Oh i didn't know there was an album (vinyl?) and as for the movie i probably need more help than just having the ending explained to me!
Word of Mouth Studio album by the Kinks Released 19 November 1984 Recorded June 1983–September 1984 Studio Konk Studios, London Genre Rock Length 43:04 Language English Label Arista Producer Ray Davies Produced by Ray Davies Associate Producer: Dave Davies Engineer: David Baker Second Engineer: Dave Powell The Kinks: Ray Davies: Lead vocals on all tracks except on "Guilty" & "Living On A Thin Line," keyboards, harmonicas & guitar Dave Davies: Lead vocals on "Guilty" & "Living On A Thin Line," backing vocals & lead guitar Ian Gibbons: Keyboards & backing vocals Jim Rodford: Bass & backing vocals Bob Henrit: Drums & percussion, except on "Missing Persons," "Sold Me Out" & "Going Solo" Mick Avory: Drums & percussion on "Missing Persons," "Sold Me Out" & "Going Solo" All tracks: words and music by Ray Davies, Davray Music Ltd., 1984 except "Guilty" & "Living On A Thin Line" words & music by Dave Davies, Dabe Music, 1984. Special thanks to Luisa & John for their help on "Too Hot" & "Good Day" Recorded at Konk Studios, London Mastered at Masterdisk, N.Y. by Bob Ludwig Illustrator: Renate Sturmer Logo Design: Howard Fritzson Designer: Maude Gilman Concept: Chris Morton Art Director: Donn Davenport Side 1 1. Do It Again stereo mix (4:09), recorded Aug-Sep 1984 at Konk Studios, Hornsey, London 2. Word Of Mouth stereo mix, recorded Aug-Sep 1984 at Konk Studios, Hornsey, London 3. Good Day stereo mix, recorded Jun 1984 at Konk Studios, Hornsey, London 4. Living On A Thin Line stereo mix (4:12), recorded Aug-Sep 1984 at Konk Studios, Hornsey, London 5. Sold Me Out stereo mix, Word Of Mouth mix, recorded Jun-Jul 1983 at Konk Studios, Hornsey, London Side 2 1. Massive Reductions stereo mix, Word Of Mouth version, recorded Aug-Sep 1984 at Konk Studios, Hornsey, London 2. Guilty stereo mix, recorded Aug-Sep 1984 at Konk Studios, Hornsey, London 3. Too Hot stereo mix, recorded Jun 1984 at Konk Studios, Hornsey, London 4. Missing Persons stereo mix, recorded Jun-Jul 1983 at Konk Studios, Hornsey, London 5. Summer's Gone stereo mix, recorded Aug-Sep 1984 at Konk Studios, Hornsey, London 6. Going Solo stereo mix, Word Of Mouth mix (3:20), recorded Jun-Jul 1983 at Konk Studios, Hornsey, London The Rolling Stone Review from 31st January 1985 - Word of Mouth This is just another solid album from the guys. Again this is one of the albums I have had for a much shorter period of time, and in fact, this album and the last batch of studio and live albums only came along at the start of this thread pretty much. I have been slotting them in for the occasional spin as we have gone through other albums, and of course as they start coming around I have been slamming them, in order to get familiar enough to have something to say about them. So far, to some degree, it seems like the naturally, slightly antagonistic edge that the Kinks have always had, smooths off as the eighties progresses. I suppose that folks may see that as selling out to some degree, but we can't discount the fact that as we get older we tend to mellow out somewhat, and that seems to be more the case with the Davies lads. Obviously I haven't gone through the songs yet, but this album seems to inject a little bit of fun into the mix ... not Hot Potato, Motorway type fun, a little less overt than that, but some uptempo fun sort of tracks that sound pretty contemporary. The last couple of albums for the most part have been more dour... somewhat leaning into a sort of serious zone, that I enjoy, but don't want to spend too long in, lest I fall into a dark mind myself. Here, although we still have some serious topics, there is a lighter air about the album. It seems like it is less oppressive in its content.... particularly Give The People What They Want... now, as you know I loved those albums, and that doesn't change, but there is a certain lightness to some of these tracks that makes it an easier listen perhaps. Which isn't to say there are no heavier topics... and I haven't run through the lyrics yet either, so perhaps it is just musically lighter.... We'll see Although Word Of Mouth didn't chart as highly as the albums just prior to it, topping out at 57, it was on the Billboard chart for twenty weeks, which somewhat indicates that it didn't just pop in and out without a trace. So really it is still a fairly successful album. The singles are a little surprising to me, Do It Again, Summer's Gone and Living On A Thin Line... I guess I'm surprised that Good Day wasn't a single ... and as odd as it may seem, I reckon Sold Me Out would have been a good single too.... but anyhow... "Do It Again" was the most successful of the singles hitting 41 on the Billboard chart and 4 on the "mainstream rock" chart. It also charted in Canada at 91. Summer's Gone failed to trouble the scorers. Living On A This Line got to 24 on the "mainstream rock" charts, but in 2001 it got a bit of a boost by being on an episode of the Soprano's 3 times, the Episode was called University. Producer Terrence Winter says it was the series most asked about song. This seems to be a pretty consistent album, perhaps not in the top tier Kinks, but solid, and I am looking forward to going through this more closely. I already think there are some strong tracks, but we'll see where we end up when we get there. So let us know what your thoughts and memories about this album are ... you know the drill by now
Word Of Mouth Similarly to Low Budget, this is an album that I bought on CD in 1989 having not previously sampled anything on it (although I might have possibly heard bits of "Do It Again"). Curiously, this was six years before I purchased State Of Confusion (but two years after Think Visual). It has some great stuff on it, but it's a bit of a mish-mash. A shouty hard rocker, a couple of 60s throwbacks, a couple of 80s pop confections, a reheated five year old b-side, two Dave songs and three songs from Return To Waterloo which don't feature Dave at all. There's nothing on here that I don't like, but it doesn't really hang together that well as an album, or have an identifiable style. I defy anyone to hang a concept or hidden storyline around this one! The cover is pretty terrible, but at least there is no-one running away from anything!
Having only ever owned this album on CD, I am only now learning that Side Two does not open with "Guilty". All this time I had assumed that "Massive Reductions" was the side one closer.
If I remember correctly, Word of Mouth is my favourite of the Arista albums - having Dave back as a songwriter contributing arguably his best ever song certainly helps!
I really hate that cover art. Very few big acts ever did something that ugly. Neil Young’s American Stars and Bars is a contender. The worst ever must be the moon sausages of Live it Up by his cohorts Crosby, Stills and Nash… … but this Kinks one is really atrocious. (I've managed to post a small size CSN, I didn't want to traumatize the most fragile among us). At least, the cover bears the message that the music’s going to be different once more, less grim, more colorful. Pink and fluorescent, even! And sure enough, it is. There’s a renewed sense of joy and openness in this LP even though some lyrics are heavy in spots. I guess that’s the whole point of naming your opening track “Do it Again”, with a Beatles chord to start things up, which then leads to the little Stones intro of the title song. We’ll see which other greats get their little friendly nod. It’s a good record, not a big artistic statement as I recall, a collection of good to great could-be-singles, as @mark winstanley's just hinted at. I always think of Springsteen when I listen to it, the party music side of Springsteen that is. We don’t get a Glory Days but Sold Me Out, Good Day, Going Solo, Too Hot or Summer’s Gone are not far from hitting that mark. Lots of pretty melodies, a refreshing power pop vibe, very little shouty Ray in hearing distance and the biggest Dave Kinks triumph of them all. Death of A Clown and Strangers were great but they had the likes of Waterloo Sunset and Lola to compete with on their respective albums. This time, he’s the true star. I remember buying the record during my used bins Kinks years and being instantly floored by that song. It was almost a weird feeling because I was buying those 80’s Kinks records in search for elusive later strokes of familiar genius from Ray… Yet the most arresting song, the instant stunner, was written by the other guy, and in a completely different style, voice, sound from anything they ever did before. Ray has one big ambitious ballad, heavy subject and all, but it doesn’t quite get there. Overall, I look at that track-list and I can’t help but hum and smile in anticipation for our collective summery exploration of it.
Word Of Mouth is a record I own (I bought the Kinks reissues from Muswell to Word all used when they all showed up in a London, Ontario used cd store) but I have not spent enough time listening to it to recognize all the song titles! Obviously, there is the single "Do It Again" which was on the radio at the time and there was a video for it but after that, Dave's "Living On A Thin Line" is probably the most familiar to me (the live show!). So this album on this thread will find me really listening to these songs and evaluating them for the first time in a serious way. My perception is that Word is a good, if unspectacular, Kinks record but I find going through these albums song by song, really lets you take the time and evaluate some of these songs where I am looking at the title and asking myself do I know this song?
I'm neither here nor there about the cover.... it's probably a bit lazy, Word of Mouth, with lots of mouths on the cover. The lips in the middle of the left hand side, sort of throw the picture out of balance a little...
Word Of Mouth Preliminary Thoughts: My initial thoughts on the prior album were negative. Fortunately, I ended up feeling a lot more positive about State Of Confusion after our in-depth exploration. With ‘Word Of Mouth’ I’m going to sounding as if I’m gushing when I say that I really like this album from the get-go. Am I an outlier, as usual? Ha, no idea but I can’t imagine changing my mind on this one….other than acknowledging that I guess Dave did have it in him to write another good song. 1984 competition: hmm, this wasn’t a fertile year for me so if I’d known about this album I think I would have loved it. (The Cars, Springsteen…who else? ) Cover: horrible. This could have kept me from picking it up. As usual, I look forward to our discussion.
David Fricke (from the RS review): “Dave’s two lead-vocal entries, “Living on a Thin Line” and “Guilty,” also mark a welcome return from the socioreligious harangue and the demolition-derby guitars of his last solo album.” Spot on
Word of Mouth: I'm looking at the track list and thinking, "Maybe this isn't my favorite of their 80s Arista albums." It gets thin in places, but there are a few standout tracks. Had he mixed the best of the Return to Waterloo project with this album, then, I think, this would have undoubtedly been the one. But I understand that was a solo project unto itself (despite sharing a few tracks in common with this album). By this time, I had zero interest in larger classic rock acts still going. The American indie scene was full on, and I was in college in the middle of all it. One of the hallmarks of indie rock was (is?) to belittle these larger/older acts, possibly an offshoot of the punk influence. It would take me years to double back and eventually reclaim a lot of those bands when the CD era made it novel to go back and replace old, forgotten vinyl. The Kinks were one of the few bands to survive this mindset that went on for close to another decade! (I think embracing classic country music kicked open the door. If I can like that kind of music ... why can't I find it in my heart to throw down for that excellent 2-CD Bad Company compilation?) This was my last live go-round with the Kinks for awhile. Google tells me: September 15, 1985 at Penn State's Rec Hall. A building that found me normally running the stairs a few times a week for a great workout! They did "Brother" that night! This felt far from that ragged experience the last concert had been with Michael Hutchence nearly throwing down with some angry factory worker. The internet also tells me Donnie & the Rock opened? I have zero memory of this. What I do remember is a few of my buddies also got tickets, although they had zero interest in The Kinks. Flashback to my first Kinks concert with the drunken frat boys. The thing is, this time I was at college, surrounded by other college kids, but the beer-bash vibe wasn't prevalent that night. A much more vivid memory was doting on my arrival on campus in mid-August because I knew the record stores there would have Return to Waterloo in stock. (My local stores in more rural PA didn't.) I rushed out and bought it the moment I unpacked the station wagon, ran over to my fellow Kinks fanatic's apartment, we threw it on the turntable and listened to the title track blasting out his speakers on a brilliant, sun-dappled late summer afternoon. That moment sticks with me long after what was officially my last Kinks concert (despite seeing Ray solo later).
Word of Mouth For me, there was great anticipation surrounding this release. I was to receive the cassette version as part of my ‘Christmas Package’, which we then negotiated on moving up to my birthday on the 6th. It was then decided I could enjoy it upon it’s release. That meant Saturday they’d be on SNL, and on ‘new record release’ Tuesday I could hear the full album. That Saturday I badly sprained my right ankle playing football, leaving me hobbled for the next week. I watched Ed Asner introduce the band with my leg elevated. Mom was on the couch, too (kitchen finally closed) but asleep. Dad asked before both songs, ‘These guys are English, right?’ I was shooting daggers, who dares disturb me whilst the Kinks perform? Get a clue, I probably thought, as I nodded in ascension. I only realized much later he was just trying to relate to me, find some inroad. But he was lost in this new musical landscape, where the big bands didn’t play anymore. His music was Sinatra, Bennett, Louis Prima. All of whom I would eventually listen to and enjoy. Word of Mouth came out when I was becoming conscious of changes in and around me, settling into my own skin, forming my own opinions, trying out personalities. So far I feel I’ve been an unbiased juror, but it gets harder around this time. It around now where I recognize the Kinks are the one, no one else could take their place. In circumstances such as these, things get magnified. You look with a more jaundiced eye. You hear what other artists are up to. This is the first album where I had expectations to be met. There is pressure not to be disappointed. For some, there is the necessary degree of delusion. Thankfully, I loved this album then, and still do now. It had two or three songs with the radio friendly production values of their time that one could envision competing with the hits of the day. But I am willing to be open to examination, and am not frightened of anything our postmortem may reveal. We have different skill sets now, we’ve lived lives full of music, we’re more knowledgeable of its inner mechanics. We’re grading not as the fans we used to be but as the connoisseurs we are now. Changing one’s mind on a song on an intellectual level doesn’t mean one can’t still enjoy hearing it on another level. Nor would we fall out of love with a band over a small revisioning. Artwork I’ve never been keen on the Word of Mouth packaging, even then. I did a mock-up for an arts class of my own idea for the cover. I am gutted that after two weeks I still have not located it. It went something like this: Front cover: Color photograph with Ray, up on a soapbox, orating at What is ostensibly Speaker’s Corner in Hyde Park. A ring of straggly men, two or three deep, half-circle around him (their backs to us). From the throng, the four other Kinks are turning away to leave in disgust, either not liking what they’re hearing or having heard it all before (or both). Ian with hands on ears, frowns on all, and Dave leading them away. Back cover: Black and white, a reproduction of the front page of a newspaper, above the fold. Word of Mouth in bold at the top, say where New York Times would be. Below that the main headline Kinks Return accompanied by press photo (shown below) with underneath caption (l to r Ray Davies...) Articles in the fictional columns below include song titles (in bold) in their text. Articles titled ‘Side One’ and ‘Side Two’ house track lists and times, other credits, etc. I cannot recall what the front cover font for band name and album title was, maybe someone here, perhaps @Martyj, can help get that sorted. My effort wasn’t a klassik kover, but it was better than the officially released krap.
Obviously it depends on personal preferences.... 84 for me... Prince - Purple Rain Echo and the Bunneymen- Ocean Rain Iron Maiden - Powerslave U2 - Unforgettable Fire Don Henley - Building The Perfect Beast Talking Heads - Stop Making Sense Simple Minds - Sparkle In The Rain Lots of rain in 84 lol Lloyd Cole And The Commotions - Rattlesnakes Frankie Goes To Hollywood - Welcome To The Pleasuredome David Sylvain- Brilliant Trees (but I only discovered this one much later) Stevie Ray Vaughn - Couldn't Stand The Weather Jean Michel Jarre - Zoolook Cold Chisel - 20th Century - Barking Spiders Live 1983 Jimmy Barnes - Bodyswerve INXS - The Swing (probably my equal favourite INXS album, with Shabooh Shoobah) Midnight Oil - Red Sails In The Sunset (my second favourite of theirs after 10,9,8,7,6,5,4,3,2,1) Rush - Grace Under Pressure Nick Cave and The Bad Seeds - From Her To Eternity Ultravox- Lament Madness - Keep Moving Yngwie Malmsteens Rising Force Waterboys - A Pagan Place XTC - The Big Express Cars - Heartbeat City Springsteen- Born In The USA Queen - The Works Roger Waters - Pros and Cons Of Hitchhiking King Crimson - Three Of A Perfect Pair The Cure - The Top The Smiths debut Joe Jackson - Body And Soul Van Halen - 1984 Hoodoo Gurus - Stoneage Romeos The Church - Remote Luxury The Angels - Two Minute Warning It was a pretty big year in my world lol
I’ve never been sure what the deal was on this, as I’ve read elsewhere that Dave did overdub guitars later on for the album to make them full Kinks tracks. But (from what I recall) the versions on WoM and RtW don’t sound hugely different if at all. Paging @Michael Streett ..,
Until a few months ago I had absolutely no other notion about this album than that it had to be a load of crap. An ageing 60s band recording in the 80s, an ugly cover that I kept on stumbling upon in record stores while desperately searching for older albums... No one ever seemed to buy that one. When I finally gave it a listen, I was pleasantly surprised to find it quite listenable, even if no single track really impressed me. But regular listens have raised it in my appreciation, and I recently began to distinguish between the different songs. The first step was when I was urged by this thread's participants to pay attention to Living On A Thin Line. It took some time, but I finally got intoxicated. Shocked to discover what a great voice Dave has when he's, well, being normal. The second step was watching Return To Waterloo, less than 2 weeks ago. I loved this movie, by the way. I didn't understand it any more than I understood The Wall, but it doesn't matter. Very favourably impressed. One consequence was, I grew to appreciate some Word Of Mouth songs I had been judging so-so up to that point in time. Especially Going Solo. I have yet to fall in love with the first 2 tracks, but as a whole the album strikes me as really pleasant. Not being a big Prince fan, there are no records from 1984 that I could not live without. If 1984 was to be erased from history, I would have a nostalgic thought for Costello's Goodbye Cruel World and Joe Jackson's Body And Soul, and certainly would regret not having had enough time to get to know XTC's Big Express better. Ah yes, I would try to salvage the Cleaner From Venus's Under Wartime Conditions from the wreck, probably with Avid @DISKOJOE's complicity! But on the whole I wouldn't mind spending No More Lonely Nights.
That's really moving... I really relate to this both as a son and a father. Great picture of your first listen. And now we want this cover!!!
Ah! Forgot about this one. Yes, I love(d) this album and it fits in with my ‘84. I was pleased and startled by this as I considered it a throwback to the days of yore. I just knew (at the time) what was on MTV. I didn’t discover this band until the 90s (when, at one point, they become one of my ‘favorites’ (and would be on a list of ‘favorites at one time that you never listen to now.’) I didn’t discover until 1985 with ‘This Is The Sea.’ Became a favorite (and, along with The Long Ryders, saved the 80s). Yes, these were two I could think of.
Word of Mouth I love this album. It was one of the first records I bought after I left home. I remember playing it again and again - a sure sign I enjoyed it. I love the sweetness of the vibe of most of the songs - though the Return to Waterloo tunes have a serious undertone that only became clear when I watched the movie. Word of Mouth is now one of those albums where I know all the vocals, guitar solos and drum rolls no matter how long the gap was since I last played it. Your mock-up sounds great - way better than nearly all the Kinks' official album covers~!
Their debut was on an independent label and isn’t easy to find (and considering how great every other one of their other albums is, is surprisingly weak). Their second album, diamonds and gasoline, probably should just be perceived as their debut. It’s pretty flawless beginning to end and that’s where I’d start. we are all music nerds so I don’t think I need to tell you how to listen to music. All I can say though is their songs really come alive when you listen to the lyrics. The lead singer, Evan Felker, writes most the lyrics and he really has an eye for detail the way Ray Davies does. The first three songs on that album are all concert staples. They broke up for around three years ago (they never really called it broken up, they were on “hiatus“ while Felker dealt with some never disclosed “personal problems”. They got back together just a few months ago and I was fortunate enough to have front row seats at red rocks. It was pretty gratifying to hear the entire sold out venue singing along to these songs. As a final note, if you’re into prodigal son songs (for some reason I am, I guess I must have a romanticized vision of myself), while I don’t think it’s necessarily the best song on the album, one of my true favorites is The Funeral. Again, check the lyrics as you’re listening and I think you’ll be blown away by the detailed songwriting as well as the fantastic punchline.
And oddly two lesser albums... for me at least. I like them both, but particularly BITUSA was for me the second weakest Springsteen album up to that point.
