(moving my vinyl a week or 6 ago got me to thinkin)
The Kinks, The Kink Kronikles
subtitled: ray+dave+mick+pete = better than all your records
the best compilation i own (and widely recommend) is the "the kink kronikles". in its orig release, it's a double album of singles, b-sides, album tracks and unreleased tracks recorded by the band between 1966 and 1970 (since released on cd). the liner notes by john mendelssohn are almost worth the purchase. as a retrospective, it's a revelation, and to casual kinks fans, an eye-opener to ray (and dave's) songwriting prowess and inventiveness during their most fertile period. the sequence isn't the usual grab of hits (no "you really got me", "all day"). it's a deep look into the an amazing songwriter. there's no secret in ray davies gift. i still say, if they'd been given the budget the beatles had, there wouldn't be an argument for best british band of the 60s (ed note: and there isn't btw).
and for you nostradomus fans ... ray may be:
19 comments:
I'm not gonna come at ya like yr boy X, but...really?
if you're joining forces with the "masturbating dancing bear*", you'd better bring extra food. he gets testy!
here's a glimpse into my head (that xmas and i agreed on just last night). is there a single solo beatles song that tops "come dancing"?
*i can't stop saying that phrase
but we're not talking about solo shit.
Hey, I love the Kinks as much as the next music geek, but the criticism that they are "too British," I think, is a fair one.
"...is there a single solo beatles song that tops "come dancing"?"
Um, here's 5 (in no particular order):
"Maybe I'm Amazed"
"All Things Must Pass"
"Jet"
"Instant Karma!"
"(Just Like) Starting Over"
...and many more. Sorry.
first, "anonymous", maybe being "too british" would be seen as an asset for the "best british band"
kiko. an interesting thing i noticed on our sorta off topic tangent is that all songs listed save "jet" (which i agree is a monster single that means ABSOLUTELY NOTHING-- those lyrics are stoopid beyond normal macca level) are basically ex-beatles still ridin on beatles fumes. i beg you to listen to "starting over" again. on a lennon bar, it's pretty subpar.
my point was ray (somewhat) consistently kept releasing such great music throughout the 70s and (diminishingly) 80s when, i'm sorry, the beatles did not. lennon was done after album 2, george had a bunch of songs that were pretty much beatles outtakes, and paul, sadly, has a lot of explaining to do.
who cares? the Beatles were the Beatles, the Beatles solo were the Beatles solo. what Ray did solo has nothing to do with any competition with the Beatles. why not brag that Ray put out better songs than Linda McCartney, or could lift 100lbs over his head? camon.
okay, then we can get back to my original comment. the kinks are the best british band of the 60s.
was that so hard?
it humbles me when you admit utter defeat masturbating CIRCUS bear.
really? what defeat?
I'm sure you are not the only one that believes The Kinks are the greatest thing British pop ever produced during the '60s. (There's also some hardcore Who fans to contend with, as well.) And you are, of course, entitled to your opinion. However, not only do I disagree, but before we even get to the Fabs, the '60s Stones give Ray and co. a big run for their money. (Revisit that ABKCO catalog one of these days and you'll see what I'm talking about. There's some transcendent shit in there, man.)
G, the reason why we are still passionately discussing this band 40 years after their breakup is thus: not only were they the best and most popular at what they did, their musical influence and innovations are still felt at this late date (as well as the cultural non-musical influence as well), in and outside of a genre in which 95% of its practitioners become glaringly irrelevant within a fortnight of their shining moment. While, admittedly, it has become an incredible understatement that the oft-repeated pronouncement of our favorite Liverpudlians being the greatest is a well-worn cliché, it doesn't make it any less true. You being a man of knowledge and taste, surely know this as best as anyone.
Now, as for the solo Beatles tunes comparison to "Come Together", I confess I was not as smart as X and fell into the trap of answering your challenge. Here's my extended rebuttal:
Yes, "Maybe I'm Amazed". "All Things Must Pass" and "Instant Karma!" are vestiges of Beatles work; both Lennon and Harrison post-Beatles/solo are respectively, very disappointing for the most part (I have always loved "Starting Over" and always will); and my beloved Macca has a mountain of dreck to answer for--the latter is the only one of the bunch who can put up a killer comp of a dozen or so solo tunes, tho--but "Come Dancing"?! What were you thinking, man? You cannot accuse Macca of being a schlockmeister and then offer up the tritest, corniest, gayest, lamest song ever written by Mr. Davies. The cringing it induced in me the first time I heard it, all those years ago--heh, heh--has NEVER left me. Ugh.
Sadly, Lennon wasn't around for the '80s--except posthumously, of course--and for all intents and purposes neither was Harrison. And yes, that was Paul's worst decade. But, if you want to focus on those particular ten years, aside from the aforementioned "Starting Over"--and as objectively as possible--I'd place Macca's "My Brave Face", "This Time" or the Lennon tribute "Here Today" over "Come Dancing" handily.
If you'd chosen "Better Days", we could've had a doozy but you made it waaaayy too easy by picking "Come Dancing".
Cheers.
GIHYB is entitled to his opinion of course, and saying the Kinks beat the Beatles is a valid one. BUt he gets himself in trouble with asinine comments like the one about their "budget," or pathetically trying to drag the argument into solo careers, supposing that either one of these things has anything to do with Kinks vs. Beatles.
who said i put the beatles ahead of the stones?
You didn't; I put the Stones ahead of The Kinks.
X, the "budget" argument is a touchy one. Yes, it did impact the second half of the Fabs' output, since those large stretches in the studio helped refine their ideas. (And bolstered their bank accounts: all that studio time was non-recoupable!) But it would be a more valid point if their songwriting had been of a 'jam-in-the-studio' nature, especially since at that time nearly every song was recorded under a rotating 'songwriter-plus-backing-band' premise.
K,
thanks for the lesson, i appreciate it...but the "budget" thing was about the Kinks, not the Beatles. the Beatles exploded from Please Please Me, not "the second half" of their career, and proved themselves worthy of whatever budget they wanted from then on. The Kinks did not. THAT was my point. The Kinks had every opportunity, but did not reach the heights of the Beatles.
Um, I'm agreeing with you, X.
see what G does to me? HE'S TEARING US APART!!!!! ;)
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