The Kinks - Album by Album (song by song)

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

  1. markelis

    markelis Forum Resident

    Location:
    Miami Beach FL
    I agree with this whole heartedly. I always prefer a band (of brothers) to a singer songwriter who surrounds himself with session musicians, no matter how good they are.
     
  2. markelis

    markelis Forum Resident

    Location:
    Miami Beach FL
    I’m not sure if an album by album, song by song thread and Tom Petty has been done yet (and apparently I’m too lazy to search), but that would most definitely get my vote for our fearless leaders next thread!
     
  3. markelis

    markelis Forum Resident

    Location:
    Miami Beach FL
    Life Goes On: This was my fourth most favorite song on the album back when I picked it up as a kid. Not sure if I like Full Moon or Stormy Skies enough to replace it in my original ranking. I think it’s a great song and I’m not bothered by the length, I enjoy hearing the musicians stretch out a bit (as others have mentioned). I do think it’s a fine album closer.
     
  4. Wondergirl

    Wondergirl Forum Resident

    Location:
    Massachusetts, USA
    A-ha! Yes! Life Goes On reminded me of something very 70s and I think you nailed it. this must be what I'm thinking of.
     
  5. Brian x

    Brian x the beautiful ones are not yet born

    Location:
    Los Angeles
    Agreed. Wild Life in particular is an incredible vocal exercise. He did something similar later, in not quite as strong a voice, with Rinse the Raindrops.
     
  6. ThereOnceWasANote

    ThereOnceWasANote Forum Resident

    Location:
    Cape May, NJ
    I hear pieces of Life Goes On which were smoothed out and refined on a future Kinks album closer. The melody of this future song is here as well. I hear them lyrically connected as well.
     
    Last edited: Mar 2, 2022
  7. markelis

    markelis Forum Resident

    Location:
    Miami Beach FL
    Sleepwalker revisited: It seems like I am somewhat in the minority in that I really liked this album going into it, and by listening closely, song by song, discovered that the slower ballads, which were not as familiar to me as I had thought, mostly rose in my estimation, resulting in me liking the album even more. For me, pretty much every song would make my playlist, other than possibly Brother. Some have discussed the peaks and valleys of this album, for me I would call it all sea-level, with Juke Box Music and the title track standing out as a couple of Mount Rushmores. The only dip for me is Brother and that’s, at worst, a flight of stairs or two down into the subway. Maybe I’m being too generous, but I came of age as a record buyer in the late 70s and early 80s so the particular styles and sounds from that era doesn’t bother me. Sleepwalker, along with Misfits being two of my earliest purchases, and my first two kinks albums that I bought In real time, consequently hold a special place in my heart. I know they’re not perfect, but then again most Kinks albums are not perfect, except for _____ (I’m sure we could each slide our own particular favorite kinks album or three in the proceeding empty space). I’m looking forward to discussing the upcoming cast offs from this album as I like them as well.
     
  8. ThereOnceWasANote

    ThereOnceWasANote Forum Resident

    Location:
    Cape May, NJ
    Sleepwalker

    The Kinks MOR album but good, solid MOR with a bit of a bite. There is a kind of dreamy feel to most of these tracks too. But the songs bookending the album give it a slightly theatrical vibe of opening and closing a show. It's a mature-sounding album driven by mid-tempo numbers. It's a smooth sound here and he seems to be going for universal themes that could apply to anyone. It's a soft rock skewed album but a really good soft rock album. The Kinks konquer soft rock here and never really made an album like this again. It's an album of its time not timeless. If it were to be graded it is a solid B. "Jukebox Music" is still the highlight for me though I enjoy most of the tracks. As an album I feel side 1 is more consistent and sequenced better. Too many similar mid-tempo songs on the back half and the Dave-sung song is a lowlight. Also at times the Kinks sound more like session musicians here. Sleepwalker is a pretty good ok album.
     
  9. mark winstanley

    mark winstanley Certified dinosaur, who likes physical product Thread Starter

    For the most part it depends on the session musician.
    Hopkins produced excellent work for the Kinks, and many others.
    Many great session drummers have added a lot to the stuff they've played on..
     
  10. Vangro

    Vangro Forum Resident

    Location:
    London
    I'd say it depends on the music more. Nicky Hopkins is an example of a session man brought in specifically to play stuff the band couldn't play themselves, which is kind of different from the what the ubiquitous pool of LA session men in the 70s were used for. It's great for Steely Dan but not for everyone.
     
  11. mark winstanley

    mark winstanley Certified dinosaur, who likes physical product Thread Starter

    For me Damn The Torpedoes and Hard Promises are prime Tom Petty, well worth a youtube listen if you get time.
     
  12. mark winstanley

    mark winstanley Certified dinosaur, who likes physical product Thread Starter

    To some degree it pays to remember that most of the funniest people ever were clinically depressed, and sadly many ended up killing themselves whether by impulse, or the slow suicide of addiction.
    I think it gives the song a halo of authenticity.
     
  13. Martyj

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

    Location:
    Maryland, USA
    I guess one either hears this sameness or doesn’t.

    To me, I am reminded of—in art—what we call The Zorn Palette*, named after the terrific portrait painter Anders Zorn, who created his works using just four basic oils of White, Ivory black, Ochre, and Cadmium Red. (*confession: I am an amateur portrait painter who works in oil.) While this limited palette resulted in amazing works with consistent unity across his entire oeuvre, there is a sameness to it all that is recognized by both his fans (me) and detractors. The Zorn Palette can create almost any color you need and is a cost effective approach (only four oils needed!) used by lots of artists for a wide diversity of subjects—still life, portraits, landscapes, impressionistic, abstract, etc. Yet if one really understands art one can, at a glance, recognize a sameness that results from a limited palette.

    Thats kind of what I (and perhaps others?) recognize in Sleepwalker. It seems like the band is working with a limited palette that produced a recognizable sameness, emphasized mostly with the production/recording. Doesn’t matter what the song tempo, subject matter or instrumentation is. It’s an aural thing. I can hear it. I suppose coming on the heels of late Pye/RCA eras with rich textures in both the recordings and performance make it all the more noticeable.

    It’s worth noting, too, that early Kinks, pre-Face to Face at least, had an even more limited palette in their basic instrumentation but somehow managed to pull off a diverse sound. I’m not sure why or how to explain it. Maybe it was Shel Talmy and certain in-studio limitations that forced the band to experiment in a way that couldn’t help but have diverse results. I dunno…but to me there seems a much greater, and more appreciable gulf between “You Really Got Me” and “Stop Your Sobbing”, for example, than there is between “Juke Box Music” and “Brother.”
     
  14. Fischman

    Fischman RockMonster, ClassicalMaster, and JazzMeister

    Location:
    New Mexico
    Life Goes On

    During my career in the United States Air Force, one of my many requirements was annual suicide prevention training. They would always begin by saying "Suicide is a permanent solution to a temporary problem."
    I couldn't help but be reminded of this song.

    I do love this song. Leave it to Ray to take such dire subject matter and treat it in such a genial way.... not just that, but make it genuine fun to listen to, and all without it coming across as silly, dismissive, or as an untenable disconnect.

    Great lyrics, great music.... great song!
     
  15. ThereOnceWasANote

    ThereOnceWasANote Forum Resident

    Location:
    Cape May, NJ
    Hopkins, especially with the Stones, was so much more than a session player and I think his contributions to the Kinks were underappreciated.

    IMHO he was a huge part of Rolling Stones four album run from 1968-1972. His piano playing was a crucial ingredient to what is called the "Stonesy" sound.
     
  16. Rockford & Roll

    Rockford & Roll Forum Resident

    Location:
    Midway, KY
    So three surprisingly good songs to finish up the album proper. You folks have been all over it and I've learned a lot and also had some nice chuckles. Thanks! "Stormy Sky" is a nice soft rock tune. The keys and the overall vibe remind me of a couple of the deep tracks on Supertramp's Breakfast In America , maybe "Casual Conversations" and the like? If memory serves, quite a few bands went the soft route around this time to get some sales - thinking Foghat, April Wine and probably more y'all could name. "Full Moon" is a true standout for me here. It's a great song in of itself and I didn't find myself spotting the influences or soundalikes. Nice how Ray references Sleepwalker! As for "Life Goes On", I have always liked Ray's "chin up and get on with it" songs and this one is no different. A great closer!

    Mark, have a large time at the Nick Cave and Warren Ellis show. I need to check the setlist and see what they are playing!
     
  17. mark winstanley

    mark winstanley Certified dinosaur, who likes physical product Thread Starter

    I wouldn't disagree with that.
    LA has always leaned towards having a somewhat generic sheen, even though I love a lot of the stuff that came out of there.

    I guess to me, it comes down to me not hearing Dave's playing on here as dull... which seems to have been the tilt of the session muso tag.
     
  18. ThereOnceWasANote

    ThereOnceWasANote Forum Resident

    Location:
    Cape May, NJ
    I don't think he ever topped Torpedoes. Not a weak track front to back.
     
  19. ThereOnceWasANote

    ThereOnceWasANote Forum Resident

    Location:
    Cape May, NJ
    Life Goes On

    "My bank went broke and my well ran dry.
    It was almost enough to contemplate suicide.
    I turned on the gas, but I soon realized
    I hadn't settled my bill so they cut off my supply.
    No matter how I try, it seems I'm too young to die."

    No one else could write those lyrics besides Ray Davies. It's a good album closer this one. It's no Moving Pictures (the future song whose sound and some of the lyrics feel like a continuation of this one to me) but it is enjoyable. Kudos to Ray for both mixing humor and weather into a song on such a weighty subject as well as writing about it in the first place.

    There is a mid-70s LA vibe to the sound of this album I agree.
     
  20. palisantrancho

    palisantrancho Forum Resident

    There are probably not many music fans who would enjoy all of these albums on your list. You listed 30 albums, if I counted accurately. I am down with around half of them. Now I want to know the albums you don’t like from 1977! :)
     
  21. croquetlawns

    croquetlawns Forum Resident

    Location:
    Scotland
    Life Goes On is a song I don't mind while it's playing, but I've forgotten how it goes within minutes of it ending - a disappointing album closer.

    Overall I enjoy Sleepwalker. There are, IMO, some bland songs, which is not usual for The Kinks up to this point. But then, it seems that Ray was actively encouraged to keep anything quirky in the closet! There are also some really good songs that carry the album.
     
  22. mark winstanley

    mark winstanley Certified dinosaur, who likes physical product Thread Starter

    That's fair, I guess I just don't hear it that way.

    You really got me didn't really sound like much else at all at that time, which seems like part of its initial appeal.

    To me all the tracks on the debut sound like songs from 64/65, in the same way that all the songs on Sleepwalker sound like songs from 77/78.

    I think there is a unity of production sound on Sleepwalker, but it doesn't make the songs sound the same to me.
    The other thing is though, based on a million music conversations over the years, if the production sounds were quite varied, we'd be hearing that the album doesn't gel together well due to the disparity of sound lol

    I wonder to some degree if the removal of horns and backing singers and all the fruit on the last few albums is part of the effect.
    Lola is probably the last stripped back album before Sleepwalker, and it has a unity of production sound, and nobody was perturbed then.

    I think the reality is more that, many folks don't like the late seventies style of sound.
    We read about, not liking the electric piano sounds, synth sounds, guitar sounds etc... The keyboard sounds do have a general kind of same-ish sound about them, and 1977 synth strings, are 1977 synth strings.... the guitars don't sound remotely the same as each other, but they are 1977 guitar sounds.......
    Now contrast that with acoustic piano, and hammond's b3, acoustic guitar.... they generally always sound the same/very similar, but there's generally no complaint about samey sounding music, because we seem to generally accept that about instruments we are more used to.

    I'm just thinking aloud again.
     
  23. Wondergirl

    Wondergirl Forum Resident

    Location:
    Massachusetts, USA
    Life Goes On
    another very 70s sounding tune. And one I believe I remember from radio play as I feel like I've always know it.

    There's a lot good going on here. I think Ray did a great job with the lyrics. We get a look at his friend (could this be the guy who listened to his ex having sex with someone else in Sleepless Night?), then a look at the big picture, then a peek at the the singer's troubles and how being broke actually prevented him from offing himself. "No matter how I try, it seems I'm too young to die." Brilliant! How does Ray do this...incorporate so much into 5 minutes?

    (and one criticism is that maybe it goes on a tad too long)

    Even though the music doesn't remind me of Dylan, I feel like Ray's vocals are sounding a lot like him for the entire bridge.

    and the two handclaps are just a whimsical addition that somehow make me laugh.

    It's not a mindblowing closer, but this is a solid song.
     
  24. mark winstanley

    mark winstanley Certified dinosaur, who likes physical product Thread Starter

    No argument from me... he was just the first to come to mind... I've been living in the Kinks catalog for a while now lol
     
  25. mark winstanley

    mark winstanley Certified dinosaur, who likes physical product Thread Starter

    I'll try, but I don't generally think about music I don't like.

    To some degree I always listen to music listening for what I like about it, and/or what others hear in it. I think that comes from either being, or trying to be a writer... I'm not sure.... give me a bit, and I'll see if i can find anything.
    :)

    Edit: for the record, I do have and like all those
     

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