Anytime So I was introduced to this through the Anthology. I didn't know where it was from and just accepted that I always knew it as someone who wasn't a hardcore fan. LOL It does hit you as something you've always known. but is that a good thing or bad thing? I can see why it wasn't used by Ray.It's a very straightforward sentiment. Nothing especially Kinky...or containing any Ray irony. Ray never did things the easy and predictable way and hence this song got chopped. But I still think it's a gorgeous song that the general public would have picked up on if it was released as a single. I could see people holding up their lighters while this was sung live. I know...cheesy! I love how he sings "And you need someone to caaare"...that always gets me. Dave sounds great in the background. And yes, I hear the All the Young Dudes similarity at the start. Last year, the Kinks released this(I dont' think anyone has posted this). It includes tidbits of the Lola LP which is cool: I found this quote from Ray about this release: "The isolation caused by the coronavirus can give people time to reassess the world and reevaluate their lives. Music can comfort the lonely, transcend time, not be the future or the past, yesterday, today or tomorrow. It is for any time. I saw a way to make this unreleased track from the 70s connect with a 2020 audience. I also saw a way to show that music can travel through time, that memory is instantaneous, and therefore can be linked to us in the “now”. I put all this together, as if it were something surreal and then I realized that it had really worked. The song has found its place, after its 50th birthday!" Very pleased they decided to release this song. We want MORE though!!
Anytime Don't care for this one very much. I don't think it's better than any song on the released Lola vs. Powerman. Ray himself doesn't seem to know where the whole thing is going. Check the melody of the first two lines, specifically the notes sung to "--side" and "street." I can hear the melody going up at that point, or down, but it seems like Ray can't decide, and he just lets it sit in the same place. His delivery is tentative, and the whole thing sounds wrong--and not, as is sometimes the case with the Kinks, charmingly so. Sounds like a Take One.
Ok, so I had a bit of time spare. This is, at the moment how the thread will roll. Tomorrow - The Good Life Thursday - Dave Davies - Decade intro - If You Are Leaving Friday - The Kinks Golden Hour Saturday - Percy - Film and Album set up - Also the Percy EP Then long term from there, but less specific You Really Got Me EP - Aug 71 Muswell Hillbillies - Nov 71 Kink Kronikles - Mar 72 Everybody's In Showbiz - Aug 72 Great Lost Kinks Album - Jan 73 Dave's Decade 1973 tracks (5) Preservation Act 1 - Nov 73 Preservation Act 2 - May 74 Dave's Decade 1975 tracks (3) Soap Opera - May 75 Schoolboys In Disgrace - Nov 75 The Kinks Greatest/Celluloid Heroes 1976 Sleepwalker - Feb 77 Father Christmas/Prince Of The Punks Nov 77 Misfits - May 78 20 Golden Greats 1978 Dave's Decade 1978/79 tracks (4) Low Budget - Jul 19 US - Sep 79 UK Second Time Around - 1980 Dave Davies AFL1-3603 - 1980 One For the Road - June 1980 (album and video) Waterloo Sunset EP - June 1980 Kinks Live EP - Jul 1980 Dave Davies Glamour - 1981 Give The People What They Want - Aug 81 US - Jan 82 UK Dave Davies Chosen People - 1983 You Really Got Me single - 1983 Kinks State Of Confusion - June 83 (+ State Of Confusion EP - 1984) Dead End Street/Greatest Hits - 1983 Compleat Collection - 1984 Word Of Mouth - Nov 84 Ray Davies Return To Waterloo - Jul 85 Come Dancing With The Kinks - Jun 86 Think Visual - Nov 86 The Kinks Are Well Respected Men - Sep 87 The Road - Jan 88 Greatest Hits - 1989 Ultimate Collection - 1989 UK Jive - Oct 89 Lost And Found (86-89) - 1991 Did Ya (single and EP) - Oct 91 The Definitive Collection - 1993 A Portrait Of The Kinks - 1993 Phobia - Mar 93 To The Bone - Oct 94 Waterloo Sunset 94 EP - Oct 94 The Definitive Collection - 1996 You Really Got Me The Very Best Of The Kinks - 1997 The Singles Collection - 1997 Ray Davies Storyteller - 1998 We'll look at how the 2000's roll when we get there. For all you experts, please let me know if there is something missing. Cheers Mark
1986 saw the release of a Ray solo track “Quiet Life” from the Absolute Beginners movie soundtrack which also saw release as a single. This has never been collected on a Kinks compilation or box. Also To The Bone had two separate and distinct releases. The 1 CD UK 1994 version you list but then a 1996 US 2 CD version. There is overlap between the two but there are also exclusives to each release. Along with that 1994 release, a UK CD single release called Waterloo Sunset ‘94 EP contains unique material one song of which remains unique to that release (Elevator Man demo from the Sleepwalker era).
I revise the end date of his thread to be Jan 12, 30,000CE. Who's going to be here til the end? Make a commitment to see this through no matter what. Death or dismemberment is no excuse. Good catch by @Michael Streett on Quiet Life. Though not a stunning triumph, it will offer a lovely respite from that darned rock n roll (you kids are gonna go DEAF, I'm tellin' ya).
I know everyone is probably over discussing Anytime at this point, but I gotta add one more thought: Anytime, as recorded in 1970, would have not been out of place on Sleepwalker (1977). Not saying it should replace anything on Sleepwalker, just saying it foretold the sound of that particular album by a good 7 years.
Yes - "Anytime" is the kind of stadium anthem which would have taken the roof off on the 1977 tours. Probably achieves what they were going for with "Brother".
If we're going to be discussing Golden Hour tomorrow, then the other two volumes should fit in somewhere during 1973 and 1974. The third is pretty significant as it collects together probably at least 30% of the entire Kinks Pye catalogue!
Ok, thanks for the input folks. Hopefully that should be a pretty complete discography up to the turn of the Millennium. You Really Got Me EP - Aug 71 Muswell Hillbillies - Nov 71 Kink Kronikles - Mar 72 Everybody's In Showbiz - Aug 72 Great Lost Kinks Album - Jan 73 Dave's Decade 1973 tracks (5) Golden Hour Of The Kinks vol 2 - 1973 Preservation Act 1 - Nov 73 Preservation Act 2 - May 74 Golden Hour vol 3 Lola, Percy & The Apemen Come Face To Face With The Village Green Preservation Society... Something Else - 1974 Dave's Decade 1975 tracks (3) Soap Opera - May 75 Schoolboys In Disgrace - Nov 75 The Kinks Greatest/Celluloid Heroes 1976 Sleepwalker - Feb 77 Father Christmas/Prince Of The Punks Nov 77 Misfits - May 78 20 Golden Greats 1978 Dave's Decade 1978/79 tracks (4) Low Budget - Jul 19 US - Sep 79 UK Second Time Around - 1980 Dave Davies AFL1-3603 - 1980 One For the Road - June 1980 (album and video) Waterloo Sunset EP - June 1980 Kinks Live EP - Jul 1980 Dave Davies Glamour - 1981 Give The People What They Want - Aug 81 US - Jan 82 UK Dave Davies Chosen People - 1983 You Really Got Me single - 1983 Kinks State Of Confusion - June 83 (+ State Of Confusion EP - 1984) Dead End Street/Greatest Hits - 1983 Compleat Collection - 1984 Word Of Mouth - Nov 84 Ray Davies Return To Waterloo - Jul 85 Ray Davies Quiet Life - Apr 86 Come Dancing With The Kinks - Jun 86 Think Visual - Nov 86 The Kinks Are Well Respected Men - Sep 87 The Road - Jan 88 Ray Davies 80 Days - 1988 Greatest Hits - 1989 Ultimate Collection - 1989 UK Jive - Oct 89 Lost And Found (86-89) - 1991 Did Ya (single and EP) - Oct 91 The Definitive Collection - 1993 A Portrait Of The Kinks - 1993 Phobia - Mar 93 To The Bone - Oct 94 Waterloo Sunset 94 EP - Oct 94 The Definitive Collection - 1996 You Really Got Me The Very Best Of The Kinks - 1997 The Singles Collection - 1997 Ray Davies Storyteller - 1998 We certainly have a lot to look at, but don't be disheartened folks, as a lot of those are going to be one day references. Cheers Mark
The Good Life stereo mix (3:16), recorded 13 Sep 1970 at Morgan Studios (1), Willesden, London Well I failed my education And I failed at my first job Well I failed so bad that I nearly broke down But then the good, good life came and turned my head around Then a fat man walked up to me Smokin' a Havana cigar And said, "boy you gotta learn to put your body around You'll have a big Rolls-Royce and make one or ten million pounds It's gonna be the good life Good life I'll give you wine, women, music if you sign on the dotted line" Good good food Good good wine Well it's a good, good life and I love it Better off than being a tramp I write so many cheques that my fingers get cramp I've got so many women that I wish that I wasn't a man It's gonna be the good life Good life But I'm so browned off that it's given me a permanent tan Too much food Too much wine Well it's a good, good life and I love it That was a good, good life and I loved it Cheat me all the time Well they spent all their money, now they're gonna spend mine I got so many problems that it's keeping me awake at night And if this is civilization, I'd rather be uncivilized And if this is the good, good life, I'd rather be back in the mine Written by: Ray Davies Published by: Carlin Music Corp. Whereas Anytime doesn’t really seem to fit the album theme, this song certainly does. It actually seems like it would slot quite easily into the album either just before or just after Denmark Street, or as AJ said just before Apeman. Ray starts off by telling us he has failed at everything, but a guy with a big cigar came up and offered him a contract, that will lead to the Good Life. We roll through how good this life actually turned out to be, and there is a good slab of sarcasm rolling through here. For the record the term “browned off” is likely an English term because it is something my dad used to say and equates to being pissed off. I think the line “I write so many cheques that my fingers are getting a cramp” comes into context later on in the song, because it seems like he is writing the cheques for the business people, who, “.. spent all their money and now they’re going to spend mine” The line “I have so many women that I wish I wasn’t a man” is hilarious and shows Ray at his sarcastic provocative best. We move into the idea that this “Good Life” isn’t all it’s cracked up to be near the end and reveals the song to be a sarcastic dig at this whole idea of the “Good Life”. That was a good, good life and I loved it Cheat me all the time Well they spent all their money, now they're gonna spend mine I got so many problems that it's keeping me awake at night And if this is civilization, I'd rather be uncivilized And if this is the good, good life, I'd rather be back in the mine The “I got so many problems …” line, really does seem to be part and parcel with the fame and fortune routine, and it is hard to convince someone who has been living from cheque to cheque all their life that this would be possible. Ray makes sure that he lets us know that he just ends up being a cash flow item for those that leach all they can out of him. In the end the idea seems to be that he ended up being a slave to a system that wasn’t all it initially appeared. I can totally relate to the If this is Civilization, I’d rather be uncivilized idea, but from a different perspective. There is so much going on in the name of civilization that it is very easy to become disenfranchised by all the lies and deceit. Also, Ray tops it off with the fantastic line If This is the good, good life I’d rather be back in the mine…. Which to some degree seems like hyperbole, but I can understand the feeling…. I do believe however that many that are back in the mine, figuratively or literally, are likely to feel the other way around about that. This is a great little rocker and we see Ray pull out his seventies rock voice….. and I have to admit I love Ray’s seventies Rock voice, I think it works really well, and used in balance with all his other voices it just adds to the great pleasure of listening to the Kinks, for me at least. The music is fairly basic in its construction, but that isn’t a big deal to me… I mean I love T Rex and Status Quo, so there is no necessity for me to have a hyper technically constructed song to enjoy it a lot, and the guys just punch into a great blues/rock boogie here. It does have a few nice little sections that make it a little more than just a boogie, but that is the heart of the song. I reckon we notice that the band are much better at this kind of track by the late sixties, and I think that they understand the dirt needed to carry it off. I thin Ray’s vocal helps with this. At the end of the day, I really like this song, but as with Anytime, I’m not sure there was a spot for it on the album.
Not anywhere near Anytime in quality, it’s still hard to believe a fleshed-out track such as this would remain unreleased, un-bootleged and even un-rumored for so long. As @Mark´s just described, we get some not too refined boogie rock, with the return of T-Rayx Davies’ trembling voice at the beginning before “Shouty Ray” takes over (who called him like that, was it @ARL ?) and some cool aggressive guitar from Dave. Note that the bluesy descending melodic phrase used on the “I write so many cheques that my fingers get cramps” line will become the key hook of 20th Century Man, (“I’m a 20th century man and I doon’t… I don’t want to bee here“) on Muswell Hillbillies. @ajsmith said yesterday it could’ve filled the Rats spots on the Lola LP, and I think he’s right on target there. To my mind, it’s absolutely fascinating to imagine the whole Lola concept first written by Ray, before Strangers and Rats were introduced to replace two less compelling tracks (I don’t believe in this theory, but I’m very seduced by it). Like Rats, The Good Life is also a direct development of Top of the Pops, its title phrase even uses the trick described by @Luckless Pedestrian when analyzing that song, lyrics made to mean the opposite of what’s being said. Here, “the Good Life” means “awful experience” or even “self-disgust”, also expressed by the agressive / « vulgar » music. I realize I’ve mentioned a lot of older posts here, but it shows I read (and remember!) EVERYTHING on the thread !
"The Good Life" This is another one I've not heard before. Firstly, I'm glad that it didn't make the album, because I don't think it would have fit and may have even been a bit of a blocker for me. It is an OK track, just not for this album. Although it doesn't have the country leanings, or the thematic link, as a tune it sounds more suited for Muswell Hillbillies. Even more, though, it sounds like late 70s Kinks material. The surprising thing I've found while catching up with the middle four RCA albums recently is how much of the late 70s Kinks sound was already making an appearance years earlier, and this is an even earlier example. Would have fit nicely on Low Budget - especially with the "Shouty Ray" (yes, I think I did use that term first!) vocals.
Is it reading too much into this lyric to think that ‘I got so many women that I wish that I wasn’t a man’ is meant to be heard as a bitter echo of the ‘glad I’m a man’ lyric in ‘Lola’? It’s almost certainly reading too much into the lyric to hear ‘it’s giving me a permanent tan’ as another line setting up ‘Apeman’, re: Ray’s (arguable) adoption of a Jamaican accent in that song, in a kinda typical 70s non-PC gag kinda way. Still I admit that both of these long shot unlikely connections have occurred to me when spinning this one…
The Good Life: The highlights of this song is all in the lyrics as it is quite clever and very humorous. Music? Just a pedestrian blues. That beginning part, where it sashays back and forth, brings to mind The Hollies ‘Long Cool Woman in a Black Dress....for all of two or three seconds. As Mark says, the lyrics stick it right onto the Lola album but, and this is me now, it’s not a good enough song to displace anything.