The Kinks - Album by Album (song by song)

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

  1. Smiler

    Smiler Forum Resident

    Location:
    Houston TX
    "No Return" is a song I had previously paid little attention to, but since revisiting SE lately it is the song that has most...ahem...returned to pop into my head. It is such an atypical style for The Kinks that it seems it might have been an experimental songwriting exercise on Ray's part, but I too think it's beautiful.
     
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  2. Scottsol

    Scottsol Forum Resident

    Location:
    Evanston, IL
    Why don’t you just remix the episode?:nyah:
     
  3. mark winstanley

    mark winstanley Certified dinosaur, who likes physical product Thread Starter

    Love and prayers brother. Get yourself well, and then you can fill in the blanks later
     
  4. Geoff738

    Geoff738 Forum Resident

    Location:
    Toronto
    Happy Birthday Ray!
     
  5. ARL

    ARL Forum Resident

    Location:
    England
    Nice to have it confirmed in that thread that my Arthur CD has the left and right channels the wrong way round - only noticed this a couple of weeks ago!
     
  6. All Down The Line

    All Down The Line The Under Asst East Coast White Label Promo Man

    Location:
    Australia
    Enjoyed your post as I also talked up No Return as it is a favourite of mine from the LP!
     
  7. All Down The Line

    All Down The Line The Under Asst East Coast White Label Promo Man

    Location:
    Australia
    Have you posted it here Frederick?
     
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  8. All Down The Line

    All Down The Line The Under Asst East Coast White Label Promo Man

    Location:
    Australia
    Which edition is this?
     
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  9. All Down The Line

    All Down The Line The Under Asst East Coast White Label Promo Man

    Location:
    Australia
    I really hope so Brook, I wish you the best of luck with your health!
     
  10. Wondergirl

    Wondergirl Forum Resident

    Location:
    Massachusetts, USA
    Love Me Till the Sun Shines
    I only read a few folks' thoughts on this one. Sounds like the lyrics leave some people a little confused which is understandable. I was just reading Dave's autobiography over the weekend and he claims this song is about his old girlfriend Sue who got pregnant with his baby. Each set of parents told their kid that their lover was no longer interested in them. Many of Dave's songs around this time are about losing Sue(Funny Face is one, as well as later on, Susannah's Still Alive).
    quote from the book:
    "I was still so angry inside because I thought she never really loved me. I could never understand how she could so suddenly not love me. 'Love Me Till the Sun Shines' was also also about those feelings"
    putting the lyrics aside(which I can easily do if the music is compelling enough), I really love this song. I like the down and dirty feel to it which is lightened by the organ.
    I get the groovy 60s feeling with:
    Baby, baby I don't know what I'm doing
    Everything I do it turns to ruin

    I can feel Dave's head swirling about what went down with this girl. I think he simply just wants her back...and get some answers. Desperation.
    oh, also love the drum break in there. Very cool.
     
  11. James H.

    James H. Forum Resident

    Location:
    Runnemede, NJ
    This recording sounds like they recorded this in a mechanical room.
     
  12. Wondergirl

    Wondergirl Forum Resident

    Location:
    Massachusetts, USA
    Well shoot, you beat me to this. sorry for being repetitive, everyone. :(
     
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  13. Wondergirl

    Wondergirl Forum Resident

    Location:
    Massachusetts, USA
    Happy Birthday, Sir Ray!
    hope it's a healthy and happy one. xo
     
  14. Brian Kelly

    Brian Kelly 1964-73 rock's best decade

    Love Me Til The Sun Shines is one of my least favorite Kinks songs. The lyrics are not very Kinks like and the music utterly forgettable.
     
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  15. rkt88

    rkt88 The unknown soldier

    Location:
    malibu ca
    i heard celluloid heroes today. love that song.

    although for some(?) reason. it reminds me musically of "puff the magic dragon" ha
     
  16. DISKOJOE

    DISKOJOE Boredom That You Can Afford!

    Location:
    Salem, MA
    Get better soon. Anyone who has Frank Drebin as a avatar is a good person w/taste!
     
  17. cwitt1980

    cwitt1980 Senior Member

    Location:
    Carbondale, IL USA
    The Kinks really cook on this BBC version. I still think Mick did his best playing on Dave's songs 68-69 (this recording is from '68).

     
  18. Scottsol

    Scottsol Forum Resident

    Location:
    Evanston, IL
    Please note that this video was linked up thread by @Fortuleo.
     
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  19. ARL

    ARL Forum Resident

    Location:
    England
    1989 Castle release, CLACD 162
     
  20. Scottsol

    Scottsol Forum Resident

    Location:
    Evanston, IL
    Some here have accused me of being Sir RDD himself hiding behind an alias. There seems no point in arguing either way so I will simply submit the lyrics to a song I wrote when I was thirteen and let you draw the obvious conclusion.

    This is a Calypso with a standard verse/chorus pattern and a single, simple bridge. The title is obvious.


    I had a taco yesterday
    Then I went outside to play
    But I couldn’t remain, it’s such a sin
    Cause what I ate would not stay in

    Oh taco, oh taco
    Don’t eat a taco, when you dine

    Oh taco new or taco old
    To eat one you must be quite bold
    It may taste good but don’t forget
    You will end up with much regret

    Oh taco, oh taco
    Don’t eat a taco, when you dine

    Eat it up or wolf it down
    You will end up with frown
    After you finish going to town
    It will come out green not brown

    Oh taco, oh taco
    Don’t eat a taco, when you dine

    Taco, Taco
    Just what can it be
    Taco, Taco
    Why do you so hate me

    Tacos are not good for you
    The reasons to eat them are far and few
    Cook one up but put it down
    Before you ruin your pretty gown

    Oh taco, oh taco
    Don’t eat a taco, when you dine

    I could go on til the cows come home
    But I think it’s time to end this poem
    The porcelain object waits for me
    I’ve been rejected by society

    Oh taco, oh taco
    Don’t eat a taco, when you dine

    Oh taco, oh taco
    Don’t eat a taco, when you dine

    Oh taco, oh taco
    Don’t eat a taco, when you dine
     
  21. mark winstanley

    mark winstanley Certified dinosaur, who likes physical product Thread Starter

    lol nice one mate
     
  22. mark winstanley

    mark winstanley Certified dinosaur, who likes physical product Thread Starter

    Lazy Old Sun.

    mono mix (2:46), recorded Jun 1967 at Pye Studios (No. 2), London

    Lazy old sun
    What have you done to summertime?
    Hiding away
    Behind all those misty thunder clouds
    I don't mind
    To spend my time
    Looking for you
    For you are my one reality
    When I'm dead and gone
    Your light will shine eternally
    Sunny ray, shine my way
    Kiss me with one ray of light from your lazy old sun

    You make the rainbows and you make the night disappear
    You melt the frost so I won't criticize my sun

    When I was young
    My world was three foot, seven inch tall
    When you were young
    There was no world at all
    Sunny ray, shine my way
    Kiss me with one ray of light from your lazy old sun

    Lazy old sun
    Lazy old sun
    Lazy old sun

    Written by: Ray Davies
    Published by: Noma Music, Inc./Hi-Count Music, Inc. BMI

    Lyrics for "Lazy Old Sun" kindakinks.net

    The is such an unusual song, but is it all it may seem ...
    Musically we get this descending chord pattern that drops a half step each time. We do get a change up, but initially we get this descending pattern and the way it is constructed it is like we are descending into a deep depression, and in that light it is terribly effective.

    Lyrically this almost sounds like Seasonal Affective Disorder, which is actually a real illness. Depression is one of the most common disorders that folks in the world have to deal with, and it isn't just having the blues, or having a bad day, it is actually a mental condition that doesn't always make sense, and for those that suffer from it, it can have a tremendous effect on their ability to function. The seasonal variation of this condition is generally connected to winter... it is believed that in some people a lack of vitamin D has a strong connection to depression, and particularly Seasonal depression.... Anyway this isn't a medical class, but the lyrics here seem to point in this direction.

    One thing that folks in England have to deal with is the famous/infamous weather, that can often be along the dreary side of things.
    In the first verse we get Ray singing about the sun hiding behind the thunderclouds, and he can get by with that, but he'll spend his time looking for the sun to shine through.
    This moves into the idea that the sunshine is the one thing in life that bears a resemblance to reality for him, and this sun was here before him, and will be here after him.
    One could go with the idea that the sun is being used as a metaphor for the good times, but it seems like there are too many direct references to the sun as an object rather than a feeling.

    "Kiss me with one ray of light from your lazy old sun" is such a beautiful line, particularly in the context of this track..... I don't know, but each time I hear it in the song, it is like sweet relief from the darkness surrounding. It is almost like the singer is begging for the sun to shine in his life.

    The change/bridge is like a joyous celebration of how the sun takes away the darkness and the cold, and it again works beautifully.

    The second verse is somewhat even more profound.... When I was young I was little, when you were young there wasn't even a world, what an extreme contrast.... being able to accept that in the big scheme of things we are so small.

    This is such an excellent lyric, and the way it is framed by the music is even better.

    It is extremely interesting to me that this is probably the closest thing to really psychedelic on this album, even though I am not really sure I would classify it as psychedelic in the general sense of the word...... but here we have a song about deep depression, likely in the form of Seasonal Affective Disorder, and not tripping in the sunshine with cartoonlike realities .... we actually have an assessment of reality, in the I am just this small insignificant creature in this huge world that is bigger and older than my tiny mind is able to comprehend..... it almost makes a mockery of the whole mind expanding narrative of the psychedelic Timothy Leary movement.

    Sorry if I'm rambling, but this is a really interesting track, and it has much more going on than a "trippy" sound and feel.

    As I say, musically, the verses work as driving us into the feeling of depression. It has this unreal, and overwhelming heavy drone vibe, that drags us down with it.
    The relentless shaker, the pulsating and aggressive drums, the ever lowering hum, the guitar moaning in pain as it slides into this abyss......
    Then we get a slight relief as the music rests, and Ray sings Kiss me with one ray of light from your lazy old sun....
    Then that chirpy reflection in the bridge, that soon falls back into the depression that the sun is still lost and we need it to return.

    The use of horns to accent these feelings and musical statement is excellent.

    Although on an initial listen this track may just seem really anti-social, or just plain weird, I reckon it is one of Ray's most direct and successful songs, in what it seems to be trying to share.

    The outro with the horn accents, and the ghostly backing vocals, that seem like they were an inspiration for the sound that Neutral Milk Hotel were going for on the Aeroplane Over The Sea album..... is superb

    To me this is a song that sounds somewhat psychedelic in its delivery, but it is essentially really grounded, and addresses a lot of serious issues, even if not in a completely direct way.

    In some ways this is one of the highlights on the album .....

    and guess what?
    It is a song that yet again, sounds completely different to everything that came before it....
    This album is kicking goals with both feet and knocking the ball out of the park .... however you would prefer to describe it......

     
    Last edited: Jun 22, 2021
  23. ARL

    ARL Forum Resident

    Location:
    England
    "Lazy Old Sun" is mindblowing. So much to enjoy in this. The wooziness created by the crazy modulations in the verse, the trumpet in the lead-up to the climax, the way Ray delivers the "kiss me with one ray of light..." line, the drumming, the outro - is that Rasa's vocals again in the background? And the lyrics are fantastic - is Ray talking to himself with the "sunny ray, shine my way" line? Also love how it leaves us hanging - "when I'm dead and gone / your light will shine eternally" - you're waiting for the word "on" to complete the rhyme but it never comes. A wonderful track that sounds like nothing else on the planet.
     
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  24. ajsmith

    ajsmith Senior Member

    Location:
    Glasgow
    I always wondered if it was ‘you melt the frost so I won’t criticise my- ‘sun’ or ‘son’. The former wouldn’t seem to make much sense as the song is already addressed to the sun. But the latter seems a bit too prosaic: Ray as an older Dad moaning that his son hasn’t cleared the snow out of the drive? Hmm, not sure.
     
  25. croquetlawns

    croquetlawns Forum Resident

    Location:
    Scotland
    On to side 2 and it's another winner. Arguably the best song on the album. One of many great UK songs of the 60s dealing with the weather!
     

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