I'm looking buy all the Kinks albums on CD, and was trying to find a thread that had the "best CD version" of at least some of the albums, and am not having any luck finding anything. First on my list is The Kink Kontroversy. I see there are remasters with some bonus tracks, and early 80s releases were, according to Discogs, only available in Europe/UK. Any guidance would be appreciated.
I like the 2 CD Deluxe Editions myself. The early 80's releases are harder to find. For Kinks Kontroversy the original 80s or the Deluxe Edition are fine. The 1998 Castle/Sanctuary issue on the other hand is terrible. Don't buy it. The Deluxe Editions also have a bevy of formerly unreleased songs so they are worth getting for those alone. Edit: They also have singles and an EP that were released around the same time as the albums, some of their best songs.
The Castle Classics may be a cheaper option to the PRTs which are now sought-after due to their great sound, especially “Ugly Pink” Greatest Hits endorsed by our host.
According to the loudness wars database the 2011 Deluxe edition is compressed. Goes from a DR value of 12 to 8. So they're more than a little compressed.
They are loud, yes. But not everything is in the DR numbers. The other options have other problems which make them worse IMO. There's not a perfect CD for Kontrovery, I'm afraid.
A find that a lot early "British Invasion" artists such as The Kinks, The Rolling Stones and other don't have very well recorded master tapes for their 60s material.
Whatever you do, avoid the 1998 Kink Kontroversy remaster. For me, even though the early PRT & Castle CDs will probably be better and are highly regarded, I'd go for the deluxe editions. They do sound good, are still available quite cheap and the bonus material is essential.
Yeah, that is the way it usually is. Most I know are content with the deluxe editions. They have exclusive tracks, mono and stereo when applicable, good notes.. I don't have a problem with them. Some are going out of print now. Kinda Kinks is starting to get a little pricey. I just picked up all of the ones that I was missing up to Show-Biz. I do have an "Ugly Pink" Greatest Hits CD and the Well Respected Men comps and I kept all of my 1990's Castle CDs. The only one that I really would need to keep is the live one but that is how I really got into them in the 90's.
I like my Deluxe editions. I bought a bunch of them a few years back. All of their albums from 1966-1972. But Muswell is a single CD.
Expect the 1998! Honestly, I've mentioned it before, but it's the worst remaster from a major act, possibly from anyone, that I've ever heard. It's unbelievably tinny, has absolutely horrible EQ and its incredible that anyone listened to it and thought it was worth releasing. I think the dreadful thing has been in print for 24 years now too! The 1998 Face To Face and Something Else CDs aren't much better. I remember I'm Not Like Everybody Else on Face To Face sounding particularly pathetic.
Yeah, there's basically no perfect versions. The PRT or Castle Classics are probably the best/least bad/most consistently good. The deluxe editions could have been definitive, but they sound quite harsh and unpleasant. I've noticed that a few of the 24/96 downloads have disappeared from Qobuz. I wanted to get Face To Face, but that one only exists in 24/44.1 – wonder what happened. Do other sites have this problem?
I've seen that said a lot, but I think they sound quite close to the original UK Pye 45s at least. They were cut loud and quite harsh. I love them!
I don't think the deluxe sets are terrible, but I didn't become *obsessed* with the Kinks until I heard the PRTs. Which is not to say the PRTs are perfect, but they're a tremendous upgrade. EDIT: To be clear, the deluxe editions are how I first heard the Kinks. So that was all I knew until I heard the PRTs.
I don't have any of the PRTs, but I do have these two early 90s Castle The Kinks Story CDs. These are how I got into The Kinks. Superb track lists and still the best sounding Kinks on CD I've heard. The mono box vinyl and the old UK Pye singles are the best I've heard overall. I only have the debut as an original UK LP. The Kinks - The Kinks Story Volume 1 1964-1966 The Kinks - The Kinks Story Volume 2 · 1967 - 1971 I do intend to pick up the old PRT or Castle CDs as I see them cheap to go with the deluxe editions.
Another plus for the Deluxe Editions is that they have the mono mixes which are definitive for Face To Face (the stereo of this is useless) and arguably so for Something Else and Village Green Preservation Society. The PRT and Castle CDs of Something Else contain remixes of "Tin Soldier Man" and "Situation Vacant" while the Reprise CD has a horribly mangled "David Watts". I do own a combination of the early Castle and PRT CDs including the "Ugly Pink" and The Kinks Are Well Respected Men as well as the '98 Sanctuary Lola Vs. Powerman and Percy. Some of them are better, some of them are not. I would be happy with just the Deluxes.
I'd like to find 'ugly pink'. There's definitely a place for a great sounding simple 'just the hits' Kinks CD in my collection.
