I remember hearing that song when I was a small boy. The problem w/WTAI, as well as American Bandstand, is that nobody seems to know how much material the former Dick Clark Enterprises has in its vaults, if any. I heard either all or somethe old shows were destroyed by fire or reuse of the videotapes or that everything has survived. I guess that the DC Enterprises has new owners now. Hopefully, there will be a search of the assets and find at least some of the footage. Speaking of hope, I do hope you get to see a doctor ASAP and see what's going on w/you.
David Watts was the b-side of Autumn Almanac everywhere except the U.K., I think. I’m not sure Reprise sold a lot of those 45s back in ’67, though. :/
All Day and All of the Night Just blazes. 20th Century Man "Imaginary Heroes" sounds like a ballad from an RCA-era Kinks album. It practically writes itself. A revelatory re-imagining. First bit is a faithful rendition of the pacing/phrasing of the studio cut (biological waaar-fare). The lyrics always hit hard - here we are, no pussyfooting, the 20th century isn't about great medical or industrial advances - it's a doomsday nightmare of demonic, horrifying mass murder. And then the anguished, enraged shouting, which feels like a much more appropriate response to the scene that's been set than the relatively laid-back studio version. Guitar slices through with an equally brutal intensity. Keyboards do a Who thing which doesn't exactly grate but isn't my favorite bit. Love this part of the studio version (I was born in a welfare state/ruled by bureaucracy/controlled by civil servants/and people dressed in grey/got no privacy/got no liberty/'cause the 20th century people/took it all away from me) & missed it the first time I heard this version, but I can't think of a way it would've fit into this particular arrangement, and the lyric isn't essential to the emotional impact of the song. Slow and somewhat draggy as the studio version is, the lyrics always felt very punk to me. & the live version really brings out that rage at being imprisoned in a terrifying and baffling historical moment. It feels very appropriate that it's followed here by Misfits, since the Man Out of Time is the perpetual misfit. & the idea of bellowing GAINSBOROUGH to an auditorium full of '80s adolescents is just beautiful, quintessential Kinks.
All Day and All of the Night Proof positive that the Kinks could krank it with the best of 'em. It just doesn't get any more killer than this. 20th Century Man I agree with each and every positive laud y'all have given this song so far... a genuine live masterpiece! I will add that this song also has some of the best combination of acoustic and electric guitar propelling it as I've ever heard.
"All Day and All of the Night" This is sort of a mixed bag. I watched the video clip last night and felt like it was too much. Dave on his knees and rock jamming is not really to my taste, and Ray channeling his inner Iggy in his white tennies looks silly. They all need to calm down a bit! I did enjoy the album version more this morning. I think it's the better performance. Ray doesn't sound like he is jumping around as much and delivers a better vocal. I also notice Mick more on the album version. I guess because I'm not watching Dave and Ray sucking up all of the spotlight. There is no denying that Dave is a great guitar player, but I much prefer his style and playing on the original version. This may be sped up, heavier, and flashier, but it can't touch the brilliance of their playing in 1964. "20th Century Man" This live version doesn't come close to the power of the original. I'm not feeling it. I love this song, but this sucks the life out of everything great about it. Once again, I'm not a fan of Dave's guitar playing. The bass kind of pops on this version and sounds good, but the keyboard tinkling sounds out of place. It gives it a Who flavor, but it's not working in The Kinks favor. Apologies to all who love this version, but this one is definitely not for me.
Yep. Studio David Watts saw single A-Side release only in Canada at the time. It was scheduled to be a US A-side at the same time, but was relegated to the B-side when Autumn Almanac came along at the last minute. UK Almanac got Mr. Pleasant as the B instead of Watts.
“I’m a 20th century man but I don’t want (don’t want…don’t want…don’t want) to be here.” Missing verse: “My mama said she can’t understand me…” Oops…there it is, inserted later on. A touch of ‘Born To Be Wild’…as Dave takes off on his supercharged guitar histrionics. A bit of The Who…and Dave’s off in the guitar hero stratosphere again. Guitar trumps several verses (gone, nowhere in sight!)…and there it is. I would have enjoyed it live. Of course, I would have been stoned, too…(but this wouldn’t be the version I’d feature as a showpiece. That’s the original for me.) A nice job turning it into arena material, though.
The issue, for me, with these One for the Road arrangements is they are the aural equivalent of attempting to paint a pastoral landscape by utilizing a hammer instead of a brush. There is little, if any, finesse to be found within the presentation of even the plain ol’ rock and roll songs. So much had changed from the live sound the band offered as late as ’78… and, in my opinion, none of it for the better. When the group I was with first heard the ham-fisted 1st-3rd-5th vocal gag (“Don’t want… “) on 20th Century Man live, we all actually laughed aloud (and not in a good way). Again, I’m delighted that so many people seem to love the album! So, perhaps, I should just keep my thoughts on the matter to myself from here on out. At the time, I guess we all honestly wondered where our fun, quirky Kinks (and all those good times) had actually gone. Sigh… (And yes, Mr. Streett, we’re most certainly deep into some serious overdub/replacement shenanigans by this point.)
Oh yes...I had totally forgot the HG had an album called Kinky. That alone keeps this side topic within thread parameters.
Introduction to Lola / Lola Good solid live fun. I love it when there is some give and take between the artist and crowd. In the moment, you gotta love that stuff. You hear the iconic riff, and then, oops, no, not tonight. It's amazing that this monster hit is just played in the middle of the set. For most bands, that kind of hit would require it be the final encore. And from the looks at some setlists, looks like Ray obliged in the 2000s? Pressure So fast, so energetic. How many people near the front of the stage got hurt during this song? Because I don't want to say "mosh pit", but if I were there, there'd be a lot of hopping around and elbows flying. All Day and All of the Night The intro works, because of how Ray makes it flow into the title of the song. "Forever.... all day.... all of the night!" And then the crunchy riff comes in. Ray's got his studio Attitude/Pressure voice here, so maybe he wasn't hamming it up. Maybe that is just how he song big rock songs in 1979 and 1980. And if he wrote All Day and All of the Night for Low Budget, this is pretty much what the studio vocal take would have sounded like. I really like Dave's guitar solo breakdown right before the "Day-oh!"s. 20th Century Man I first heard this version when we went over Muswell Hillbillies. So, for about 15 years, all I knew was the studio version. Agree with all the accolades, I love the original bridge but I don't think this arrangement needs it. I love the "Don't want... (don't want!) (don't want!)" harmonies. Such a neat trick. This builds earlier than the studio take for sure, but I guess he couldn't help it in a live setting. The lyrics are very angsty. Dave's guitar noodling and runs are fun. Around 4:15 though, is Dave playing the "You got me so I don't know what I'm doing" bit from You Really Got Me? That's what it sounds like to me! My only critiques would be I really don't like Mick's drumming in the intro and first verse. It's almost as if he has already built up his intensity a verse before everybody else, and Mick's drumming sounds the same 1 minute in as it does 3:30 into it. That, and not a huge fan of the added synth. I had thought that sounded out of place, and now that I read it's an overdub, yeah. Could do without, in my opinion.
Thanks for sharing! Well done by all! Love Dave's "haircut"...better than the frizz of the past. LOL.
All Day And All Of The Night Dave has shredded my ears off with this one. In the best way. Niiiiiiice! I have to believe I heard this a lot on the radio as I feel like I know it well enough (considering I never listened to the entire album before recently). Sure the intro and the way-o's are a little dated and cringy...however, this is the Kinks being fierce. This isn't a washed up band. this is a band at the top of their power and form enjoying the fruits of all their labor...in the US, specifically. They should have had this for the 2nd half of the 60s, but they didn't. this is the makegood. I say good for them and glad there is a decent recording of it available. I'm still not a live album enthusiast, but they have their place and this song really highlights that.
Snowfall? This time around I opted only for the essential minimum which was the 2 LP to get the bonus tracks with the Keith cover art, sure as for the parent LP an original totally smokes it!
Avid Boom Operator apparently works on a series entitled Snowfall: Snowfall (TV series) - Wikipedia As for the 40th Anniversary of Tattoo You, our library did have the 2 CD edition w/bonus tracks, but somebody borrowed it and hasn't brought it back!
Sorry (thank you, DISKOJOE!), I boomed season five of Snowfall (a series, of which, I have never viewed one second)—but (foolishly) imagined (of which) you might have heard. As I'm more than happy with my dozens (and dozens!) of original pressings, I'll hold off on any additional RS reissues for the time being.
Misfits. live, stereo mix, recorded (probably) 23 Sep, 1979 at (probably) Providence Civic Center, Providence, Rhode Island Again with a stunning piece of sequencing, we move from one of the most powerful displays of rock music ever recorded, into the beautiful ballad that is Misfits. I remember the impact this album had on me at the time... and it is worth noting that up to this point in the album, the only songs I knew were Lola and All Day And All Of The Night. In fact when I bought this album, those two and You Really Got Me were the only songs I knew on this album. I was used to hearing music I didn't know, because I was young, and part of the beauty of being a young music lover is the journey of discovery.... that if we don't nurture it, disappears when we get older. We open beautifully with the acoustic guitar and the piano. In fact the opening riff is on the acoustic, and I had never considered this before, but I'm pretty sure that means that Ray is playing it. It's funny, 20th Century Man was more country on the studio album, and Misfits seems a little more country on the live album. The band kick in and we have a solid performance. Then Dave plays the hook line lead, and it soars up, as Ray comes back in with the vocal. The backing vocals are solid. Again this is a really solid piece of work, and it comes across beautifully. The whole band is great, but again, for me, it is the combination of Ray and Dave's vocals and guitars that set this one right up there.
Prince Of The Punks. live, stereo mix, recorded 4 Mar, 1980 at Landmark Theatre, Syracuse, New York I like the studio version of this song, but the live version is a more fully realised arrangement, and leaves the studio version in the dust. We get Ray at the start showing playful enthusiasm with some odd vocalisations, and then we get a sort of hesitant first note that leads into a fully confident lead guitar lick. The band kick in and we have, what I imagine to be, power pop kicking along beautifully. The first change in the live version is the power of the song. Then the next is the wonderful backing vocals, replacing the horns, and sounding way better for it. Ray's vocals are better, more direct, and where needed more savage. This is a great rocking version of the song... and plenty more that could be said, but at the moment, I'm in a bad frame of mind.... so over to you guys
