The Kinks - Album by Album (song by song)

Discussion in 'Music Corner' started by mark winstanley, Apr 4, 2021.

  1. Zeki

    Zeki Forum Resident

    :D So far it appears I’m odd man out. Everybody else isn’t perturbed by the farts!

    (Zappa. I haven’t listened to Zappa since Sheik Yerbouti so it’s all a distant memory. One of my fondest recollections is when a buddy sang/hummed Billy The Mountain in its entirety. I wasn’t familiar with the song so he felt compelled to enlighten me. A couple of days later, at a party, I heard the real thing and exclaimed aloud, “I know this!” And it was all because of my friends impromptu performance.)
     
  2. ARL

    ARL Forum Resident

    Location:
    England
    For those outside the UK - "Most Exclusive Residence For Sale" is exactly the wording/phrasing you might see as the headline in a classified ad column or an estate agent's window. Perhaps not these days, but certainly back in the 60s.
     
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  3. donstemple

    donstemple Member of the Club

    Location:
    Maplewood, NJ
    Most Exclusive Residence For Sale
    There are plenty of song titles in the Kinks katalog that could only have been released by the Kinks. And of all the Kinks song titles, this might be the most Kinksian. Could you imagine some other band releasing a song titled "Most Exclusive Residence For Sale"? That opening riff is great, and after the opening, I don't think we hear it exactly the same again. Later on, it seems to be played a bit lower, and seems like a fuzz bass? And then "ba ba ba bahhhh"s echo the riff in the later verses. Ray's storytelling is top notch. Another fun song in a string of fun songs.

    Fancy
    Wow never really thought of the Doors with this one, but yeah, I can totally hear "The End" vibes here. And agreed, I do wish this song was closer to 4 minutes. They could have explored that space a little bit more. But even as it is, a beautifully transcendental song.
     
  4. Zombeels

    Zombeels Forum Resident

    Fancy is my favourite song off this album also.
     
  5. LX200GPS

    LX200GPS Forum Resident

    Location:
    Somewhere Else
    I've had a few there myself when I lived in Muswell Hill. :D:D
     
  6. idleracer

    idleracer Forum Resident

    Location:
    California
    :kilroy: Three verses with a refrain. This is one of those tunes that might've been benefited by a bridge in between the 2nd and 3rd verses. Dave and Rasa holding their noses while they punctuate each refrain is an interesting touch.
    :kilroy: The most interesting thing here is how, in 1966, so many different acts suddenly came to the conclusion that music to sit in the corner of a beat cafe, smoking a hookah while watching a belly dancer was where it was at. "Love You Too" has already been mentioned, The Hollies took that concept literally with their hit, "Stop Stop Stop," and of course, there was this:


    Donovan / 3 King Fishers
     
  7. Steve E.

    Steve E. Doc Wurly and Chief Lathe Troll

    Location:
    Brooklyn, NY, USA
    "Fancy" is a drone. It's not I - IV - V. It's just I (one). "Love You To" and "Tomorrow Never Knows" are more or less drones, too. All three overlay a flickering VIIb (flat 7) feel over that drone, though in both Beatles songs the chord truly shifts down, while in "Fancy" it's a prominent guitar note, while the fingerpicked guitar stays on the chord.

    This is very much a NEW THING in western pop music, certainly when performed in this exotic style. But it's not completely unprecedented. Bo Diddley has a great number of songs (maybe some of them should be called "jams") that don't really change chords. And James Brown has either started jamming on just one chord, or he will very soon. And what about jazz? Are there Coltrane/Davis/Sun Ra/Coleman pieces that have no changes at all, by 1966? And what of the Velvet Underground? Any songs on their long-delayed debut have no chord changes at all?

    East-West, by the Paul Butterfield Blues Band, was recorded in July 1966 and released in August 1966. So this sort of thing was in the air.

    East-West (The Butterfield Blues Band album) - Wikipedia

    Love may have beat them at this with a live jam they were doing of "Smokestack Lightning" in 1965, but by the time they released a version of this in November 1966 as "Revelation," they'd been beaten to the punch in the long-jam sweepstakes by Butterfield, Zappa (Trouble Comin' Everyday, which has chord changes), and the Rolling Stones' "Goin' Home," which was allegedly directly inspired by having caught Love's live show, and which has a very long one-chord jam section.

    Come to think of it, Love's "Smokestack Lightning" jam was also called "John Lee Hooker" -- which is weird because that's not his song -- yet is appropriate, as he is a blues guy whose boldest innovation was a tendency to stay on one chord for an entire song, not rhyme anything, ever, and make it all work.

    In many of these cases, certainly in "Fancy", the desired effect is a trance state. Chord changes have the effect of keeping you engaged and awake in a certain way. Trance music brings one towards a waking dream state. Though, in a three-minute song, I don't know how far that can go. Still, it's a move towards trusting that the music everyone is listening to can operate differently than has been accepted.

    This 1980's cover of "Fancy" adds a couple of chords, which don't destroy the drone feeling. I remember it being blasted at a friends' student house in college:

     
    Last edited: Jun 3, 2021
  8. LX200GPS

    LX200GPS Forum Resident

    Location:
    Somewhere Else
    Are you sure about Bournemouth? I thought it was Borehamwood?
     
  9. Steve E.

    Steve E. Doc Wurly and Chief Lathe Troll

    Location:
    Brooklyn, NY, USA
    ^ (I just added some extra thoughts to the middle of that post.)
     
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  10. ajsmith

    ajsmith Senior Member

    Location:
    Glasgow
    Haha you’re absolutely right. Brain fart! Apologies for the misinformation.
     
  11. Steve E.

    Steve E. Doc Wurly and Chief Lathe Troll

    Location:
    Brooklyn, NY, USA
    Great! Not to mention this, which is a I IV V song that nonetheless has an effective trance quality. WOW, this was released August 26 1966??? I didn't know it was so early!

     
  12. ARL

    ARL Forum Resident

    Location:
    England
    Makes more sense - Borehamwood is rather more handy for Sunday drives to Potters Bar and Barnet than Bournemouth!
     
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  13. Luckless Pedestrian

    Luckless Pedestrian Forum Resident

    Location:
    New Hampshire, USA
    This is late but just wanted to say I get a kick out of Ray rhyming "Greek" and "Waikiki" in Holiday in Waikiki, maybe his best one yet.
     
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  14. LX200GPS

    LX200GPS Forum Resident

    Location:
    Somewhere Else
    Many years ago I heard Dave's favourite pub was the Woodman on the corner of Muswell Hill Road and Archway Road. That is one bar I've never been to. Used to drive past many Kinks locations when I had to use my car during lockdown to drive in to central London. A former frend of mine used to be a drummer in an Irish band and, yes you guessed it, played regularly in the Archway Tavern. That was the biggest pub I've ever been in. Took over the whole roundabout. I heard it was due to re-open again soon.
     
  15. Steve E.

    Steve E. Doc Wurly and Chief Lathe Troll

    Location:
    Brooklyn, NY, USA
    I don't think that's a stretch AT ALL. Though it hadn't occurred to me. The melodies have a lot of overlap. And, as we already know, the Doors has a certain tendency to, er.... overlap with the Kinks.
     
  16. palisantrancho

    palisantrancho Forum Resident

    "Most Exclusive Residence For Sale"

    I can't see anyone else doing a song like this. It is pure Kinks and for that alone I must commend it. I like the rhythm guitar strum. It has a Velvet Underground feel. Good drums on this tune as well. I love the sound of that roll that kicks off the song. The backing vocals don't bother me. The "Ba Ba Ba Ba" is also reminiscent of the backing vocals on the very Kinks like "Who Loves The Sun" by The Velvet Underground. A good call about them also being similar to some Zappa songs. It just so happens that I have been listening to a lot of Zappa lately. Mostly just the 60s records with The Mothers Of Invention. I like most of those albums, but can also understand that some would find them annoying. Same thing goes for these backing vocals. It's not really doing the song any favors, but it doesn't ruin it for me. I was curious if Lou Reed ever did this song or mentioned it. I just did a quick search and found this, which was interesting. I bet Lou was a fan.

    “I’m Waiting for the Man” became the second track on “The Velvet Underground & Nico” (1967). The song is a two-chord vamp, the most basic of blues changes, with a bridge whose chord sequence also occurs in the Kinks’ “Most Exclusive Residence for Sale.”

    "Fancy"

    Here we also get a little psychedelic. I didn't even mention this song when talking about "Rainy Day In June" and other Kinks songs that could be classified as psychedelic. I agree with others that the only way it could be improved is if it was longer. This album is really impressive. Did anyone else have an album in 1966 with this much variety? I didn't think it was possible to love this album more than I already did, but that is what's happening.
     
  17. mark winstanley

    mark winstanley Certified dinosaur, who likes physical product Thread Starter

    Same here...
    I thought my appreciation was peaked out, but not so.
    This is pretty much a masterpiece of work .... I know a couple of songs to come look back a little, but that don't confront me..... long as I get my rent money by Friday:)
     
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  18. mark winstanley

    mark winstanley Certified dinosaur, who likes physical product Thread Starter

    It's pleasing to see a couple of mentions of the Velvets, because for the last week I have thought this has possibilities of being a forerunner.... inspiration ... or whatever leaning that way... certainly different bands, but sort of distant cousins in some regards.... perhaps, I won't die on a hill over it though :)
     
  19. LX200GPS

    LX200GPS Forum Resident

    Location:
    Somewhere Else
    Fancy.

    I first heard this track on Kink Kronikles in the early 1970's. Although the droning sound is reminiscent of the earlier See My Friends, I think Fancy is another one of those Kinks songs that sounds very different from anything that went before. It has a mesmerising effect on the listener, or as previously mentioned, hypnotic. Haunting.

    One of the great achievements of Davies is his ability to make his album songs sound so different from each other. Quite a range of diverse sounds on this album and Fancy continues that pattern. Apparently, Fancy was written just after his spring breakdown, "No one can penetrate me" seems to be his way of telling us that there has been no diagnosis of his condition. Very few lyrics to this song, just the two versus. All the tracks so far definitely belong on this album. Another great record. Another favourite of mine.

    There is a longer (30 seconds) stereo version available on the Face to Face Deluxe but I don't like it and never listen to it as the vocal is hard panned to the right.
     
  20. renderj

    renderj Forum Resident

    I have little to add to what's been said about these two songs above. They're great. Fancy was an instant favorite when I first heard it (on Kink Kronichles).

    It should be mentioned that the pacing on the lp is nearly perfect. I don't know if that was up to Ray & the band, or Shel Talmy, or some unknown agent of Pye - but it works.
     
  21. TeddyB

    TeddyB Senior Member

    Location:
    Hollywoodland
    Re: Most Exclusive Residence For Sale and the Face to Face trilogy:

    “Here’s a sad and woeful story, about a middle class executive, who enjoyed a life of prominence and position…”. Ray is writing a different version of a similar story five years later in “Alcohol”.
     
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  22. Wondergirl

    Wondergirl Forum Resident

    Location:
    Massachusetts, USA
    Most Exclusive Residence for Sale
    This one is fairly new to my ears. It's immediately catchy and the ascending notes(chords? sorry I'm not a musician) of the guitar after Ray sings "most exclusive residence for sale" I love to bits. I can see where some may find the munchkin "ba-ba-ba's" a bit annoying, but this is the Kinks. They're a quirky bunch so this falls in line with other songs before and after this one. And Ray vocals are spot on.

    Fancy
    Another newer song for me and it hasn't quite hit me in the right way. it's fine. Very atmospheric...maybe if I was smoking a hookah, it would elevate it for me. I will allow for the fact that this could grow on me, but not just yet. Maybe I'm just not in the mood for this vibe tonight. :D
     
  23. Wondergirl

    Wondergirl Forum Resident

    Location:
    Massachusetts, USA
    Speaking of Zappa...don't know if anyone has mentioned a bit from Johnny Rogan's Ray biography A Complicated Life. His then-wife, Rasa, would invite hippies over the house for a party and rather than Ray trying to fit in, he had to be a brat and play Max Miller songs (vaudeville) followed by We're Only in it for the Money (Zappa) and the hippies would just be all confused.
     
  24. Martyj

    Martyj Who dares to wake me from my slumber? -- Mr. Flash

    Location:
    Maryland, USA
    I'd nominate "Million-Pound Semi-Detached"
     
  25. TeddyB

    TeddyB Senior Member

    Location:
    Hollywoodland
    Or “Acute Schizophrenia Paranoia Blues.”
     
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