Anytime Agree with the general consensus here, that this is a nice song that could have been a single of its era. But probably best left off the album. The first thought I had when I heard this was "This could be a Badfinger song from 1970!" Looks like @Fortuleo beat me to it: But I'll go a step further, I think it goes beyond just Dave's guitar intro, but some of his guitar tones throughout the song and even the harmonies and lead vocal sounds very Badfingerish. Especially the backing vocals in the chorus. All that said, I think that's why most of us are lukewarm about this song. It's not extremely Kinkish, and it sounds much more straightforward and generic of a song that several other bands in 1970 or 1971 could have released as a radio single. The band made the right call in leaving it off the album, but I do think they could have released this as a non-album single at the time. It's got a standalone quality to it, and seems very radio-friendly of the era. I think I agree with this speculation: Perhaps Ray got a few more songs under his belt and realized he had a theme he wanted to complete. This did not fit. But how lucky are we that it was a completed track, top quality recording sound, and not just a rough demo. It's incredible that a song like this could lay dormant and unknown for so long. Not sure who else compares to the Kinks (besides the Beach Boys) in having so many songs left in the vault. I think you could potentially put Prince in that category, as I've heard he's got tons of amazing stuff locked away, but most is not expected to see the light of day.
Certainly.... someone said there was an album recorded before Purple Rain, that supposedly he thought was way better, but never got released.... I guess we'll see if it comes out Welcome To America is good. I think the album gets stronger in the second half.
"Anytime" first came out in the 2014 reissue of Lola/Percy and later on in the 1964-71 Anthology box set. A lovely song whose appearance was a bit of a surprise since no one knew it existed. It think it could have made the Lola album had Dave not written "Strangers" since the sentiments are the same. As for a stand along single, I think that "Lola" stood a better chance, Coca Cola & all, to be The Big Hit Single that the Kinks needed badly after their string of flop-o-roos.
I agree with this. It sounded very familiar to me, and you have hit the nail on the head as to why I thought it sounded like someone...Dave's harmony vocal sounds very much like one Tommy Evans might have done. Overall, the quality of the Kinks leftovers is amazing. That is one thing the Kinks (and The Who...and the 1960's Bee Gees) had that The Beatles did not.
For all these reasons, my fingers remained crossed that at some point Ray's going pull open a drawer of tapes only he knows exists and say, "oh, what the heck. I didn't think much of them but the fans would get a kick out of them..."
“Anytime” First time hearing this was a couple days ago. What a nice surprise to have a couple of new Kinks tunes from 1970! I knew @Fortuleo would beat me to the Badfinger comparisons! It looks like a few others also picked up on that. It was the first thing I thought of while listening. Wow! This sounds so much like Badfinger in the guitar and the vocals. Many of the comments on YouTube were saying it was The Kinks sounding like Abbey Road era Beatles. It’s no surprise that Badfinger also sounded very Beatlesque. I can also hear a slight Procol Harum vibe as @mark winstanley also pointed out. I went record shopping yesterday and bought a Kinks album. The other album I had in my hand was Procol Harum- A Salty Dog. I love that title track. I was trying to be frugal, but now I want to go back and get it! A good song to have in the vaults for decades! A real treat to have any new Kinks material.
"Anytime": Some nice drum fills and harmonies. Lots of tasty boogie-rock licks from Dave Davies. My favorite part is probably the instrumental middle bit. Ray Davies' melody isn't really much and he sounds bored with it himself. The rather generic lyrics aren't really up to his standard either. I can hear why this wouldn't make an LP or an A side. Decent B side material, I suppose. 3/5.
You've pretty well expressed my thoughts. And if I am going to get a song stuck in my head, I'd rather it be something positive like "Anytime you're down/Anytime you're sad/I'll be there to see you through" than, say, "yes, I'm lonely, wanna die" lol (and yes, I love the Fabs). I like it a lot, and personally I would use this on my playlist instead of "Strangers." I don't get too bothered about how closely the songs fit the album's concept (I think "Apeman" is a stretch, for example). But lyrically I could see this in place of "Strangers" or before "Powerman," perhaps sung to our hero by one of his friends, reminding him of the power of love in a cold world and that he is not totally alone as he resists Powerman and those like him. The Ray quote I read recently was that the song was "too commercial for its own good," which is an odd attitude to take for a band trying to get back on the charts and that released the ultra-catchy "Lola." But I suppose he enjoyed the fact that "Lola" was slyly subversive lyrically whereas "Anytime" was too straightforward and a little generic for him. Yes, I noticed that too and had to wonder if Bowie somehow heard it back then!
‘Anytime’ redux: I’m listening again, this time with headphones. I think it starts out very Mott the Hoople-ish (as said by @Scottsol ) and I expect Ian Hunter to come in on vocals. Then, I do see what the majority of you are saying about Badfinger...don’t see Abbey Road but hear more early McCartney. This is certainly a good song but I don’t know what I’d do with it. Lyrically, it’s a topic that can be plugged in pretty much anywhere (conceptually). It could have gone on Lola...but why mess with perfection? Quite frankly, I’m not too enamored with the next album so I’d probably tuck it in there!
On a further listen to "Anytime", it sounds like an anthem waiting for a stadium to be played in, but The Kinks hadn't graduated to that level yet.
Anytime Never heard this before. It is a decent song, but not hard to see how it didn't end up on the original album. Only marginally fits the album theme. I do like the change in the middle. It's OK, but "OK" is lower than the level of most Kinks songs at this juncture of their career.
If ‘Anytime’ had been a single and hit in 1970 it would’ve been The Kinks contribution to that whole Let It Be/Bridge Over Troubled Water/He Ain’t Heavy He’s My Brother ‘gigantic communal hymnal mega ballad that almost sounds like repentance for our 60s artistic excesses’ mini genre that several established 60s acts perpetuated around the turn of the decade.
I think both resemblances with Mott/Bowie and Badfinger are just proof that Anytime indeed sounds a bit generic, not as distinguished as the usual Kinks output. Don't get me wrong, I'm a big fan of Badfinger, I'll even admit it's quite an obsession of mine, but they're not in the Kinks' league. And All the Young Dudes is a fantastic iconic song but it's also one Bowie wrote in a couple of hours, I Wanna Be Your Man-style, and thought he could give away with no second thoughts… Plus, Anytime is neither as good as Dudes nor as No Matter What or We're for the Dark… Go back and buy it ! That's ALWAYS the best thing to do, in my experience. In matters of buying (or not buying) music, regret is the perfect barometer. You should be happy getting something, and relieved not pulling the trigger. If it's not the case and you have regrets, it shows you a deep visceral truth that is never wrong. That's due to the Brian Epstein/George Martin factor, I think. The Beatles were a gigantic creative force but they were constantly guided, guarded, almost engineered. Epstein would decide how much time would be devoted to writing/recording. Then Martin would determine if the songs were good enough, dismiss (= not record) the ones that weren't up to scratch, stop when enough material was in the can etc. It's pretty clear to me that Ray or Pete (or Barry) were mostly left to their own judgement on these matters, at least the writing. We've seen since day one on this thread that for almost every idea, Ray would write (and record) two different songs, and then decide with the band and label which ones he'd use and which ones were to be discarded.
Fortuleo, I don't think that Brian Epstein had any great involvement in the Beatles' writing/recording. There's a story about Brian visiting Abbey Road & suggesting something about changing a song being recorded & John angrily replying, "You stick with the percentages, Brian, we'll do the music".
How dare you! The next album is a soundtrack though, so I would imagine the songs need to somehow fit in with the film. I have never seen the film. Has anybody watched it before? Is it online anywhere? I mostly agree, but the opening does have hints of the guitar in "She Came In Through The Bathroom Window". I think that's the song I am thinking of. It also does sound like early McCartney in the guitar tone and style. Maybe Ray should have taken the Mott/Bowie route and at least given it to any number of bands who would have loved to have it. I'm sure Badfinger would even have taken it, but they were also doing pretty well with their own material at this point. It may not sound like a typical Kinks tune, but it's pretty darn good, even if some think it's a bit generic and beneath The Kinks. I probably will. I only didn't because I have been spending far too much lately on records and A Salty Dog is a pretty common record to find. This however did look in very nice shape and was cheap.
It was on YouTube last year but has since been taken down. I did manage to watch it before it was pulled tho.
My first time hearing this, and all I have to say is not just any Badfinger song, but specifically this one:
There was also highlights of the movie that featured the Kinks' songs that I saw several months ago, but it seems that also got pulled from YouTube.
