"Don't Ever Change" has a great melody in my opinion. I have always thought that the lyric is a little dark, maybe unintentionally so. I mean on the surface it seems like a cute little love song....but I don't know. It just seems to dehumanize the object of the song a little -- but I get that maybe he was going for something else: the way you feel when your son or daughter does something funny and makes you laugh: like you want to freeze the moment in time and you want it to last forever. I don't think he really expresses that, if that's what he's going for. This has a really nice early sixties pop/soul thing going, Goffin/King "Up On the Roof" style, but the lyrics are ultimately, and perhaps surprisingly the weak point.
"So Long" has a couple of moments that sound pure Ray Davies -- "There ain't no use in talking about the things we used to do"--chords and melodies, the way they jangle The guitar picking comes out of nowhere in the Kinks continuum and is gorgeous-- it must have really come as a surprise on this number back in 1965, and the harmony vocals are also very well done and pretty. I think there's a youthful, masculine feeling in the way the lyrics are written, a look forward to new adventures. It may be influenced by "I'll Follow the Sun", I suppose, but there's sort of a rich tradition of folk songs with this "time to move on, I'm just a ramblin' gamblin' man" type theme -- see "Don't Think Twice It's Alright" or "One Too Many Mornings" by Dylan for more of this type of thing. I'd bet those kind of songs are the real touchstone here.
Don't Ever Change-Seems to have some Beatles influence. Oddly and coincidently the Fabs had a song of the same title as others have mentioned. Again the boys are shakily trying to find their footing. This is a good 60's sounding song. So Long-Excellent formula that would serve them well in the future. Ray is beginning to crank out ballads with the best of them. His writing is uniformly great. Wistful without being corny nostalgia. Again sowing the seeds that would sprout on the classic run that would begin on the next release.
No ,the Beatles didn't have a song with the same title, they covered a song with the same title that they played on the BBC. And it was never released on an official album in the sixties.
I really don't think "Don't Ever Change" sounds like the Beatles, it sounds like Carol King/Drifters.
Although the other ‘Don’t Ever Change’ that The Beatles covered (originally by The Crickets) was penned by Goffin/King. Don't Ever Change (song) - Wikipedia
I know but it actually doesn’t sound like that song! I really like the Beatles version of that one though.
All I know about him is he produced the early Stones ... I have no idea what we are talking about here lol I just always think of Zappa when anyone mentions Telefunken. It's a disease
Even though Ray is not 100% forthcoming, I believe it is acknowledged that he is bipolar. And one would assume he has a personality disorder (narcissism?). He was not the easiest person to work with. But his single-mindedness is probably what brought forth fabulous music.
Certainly. It seems he more likely has Borderline Personality disorder, from the things I have seen ... but I am no psychologist
Yes, that's certainly a real possibility. Bottom line: somethin' aint' right with that boy. LOLLL But it is part and parcel of his genius.
Well there's something not quite right about most of us .... we just do our best.... I'm certainly not going to enter a competition for the most sane, stable person around the place
Oh yes. 100% agree. And that's part of the reason I didn't take my musical career to the next level...the next level being: picking up an instrument and learning it. LOL I could not bear the scrutiny of being in the public eye.
It's expressed quite explicitly in a number of his songs. The character he's sketching is sometimes himself.
Just playing gigs gave me massive anxiety attacks. Always made it through, but there were consequences .... I could never have made it in the biz if I was scrutinised like celebrities ... I would have been in a special home, or jail, because I just wouldn't tolerate that crap.
That's completely clear. Also there's a school of thought that you can't separate the art from the artist. Every song is about the artist.
I can't say I agree with that school of thought, especially with some of Ray's character songs that will be discussed later. I believe always connecting the art with the artist can lead to some gross misinterpretations and mis-characterizations. Having said that, some artists are more personal with their work. To take a non-Kinks example like the Beatles, while John has admitted his songs were more personal, Paul liked to write about other people. Both great songwriters (obviously). Ray, I would hazard like many songwriters, probably did a bit of both.