many. I have always wondered what was the big mystery on the band being asked to leave the United States during the 65' tour.....or was itn 66'?..........Did this have anything to do with their manager walking out on the band for Sonny and Cher? I could never find "The Great Lost Kinks Album"....even during the 70's .....If you own all the remastered imports, you can compile your own "Great Lost Kinks Album" from the bonus material. Especially if you own the 3 cd set The Kinks Are The Village Green Preservation Society. But not "When I Turn Off The Living room Light"....That track would have to be taken from the BBC release on Sanctuary. Man, I wished someone would release "The Great Lost Kinks Album".
When I was a toddler, my sister would drag me out of bed on a school night to see the Kinks on TV. While my parents slept, we watched the Kinks perform and were amazed over how different they seemed to everyone else. Dave Davies with that Flying V guitar and longest hair in early 65 was shocking to us. We loved it! Ray Davies with rotten teeth and that weird vocal slang in the songs. He sometimes sounded like he was drunk. I always thought "The Who" were stealing from the Kinks. "I Can't Explain", "Boris The Spider" and "Happy Jack" were very much in the Kinks tradition. That was an impression I had at age 13. I don't know if it holds up to be true in any sense so, I will leave that to others as an observation. Tommy was very original though so, it may have been specifically in the early days of the Who. Opinions?
With Muswell Hillbillies, I was lost for a time. I read those lyrics everyday after school. One of their darker albums due to the references to characters in the lyrics and the chord progressions of "Oklahoma U.S.A.", "Have A Cuppa Tea", "Uncle Son", "People In Grey" and wow! there are really many strange songs from that album. Muswell and Arthur are my desert island picks. Ray Davies made fun of society in the U.K. plain and simple. The style in which he did it was abstract to me and I had to sit with album in hand reading lyrics for hours when I was a kid. I actually adapted much of his attitudes and concepts on life as a young child. He influenced me all through my youth. God Save The Kinks!
Joined: May 29 2006
Location: United States
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Points: 8368
Posted: May 12 2010 at 12:40
Agree completely. The Kinks are an amazing band that never get enough recognition. I'll take them over the Beatles any day of the week. I would put "Something Else" in with your top five, but everything I have heard by them is fantastic.
Joined: December 28 2009
Location: Scotland
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Points: 522
Posted: May 13 2010 at 06:33
I like them a lot. Very underrated. Best thing ever was listening to 'Sunny Afternoon' walking up the hill to my house last summer. Perfect for the occaision.
"Man is nothing else but that which he makes of himself" - Sartre
Joined: November 10 2009
Location: Tulsa, OK, U.S.
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Points: 5148
Posted: May 13 2010 at 07:36
Logan wrote:
This is good stuff:
I've never heard anything by them besides "You Really Got Me," but I really loved that song. It can hear some Prog-leanings. Maybe I should check them out more.
Edited by gottagetintogetout - May 13 2010 at 07:42
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Best Band Of All Time
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Aha! this is it, Tuxie -- the beautiful Waterloo Sunset and VGPS, LIVE!
Logan wrote:
