The Kinks - Album by Album (song by song)

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

  1. mark winstanley

    mark winstanley Certified dinosaur, who likes physical product Thread Starter

    The Kinks were a fairly early favourite of mine, although I discovered them a long time after most people here probably did.
    I would have been familiar with You Really Got Me, Lola and a couple of other songs, from listening to the radio as a kid, and one day I went into my local record store, Atlas Records, near the old Boans building in Morley, Western Australia, where I spent countless hours as a young pup, and I asked them what would be the best Kinks album to get as a starter. I was probably 14 or 15, somewhere around there, and we are in the early eighties.
    The choices laid out before me were...

    [​IMG]
    [​IMG]

    and this one

    [​IMG]
    [​IMG]

    There was an older guy in the shop, and he came up and suggested that I would probably prefer the live album, because it had a bit more punch, and looking at this scruffy little Aussie Rules football player, hyperactive and all over the place, he was probably right.

    I love that album, and went on to buy Low Budget and a couple of others, but it was only in 2004 when the sacd's came out, that I went along and bought them all.
    After that I went on to buy the 2004 Sanctuary releases of the Pye albums.
    I don't quite have everything the band made (Percy, The Road, To The Bone, BBC being the most obvious ones that I am aware of), but I want to dive into the earlier albums, and get a little deeper, and generally these threads tend to lead to a deeper knowledge and exposure to a bands music.

    I will start off by saying I am by no means any kind of expert on the Kinks. I know a little bit about Ray and Dave, and their issues, but not that much. I know they had an issue with the US in the mid sixties, which severely hindered their impact for a while.
    But in reality that's about it. I am one who listens to and enjoys the music, and tend not to pay too much attention to the other stuff. That doesn't mean in any way that we don't want to talk about all that other stuff, just that I may be leading the dance in some ways, but I am not an authority, just a fan of the music.

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    The way we do these threads is in a chronological order, as best as I am able - with these sixties artists and the singles and Ep's and albums spread all over the place, it can be quite daunting. So please bear with me as we move through the earlier stuff, as I may get a couple of things out of order.
    If it looks like I have missed something at some point, please keep me in check on that, because it certainly is not my intention to miss anything.

    Please stay where we are at, for the benefit of people on the thread not getting confused as to where we are at. That doesn't mean you can't reference something ahead, but try not to get too excited about Arthur, while we are looking at Kinda Kinks :).
    Please wait for songs to be posted, again, merely a case of trying to keep things as orderly as possible.

    If you feel you are getting behind, don't stress too much, Sunday's will be a day off. I do the surround thread on Sunday's, and it normally works well for folks to have a free day, or a catch up day or whatever.

    Every Saturday, unless something happens to drag me away, I will post a thread guide, with links to the albums and songs. This works two-fold really. It makes it easier to find something for reference purposes, and it initially was to help folks who may not be familiar with the band, go straight to songs or albums, to check out what we are looking at, and whether they like what they hear and all that kind of stuff.....

    Anyway "God Save The Kinks", and I hope we can all have a bit of fun and a chat while going through the bands music.

    Cheers
    Mark
     
  2. FJFP

    FJFP Host for the 'Mixology' Mix Differences Podcast

    I’m game! I’m sure I’ll miss the odd day, but I’ll definitely chip in when I get rather excited. I’d suggest when starting an album cycle, maybe post the list of tracks you intend to cover just before the first track, and posters can verify if anything has been missed that day too. Things like Ray’s demos and outtakes make the first couple of albums an easy one to miss out a few tracks.

    With that said, I look forward to tomorrow! Will we be starting with Long Tall Sally, or doing the debut LP first?
     
  3. mark winstanley

    mark winstanley Certified dinosaur, who likes physical product Thread Starter

    The Kinks - a little Background on the band

    The Kinks were formed in Muswell Hill, North London in 1964, by brothers Ray and Dave Davies.
    They have been an incredibly influential band from early on, and even through the punk movement their influence could be heard.
    They came out of the British Rhythm and Blues and Merseybeat period of England, and up until a touring ban in the US, due to Ray and Dave constantly fighting, they were also part of the famous British Invasion.

    I'll try not to do too much of it, but here is the wiki info on the early years of the band and how things came together. If the info is wrong please feel free to correct it.
    -------------------------------------------------------------------------

    The Davies brothers were born in suburban North London on Huntingdon Road, East Finchley, the youngest and the only boys among their family's eight children.[17] Their parents, Frederick and Annie Davies, moved the family to 6 Denmark Terrace, Fortis Green, in the neighbouring suburb of Muswell Hill.[18] At home the brothers were immersed in a world of varied musical styles, from the music hall of their parents' generation to the jazz and early rock and roll their older sisters enjoyed.[18] Both Ray and his brother Dave, younger by almost three years, learned to play guitar, and they played skiffle and rock and roll together.[17]

    The brothers attended William Grimshaw Secondary Modern School (later merged with Tollington Grammar School to become Fortismere School), where they formed a band, the Ray Davies Quartet, with Ray's friend and classmate Pete Quaife and Quaife's friend John Start (although they would also be known as the Pete Quaife Quartet, if the bass player landed a gig for them instead). Their debut at a school dance was well received, which encouraged the group to play at local pubs and bars. The band went through a series of lead vocalists, including Rod Stewart,[19] another student at William Grimshaw,[20] who performed with the group at least once in early 1962.[21] He then formed his own group, Rod Stewart and the Moonrakers, who became a local rival to the Ray Davies Quartet.[19][21]

    In late 1962, Ray Davies left home to study at Hornsey College of Art. He pursued interests in subjects such as film, sketching, theatre and music, including jazz and blues.[22] When Alexis Korner's Blues Incorporated played at the college in December, he asked advice from Alexis Korner, who recommended Giorgio Gomelsky, the former Yardbirds manager, who put Davies in touch with the Soho-based Dave Hunt Band, a professional group of musicians who played jazz and R&B.[23] A few days after the Ray Davies Quartet supported Cyril Stapleton at the Lyceum Ballroom on New Year's Eve, Davies, while still remaining in the Quartet, joined the Dave Hunt Band which briefly included Charlie Watts on drums.[24] In February 1963, Davies left Dave Hunt to join the Hamilton King Band (also known as the Blues Messengers), which had Peter Bardens as pianist.[24] At the end of the spring term he left Hornsey College with a view to study film at the Central School of Art and Design, around this time the Quartet changed their name to the Ramrods.[25] Davies has referred to a show the fledgling Kinks played (again as the Ray Davies Quartet) at Hornsey Town Hall on Valentine's Day 1963 as their first important gig. In June, the Hamilton King Band broke up,[25] though the Ramrods kept going, performing under several other names, including the Pete Quaife Band, and the Bo-Weevils, before (temporarily) settling on the Ravens.[5][26] The fledgling group hired two managers, Grenville Collins and Robert Wace, and in late 1963 former pop singer Larry Page became their third manager. American record producer Shel Talmy began working with the band, and the Beatles' promoter, Arthur Howes, was retained to schedule the Ravens' live shows.[27] The group unsuccessfully auditioned for various record labels until early 1964, when Talmy secured them a contract with Pye Records. During this period they had acquired a new drummer, Mickey Willet; however, Willet left the band shortly before they signed to Pye.[26] The Ravens invited Mick Avory to replace him after seeing an advertisement Avory had placed in Melody Maker.[28] Avory had a background in jazz drumming and had played one gig with the fledgling Rolling Stones.[28]

    Around this period, the Ravens decided on a new, permanent name: the Kinks. Numerous explanations of the name's genesis have been offered. In Jon Savage's analysis, they "needed a gimmick, some edge to get them attention. Here it was: 'Kinkiness'—something newsy, naughty but just on the borderline of acceptability. In adopting the 'Kinks' as their name at that time, they were participating in a time-honoured pop ritual—fame through outrage."[29] Manager Robert Wace related his side of the story: "I had a friend ... He thought the group was rather fun. If my memory is correct, he came up with the name just as an idea, as a good way of getting publicity ... When we went to [the band members] with the name, they were ... absolutely horrified. They said, 'We're not going to be called kinky!'"[29] Ray Davies' account conflicts with Wace's—he recalled that the name was coined by Larry Page, and referenced their "kinky" fashion sense. Davies quoted him as saying, "The way you look, and the clothes you wear, you ought to be called the Kinks."[29] "I've never really liked the name", Ray stated.[29]
    ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
    So the initial make up of the band was

    Ray Davies - Lead Vocals and Rhythm Guitar
    Dave Davies - Lead Guitar, Backing And Lead Vocals
    Pete Quaife - Bass and Backing Vocals
    Mick Avery - Drums and Percussion

    The band's first release was their version of Long Tall Sally, and we will look at that on either Monday or Tuesday morning, as I want to give folks a chance to get on board before we roll on with it.

    In the meantime, please feel free to tell us about how the Kinks came into your world, and anything you feel may be relevant .

    Cheers
    Mark
     
  4. mark winstanley

    mark winstanley Certified dinosaur, who likes physical product Thread Starter

    Well be looking at Long Tall Sally...

    Good idea about the heads up on the next morning's post. Cheers
     
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  5. jomo48

    jomo48 Forum Resident

    Location:
    Davis CA, USA
    The deluxe editions are quite complete and would provide a good framework for a chronological walk through.
     
  6. FJFP

    FJFP Host for the 'Mixology' Mix Differences Podcast

    I would agree on this.
     
  7. Wildest cat from montana

    Wildest cat from montana Humble Reader

    Location:
    ontario canada
    Quite the undertaking and looking forward to every post!
    Good luck with it.
     
  8. MoonPool

    MoonPool Senior Member

    Location:
    Boston
    This should be fun. I was buying the singles as they came out. I didn't own any of the albums for a long time. I borrowed The Kinks Greatest Hits to learn a few songs for a band I was in and never returned it. Still have it. I bought a few of the deluxe editions when they came out, but I never got into them the way I did the Beatles and Stones albums for some reason.
     
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  9. ooan

    ooan Forum Resident

    Location:
    Scotland
    Why did Pete leave the Kinks ?
     
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  10. mark winstanley

    mark winstanley Certified dinosaur, who likes physical product Thread Starter

    I'm sure that and more will be revealed :)

    I have no idea at this stage
     
  11. ajsmith

    ajsmith Senior Member

    Location:
    Glasgow
    short answer: main two reasons were, he felt he wasn’t being allowed to express himself creatively in the band and he was tired of the constant in fighting.
     
  12. sharedon

    sharedon Forum Zonophone

    Location:
    Boomer OK
    If via your public library and the Libby app you can access Uncut, the Ultimate Music Guide to The Kinks goes through every album, compilation, and single release, supplemented by interviews with Ray, Dave, and other band members. A great resource. Also Doug Hinman's book The Kinks, with personnel and recording dates.
     
  13. ARL

    ARL Forum Resident

    Location:
    England
    This will be a very long thread, but I'm in! The only Kinks albums I don't have are Showbiz/Preservation I & II/Soap Opera (all of which I heard years ago and didn't like). There are probably loads of unreleased/obscure tracks that I've never heard, though.
     
  14. ooan

    ooan Forum Resident

    Location:
    Scotland
    IIRC a relative , or very close friend , said it was because a certain person had broken at least one of his wrists !

    Not the same as Ray saying he could not take the pressure of pop stardom !
     
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  15. EdwinM

    EdwinM Grumpy old man

    Location:
    Leusden
    There was even life before Long tall Sally. Check your picture book box.
     
  16. Endicott

    Endicott Forum Resident

    Ah, it's great to get in on the ground floor of this one!

    First Kinks song I ever heard was "Destroyer". First Kinks album I had was One For The Road.

    Then I heard the original "You Really Got Me" for the first time not long after. I was familiar with Van Halen's version, but the Kinks original had an earthy sound I especially caught onto. And the record sounded like an overdriven engine.

    And I went on and on from there...
     
  17. R. Totale

    R. Totale The Voice of Reason

    I've never had singles for the first four songs - I got them first on the Argentina compilation LP "Kinky Gems" (legit) and later on a Cameo "EP" (likely a boot).
     
  18. Yawndave

    Yawndave Forum Resident

    Location:
    Santa Clara CA
    After enjoying The Who thread so much, I'm looking forward to following along with this one too. My first album was Kronikles, coming across it at Underground Records in San Jose and seeing that it had both Lola and Apeman that I had heard on the radio. What a treasure trove that album was! I became a fan instantly after that.
     
  19. Wildest cat from montana

    Wildest cat from montana Humble Reader

    Location:
    ontario canada
    I used to have several albums I borrowed and never returned. More than several actually. I felt they were safer in my possession.
     
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  20. Buddybud

    Buddybud Paisley DayGlo Freak!

    Looking forward to this!
     
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  21. Fischman

    Fischman RockMonster, ClassicalMaster, and JazzMeister

    Location:
    New Mexico
    This is gonna' be fun!
     
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  22. bosie

    bosie Forum Resident

    Location:
    L
    Sounds like fun, I’ll play
     
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  23. extravaganza

    extravaganza Senior Member

    Location:
    San Diego, CA USA
    The Kinks entered my radar from multiple fronts in the late 70s through FM radio when I was in my adolescence. It might have been learning that they were the band that wrote “that Van Halen song”, or hearing “Rock ‘n’ Roll Fantasy” or “Hay Fever” on the radio. Soon after Low Budget was featured as the album of the week on a local station and I taped it and was becoming a fan. I even liked some of the earlier hits I was now hearing, but still had no idea of the riches that awaited me from the 66-69 period. That would come several years later when I bought an import of Something Else in discount bin because I liked the Jam’s cover of David Watts but I had no idea what else to expect ... the 40 minutes or whatever of hearing that album for the first time was one of my most magical musical discovery experiences ever. I couldn’t believe what I was hearing and was dumbfounded why I had never heard of this album before. The Kinks were instantly my favorite my favorite band and they have never left my top five since.
     
  24. Safeway 2

    Safeway 2 Forum Resident

    Location:
    Manzanillo Mexico.
    I'm onboard. Been hooked since YRGM back in the 60's. I own just about everything they have
    put to wax. Own all the official releases from the eponymous Kinks to Phobia and To The Bone. Ray
    and Dave's solo work also. One of the all time greats, should be on Mt. Rushmore of rock.
     
  25. Elliottmarx

    Elliottmarx Always in the mood for Burt Bacharach

    Location:
    Los Angeles
    I've been a massive fan for as long as I can remember. First saw them on the Think Visual tour, and then again every time they came through LA, including several dates on the multi-night run at The House of Blues - which was the end of the road for those guys. However, I saw something that no one else on this forum saw - something so rare it still boggles my mind that I was there.

    To promote Phobia, Ray and Dave performed an acoustic duo show at Sony Headquarters in Santa Monica for radio programmers. I wasn't a radio programmer, but in my youth I was tenacious as can be. I heard about the event, put on nicer clothes, walked up to the girl at reception, distracted her, stole someone else's credentials, and walked into a hotel ballroom where a radio convention was being held. I was a wallflower all afternoon, hoping to not be discovered. This was half a decade before 9/11 and security was almost always lax back then. Come 5PM or so, we were all ushered into a chartered bus and chauffeured from Culver City to Sony. The group of us, I'd say 150 at most, were directed to the Sony commissary, where the dining tables and chairs were pushed aside and a temporary stage was constructed. I was going to see The Kinks in a cafeteria.

    Then I got the dreaded shoulder tap. I was escorted outside, not by a burly security dude, but by a woman. She asked me who I was. Since my upbringing was unusual, to say the least, I knew that Dylan spoke the truth when he sang, "But to live outside the law, you must be honest." So I explained that I was just a conniving fan. She then asked me, if I had a gun or was going to hurt them. I told her that all I had a tape recorder, which she confiscated. That was it. Unbelievably, she let me back into the venue. Before long, Ray and Dave took the stage with acoustic guitars, which they played for about a half hour. I remember they performed Hatred (A Duet) they were there to promote Phobia after all, but more importantly - for no reason that I can recall, they played Harry Rag. What a surprise! Of all the rare, underappreciated songs to play for unimpressed radio programmers. Also, it was Dave's birthday, and we all sang to him.

    Since this was an industry event, Ray and Dave had to mingle with radio power players (and insignificant me, in my last year of college.) Everyone swamped Ray but I found myself in a corner with a friendly-as-can-be Dave. I know this sounds insane, all of it. And as far as I can tell there is no record of this event even happening on the Internet. But it did. I do have proof somewhere in my archives, I'll get to that. In any case, I told Dave who I was and how I didn't belong there. He seemed to appreciate the lengths that I went through to see him. He asked me about my life, I told him that I was a music major. He asked, "like cellos and stuff?" I replied, "basically." Before long he was busied with industry and birthday stuff and was whisked off. Years later I would have opportunities to talk to Ray, but not that night.

    The next morning the brothers were on the Mark and Brian Show which was an LA morning radio stalwart for a generation. Here's where the proof of my adventure is stored, I called up - primarily to ask Ray something or other about Percy, he vaguely answered; and then I wished Dave a happy birthday and told him we'd met the night before. He said, on the air, "you're the cellist, right?" Close enough.
     

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