"Look For Me Baby" - Like others have said, it sounds like a stab at Motown but with very un-Motown lead vocals. The lyrics are very girl-group, with all this talk of searching mountains & seas, high & low. Both these songs today have sloppy double tracking. While I'll agree the song isn't among the album's highlights, I don't have the problem others do with it leading off the album. I think it works there just fine. "Got My Feet On The Ground" - Very good Dave rocker with a somewhat weak rockabilly solo. Already singing better than the debut album and expressing a lot of confidence in this song about independence. He's so good at it, in fact, you don't try figuring out why he's traveling far and wide to find a four leaf clover he wouldn't be sad never finding. The short uptick in the last few seconds is nice too.
I know Hinman says that, but Graham himself says he also came back and played on Death of a Clown. It does sound like it could be him on there.
So many people mentioning that this displays Motown influence got me thinking...exactly which Motown record prior to this, sounded like it? The best I could come up with was this one: The Velvelettes / He Was Really Saying Something
Fantastic song. Also sounds like The Small Faces were heavily influenced by this song. They even borrow the "Doo Whadda Whadda" backing vocal on this song. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XXWa_fPHCNM I wonder if The Kinks and The Small Faces ever played gigs together? I just found this recent quote from Dave. Someone asked him what he thought of The Small Faces, The Action, and The Creation. "I thought Small Faces were great I loved Steve Marriot the other two were good as well, Nobby was in the Creation and he joined the Kinks some years later when Pete left"
I’ve read that interview before but tbh I’m not totally convinced by it as it’s just a passing mention, whereas he gives much more in depth memories of ‘You Really Got Me’ et al. I’d never take a throwaway mention of a song without elaboration by a session drummer as gospel as it’s very possible as they they could be mis remembering a session for a contemporary cover of the song. Clem Cattini has also claimed in passing to be the drummer on ‘Sunny Afternoon’, which is not backed up be any eyewitnesses is is very likely not true. Not saying that Graham on DOAC is impossible, It just seems strange and unlikely to me without any further context why they’d get him back for that one isolated song 2/3 years after they last used him and one fleeting mention by Graham isn’t enough to make me certain he’s right. That said, it is The Kinks and it was a Dave song, so it’s also entirely possible!
It does seem odd they'd bring him back for that one song. On the other hand, it's also odd that he'd somehow mistakenly recall playing on a song recorded two years after he'd worked with them regularly. And as you said he does know it's a Dave song, which is obvious to us anoraks but is not a detail a session guy with only casual knowledge of the band history would likely have, if he wasn't around when it was recorded. Ultimately what makes me come down on the side of "likely true" is that it sounds like his work to me. But unless someone unearths some definitive documentation, all we can do is guess.
What I love most about Look For Me Baby is the sudden more melodic turn on "you'll search the ocean". It's more of a stomper before that point, but that moment alone is quintessentially Ray. Outside of that, these first two tracks are decent ravers to open the album, and declare their new found confidence, but the best is certainly yet to come.
Nothin In This World Can Stop Me Worryin' 'bout That Girl I love this track. We have the Kinks doing the real folk blues, and I think it works well. I love the acoustic guitar riff that we open up with, and although it can probably be traced back to something that it may sound like, that really isn't sensible in a blues context, as blues, like folk, is based on returning to popular patterns and riffs to share a story... [Verse 1] Met a girl, fell in love Glad as I can be Met a girl, fell in love Glad as I can be But I think all the time Is she true to me? [Chorus] 'Cause there's nothin' in this world To stop me worryin' 'bout that girl [Verse 2] I found out I was wrong She was just two timin' I found out I was wrong She just kept on lyin' Now she tries to tell the truth And I just can't believe [Chorus] 'Cause there's nothin' in this world To stop me worryin' 'bout that girl [Verse 3] Tell me who can I turn to Just who can I believe? Tried to put her out of my mind She’ll only cause me grief But I love that girl, whatever she's done You know, it hurts me deeply [Chorus] 'Cause there's nothin' in this world To stop me worryin' 'bout that girl [Verse 4] I know, she's been with other fellas Why she keep on lyin'? It hurts me so when she says nothin' I really feel like dyin' I ache inside until I think I know, it's just my pride [Chorus] 'Cause there's nothin' in this world To stop me worryin' 'bout that girl 'Cause there's nothin' in this world To stop me worryin' 'bout that girl Songwriters: Raymond Douglas Davies Nothin' In The World Can Stop Me Worryin' 'Bout That Girl lyrics © Downtown Music Publishing The first verse comes out as a standard blues with the repeat phrases, and then with each verse we move on a little and the repeat phrases disappear and we get a more modern approach to lyrics. I think this works well. This is an old old story of a fear a partner is cheating, and then we move into the fact that they are. I think it is a nice addition to change the context to include the fact that when someone you have placed love and trust in cheats you, it actually damages your trust levels for everyone, because that is just a natural follow on, and that is simply how it really happens. Ray's delivery of the vocal here is beautiful. We haven't got Ray the showman so much here, as Ray the fragile hurt guy, struggling with a pain inflicted. I think he carries it well, and it shows an ability to get inside the character, or perhaps it is merely a genuine feeling due to an event that this was based on. Either way, it comes across as genuine. I think they manage to get some nice dynamics in here and for me, they sell this song hook line and sinker. For me this is the most genuine and impressive attempt at a blues type song that the band has done so far, and from the first real listen to this, it came across as an album highlight for me..... and it was also a little unexpected.
Naggin' Woman hmmm.... This ends up being the first song here that I just don't really like. The performance is pretty decent, and we get this moderate tempo blues groove thing going on, but I just don't really like the song. Not surprisingly this is the first cover on the album, and it reinforces the fact that I just much prefer Kinks originals to Kinks covers.... I do like the minimalist little lead inserts, and they come across well, but I just don't really get into it as a song. I'm not really a skipper when I listen to albums, but this one really tempts the skip finger to drop in
Except for Van Halen’s You Really Got Me, I think Nothin’ in the World Can Stop me Worryin’ ‘bout that Girl was my very first exposition to the Kinks’ music. The song was featured in a Wim Wenders movie I must’ve seen in the late seventies/early eighties, called The American Friend, starring Dennis Hopper and Bruno Ganz in the role of a Jonathan Zimmermann. Talk about rock obsession ! Now, why would a nine or ten years old french kid watch such an edgy arthouse film is beyond me, but there it was. Anyway, Nothin’ in this World Can Stop me Worryin’ ‘bout that Girl is heard in a scene (Too Much on My Mind is there as well, I think), it clicked right away and it became a defining or "signature" song for the band in my mind, even though I perfectly know that it’s not. I understand it’s a genre exercise in blues and as such, it’s wonderfully played and arranged, with the tasteful acoustic riff (good call about Mrs Robinson, @Yawndave), the superb entrance of subdued drums and percussions and the wonderful dynamics when the electric guitar comes in to double the acoustic one. This thread helps me understand Kinda Kinks starts by three exercises in songwriting (Motown/country-ish rock’n’roll/blues boom) before a naggin’ (and borin') cover. But thanks to this childhood introduction to the band, I only hear the Kinks personality and idiosyncrasy in those tunes. To me, Nothin’ in this World Can Stop me Worryin’ ‘bout that Girl (thank god for the copy/paste function !) is pure melody and grace, pure Ray Davies genius.
An absolutely brilliant track and an album highlight. Like many, I first heard this in the Wes Anderson film Rushmore. I was amazed that this was 'just' an album track, rather than a single - a quick realisation that it could be worth checking out some Kinks albums rather than just the hits comp I then had!
"Nothin’ in the World Can Stop me Worryin’ ‘bout that Girl" I agree with all that's been said about this one so far - a great step forward for Ray and the Kinks in terms of writing and performance. Ray's vocal is haunting and the way it slowly develops and builds is a wonder to behold. "Naggin' Woman" The worst track on the album - another underwhelming cover. It's played OK as far as it goes, but Dave's diction isn't the best here - especially on the second verse. I've wondered for years what "a horny white concheechagest man" is (what are the actual words here??)
Apparently You know you keep on naggin' babe Complaining all men are the same The reason you keep on naggin' Is because you found another man Well keep on naggin' woman Naggingest woman in this land Well, the minute you stop your naggin' You're gonna find another man You know you got me to the play of the pain[?] Oh honey, you can treat me just mean You got me anywhere anyone You baby just can't be beat So stop your naggin' woman Nagging me right off my face Well baby if you weren't naggin' Honey you'd be so sweet You know you keep on naggin' babe Complaining all men are the same The reason you keep on naggin' Is because you want another man But keep on naggin' woman Naggingest woman in this land Well, the minute you stop your naggin' Baby, you're gonna find another man All right, for sure...
I should point out that this song has a total bossa nova beat, like the later (and equally great) No Return. Lyrically a very literate and thoughtful take on the "my baby done me wrong" family of songs.
Oh poo poo everybody who doesn't like this. This is classic early Dave. Who knows what the heck he's singing? Where else can you hear a word like "nagginest"?
Lol... enunciation isn't something I care about in rock. I actually think the slightly drunken sounding vocal is relevant, as nagging tends to make one want to drink.... I think for me, I'm just not overly fond of Naggin Woman songs in general
The Germans around that time developed something called Fullschrift which IIRC allowed increased time per side whilst still maintaining quality. N.b. Any Germans in the know could you please elaborate?
Although I was vaguely aware of Wim Wenders interest in The Kinks (including the fact that his first film, Summer In The City, from 1970, featured many Kinks songs on the soundtrack and is dedicated to them), I'm afraid I was ignorant of his use of this song in this film until your post. Like many people I thought it's breakout moment as a soundtrack song was after it's use in Wes Anderson's Rushmore in 2000. I don't think The Kinks ever played this song live, but Ray seemed to start adding it to his solo sets after it's Rushmore use, although here in his intro he doesn't mention Rushmore but does mention Wenders film.
Nothin’ inn the World Can Stop Me Worryin’ ‘Bout That Girl: John Mayall. That’s my first thought when I heard this song. Not from the initial Simon & Garfunkel intro but on the second verse of “met a girl, fell in love, glad as I can be” and then the following, “but I think, all the time, is she true to me.” The higher pitched vocal and even the typical “I found out, I was wrong, she just kept on lyin’” lyrics are straight out of the Mayall-Blues songbook. (No Mayall harmonica, of course, but still...). This is the first non-single album track that I have placed on the My Kinks playlist. Which is probably strange because it is so UnKinksian. No matter, I like it a lot.
Naggin’ Woman: I’m with @Zack on this track as I think it’s great. I love the rawness of the vocals and came this close to putting it on my playlist. (It was there first round but got cut during the review).
