The Kink Kontroversy - what a great album!

Its where my Kinks album collection starts. Its their first bona fide album in my opinion.

 

Not sure how "overlooked" an album is that even had tribute artwork ("Dig Me Out" by Sleater Kinney) but "Kontroversy" is definitely the best early Kinks album. Marking the transition from a pure singles to a more and more album orientated band.

 

I'm really looking forward to that - my urge to start exploring them has finally won

 

Til the end of the day, I'm on an island, Ring the bells, The world keeps going round, Where have all the good times gone..

Very solid album

 

I've got KK on Edsel Records (early '80s issue). I can't really recall the sound quality. Gotta dig it out.

 

"I'm On An Island" is my favorite on the album, also.

It's shocking that it's not on any of the myriad Kinks kompilations (and I've got zillions of 'em, both vinyl and CD) that I kan find.

I used to think this album was just so-so, but a very kind SHF member sent me the entire album (when I had requested just "I'm On An Island") and I was amazed at some of the other tracks.

"Milk Cow Blues", which opens the album, rocks about as hard as any mid-60's song!


Ya kan't beat the Kinks!

 

Absolutely, this is a song that's got it all.

 

I discovered The Kinks in 1990, loved them since.

 

This is IMO the best sounding CD edition: The Kinks - The Kink Kontroversy

 

Start of the golden run IMO, only let down by a couple of lacklustre songs on the end of side 2 ( I’m looking at you It’s Too Late and What’s in Store For Me) but definitely a sign of a strong songwriter starting to emerge. Might go give it a spin now.

 

The single disc with the bonus tracks is the one that sounds terrible. I may have mentioned the wrong one in my earlier post. I can't remember if Sanctuary or Castle. The original Castle is OK.

 

Agree with that.

I don't think the album contains the quality of songs they were releasing at the time as singles, b-sides and EP tracks. The early Kinks albums were nowhere near the quality of their singles, it was only with the next album did they make an album that was on a level with their singles. Imagine buying Set Me Free, See My Friends and A Well Respected Man and then picking up this album. Can't see how it wasn't a disapointment.

 

I love Kontroversy. I may be repeating a bit, but Kontroversy is a quantum leap from it's predecessor, but it's successor Face to Face is a quantum leap from it, causing it to be a bit thrown in the "middling early albums" bag and not fully appreciated and overshadowed by the astonishing run from Face to Face through Muswell. The songs on Kontroversy were much deeper lyrically than the usual fare of that era, especially What's In Store for Me. I also love, love love Dave's I Am Free, and has been pointed out I'm On An Island is awesome too.

This album is a sentimental favorite of mine as I listened to it frequently zooming around Adams County, PA as a cub reporter for the Gettysburg Times newspaper, at which I worked just after graduating from the college down the road. On the way to cover Borough Council and School Board meetings, I often played Kontrovery on a boom box in the back seat of my car I would operate with one hand while driving. Sometimes I would hit record by accident instead of play, so the tape had spots of silence and driving noises followed by my voice saying "where's the damn music . . . oh ****!" before hearing "pop!" and the music resuming. Ah, those were the days. Best job ever. I remember a big raise from $4.50 to $4.75 an hour. Cause for celebration.

 

But you could make this kind of argument about a lot of classic bands back in the early to mid 60s. Singles were still the coin of the realm back then and particularly in the UK, the best tracks from a given set of sessions were often left off the LP in favor of less memorable "filler". Kontroversy doesn't strike me as being particularly egregious for its time in this regard.

I think that it's a very solid release from the boys, featuring a more straight ahead sound but hinting at the maturation that was to come. I don't rank it up there in the top tier necessarily, but they were getting there.

 

I never liked it that much until I scored an original UK mono PYE pressing ($5!) and it completely changed my opinion of the album. All their early stuff sounds way better in Mono.

 

The album has only six short songs per side. There was room for two more, like "Rubber Soul" (released at around the exact same time). This certainly would've been a welcome addition:

 

Interesting thing about The Kink Kontroversy is that it signals the change from riff-based rockers (Till the End of the Day, Gotta Get the First Plane Home) to a move into the more lyrical approach of Ray Davies' later work. Themes and ideas such as the use of the Weather (especially the sun) to indicate mood (The World Keeps Going Round), bodies of water to indicate Isolation (I'm on An Island) and Nostalgia (Where Have All the Good Times Gone) would continue run periodically throughout his work into the present day. On the first occasion I saw The Kinks live, in November 1969, Dave was playing his prototype Flying V and the overall "sound" of the band was very much like that album. The sound of that guitar very much dominates Kink Kontroversy and that same band sound can even be heard on mono mixes of The Village Green Preservation Society. That is the "sound" of the early Kinks and it is unmistakable. Below, Dave and his guitar at Pye Number 2.

 

A polished, finished up version of this, would've also have greatly enhanced the LP:

 

My Castle Music America CD has no bonus tracks. It also has an Essential! logo with text under the Essential! that is too small to read (probably "Records") It's tough to sit through it.

 

Yes, you are right, everyone was doing that, but that doesn't mean the point is still not valid in the sense of judging the album. I do think the Kinks suffer more than most on their early albums. I think they were equal to the Beatles in terms of A-Sides and the best 60's band in terms of b-sides, that's why I find all the albums up to Something Else lacking.

Controversial as well but I find the attempts to cover blues and soul music to be a bit naff. I think the Beatles could cover early soul well, and 50's material, and the Stones understood the blues really well. But The Kinks doing these type of things doesn't really work, and I think that is validated by the fact they really became brilliant when they sounded really British - they found their style/sound.

If you take something like Out Of Our Heads by the Stones - it's mostly covers but there is a huge raw energy there, like proto-punk, which gives the album a giant mad sound and charm. So I think you could buy Stones singles and also dig an album like that which was different but great.

 

What a score!
This happened to me with early Stones - a friend gifted me a 1st Mono pressing of Out of Our Heads and ever since that day I'm in love with Satisfaction, Play With Fire, The Last Time... all of those sound glorious on that disc

 

Fantastic cut, thanks for sharing

 

This was what I was thinking of (part 1):

 

And part 2: