The Kinks - Album by Album (song by song)

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

  1. palisantrancho

    palisantrancho Forum Resident

    Ha ha. I just watched this clip and couldn’t decide whether or not to post it. Stern being obnoxious again, but Ray plays some nice rhythm guitar considering the situation he got himself into. This is really early Stern. I believe 1986 is when he moved to NY.
     
  2. Michael Streett

    Michael Streett Senior Member

    Location:
    Florence, SC
    I sincerely hope you get this nightmare resolved with minimal financial and emotional anguish. I know you read and understood my unfortunately similar posts a few weeks ago concerning the after-effects of hurricanes and natural disasters that have affected me the last few years.
     
    Last edited: Jul 30, 2022
  3. All Down The Line

    All Down The Line The Under Asst East Coast White Label Promo Man

    Location:
    Australia
    Thanks Michael and yes I did read your posts though perhaps was not convinced cognizant of the ongoing impact you still face.
    Yesterday the two builders realised something should be done aside from pointing the finger at each other or telling me my home was illegal so as you can see they affixed some solid chalkboard sheeting.

    [​IMG]

    I was away when they called me from my front door wanting access to the home and had the perverse pleasure in telling them I wouldn't be dropping anything to attend and that they could gain access by rounding the corner and pushing aside a plastic sheet!
     
  4. ajsmith

    ajsmith Senior Member

    Location:
    Glasgow
    In addition to the Come Dancing posted by Michael above, for a while on YouTube there was a clip from a retrospective HS show of Howard complaining how Ray refused to sing ‘Lola’ properly when he appeared, instead just strumming it instrumentally and forcing Stern and his posse to sing lead. A brief clip of that version then followed. Presumably that was also from the 1986 show although maybe not. I can see Ray not being comfortable about the music performance sections of the Stern show, which from what I’ve heard seem very ‘play your hits for me NOW, performing monkey’ so it makes sense he’d try to flip that in his favour. I also can’t imagine such a guarded person as Ray being comfortable with the rest of the content of Stern’s show, but he went back so it mustn’t have gone too badly.. would love to hear those shows to see how Ray vs Stern went down. Ray would later face off an even more obnoxious radio host in 2010, but that’s a story for later in the thread…
     
    Last edited: Jul 30, 2022
  5. mark winstanley

    mark winstanley Certified dinosaur, who likes physical product Thread Starter

    Destroyer.

    live, stereo mix, recorded 1 Jul, 1987 at Mann Music Center, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

    Personally I really like this version...

    Ray is having a lot of fun with it, and they are either playing around or have a very scripted show with set pieces that are well executed.

    Ray says he was talking to a policeman before the show and he said his name was L.O.L.A, and we launch into the song.

    I think the extended break after "stop" works really well.

    We get an electric keyboard fill in there and Ray asks if "that was a piano?"
    Ray asks the crowd if they're on medication and everyone hollers, but it strikes me that one female seemed to yell louder than everyone else, and we head into the Dr Dr section.

    This is energetic, fun and entertaining. I reckon it takes the cake as the best version I've heard.

     
  6. mark winstanley

    mark winstanley Certified dinosaur, who likes physical product Thread Starter

    Apeman.

    live, stereo mix, recorded 1 Jul, 1987 at Mann Music Center, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

    Ray plays the intro to Lola, and then we get the obligatory "wwaaaayy oooo"

    Instead of doing Lola, we move into Apeman, and that seems to be a pretty good way of going. It seems like Apeman probably hasn't had that many plays in recent years, so even if someone was disappointed in not having Lola, I'm pretty sure most would have been pleased with Apeman popping its head up.

    It is a shortened version, but I think It works.

     
  7. mark winstanley

    mark winstanley Certified dinosaur, who likes physical product Thread Starter

    Come Dancing.

    live, stereo mix, recorded 1 Jul, 1987 at Mann Music Center, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

    This is pretty much a straight reading of the song, it is just a faster version. I assume that the pace of the song is driven along by live adrenaline.

    This is good, but there isn't really anything of particular note to highlight I don't think.

    Ray obviously has a bit of fun with the spoken section. We also get an additional bit of chat during the outro.

     
  8. mark winstanley

    mark winstanley Certified dinosaur, who likes physical product Thread Starter

    Art Lover.

    live, stereo mix, recorded 1 Jul, 1987 at Mann Music Center, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

    It was interesting to go back to this one.
    Having been away from it for a while since the studio version, it seems like the study and digging I did on it while we were doing the Give The People What They Want version possibly/probably leaned me deep into the song and it's cryptic nuances.

    I must say listening to this version on the live album, my main thought was, they should have just let this song rest.
    I stand by my feeling that Ray should have taken a lot of the misleading lyrics out, and allowed it to be the song it was supposed to be.

    This song is played well, and works, but without a lyrical rewrite of some sort, it sort of leans past vaguely ambiguous and into creepy .... and it's sad, because thematically it's a topic rarely touched upon, and one of the tragedies of the modern world.

     
  9. All Down The Line

    All Down The Line The Under Asst East Coast White Label Promo Man

    Location:
    Australia
    Hoping to chime in later but currently at a rare live show for me....

    Right now at a primary school bush dance.

    The band incorporate Metallica, Queen, Death Metal, Comedy, Very long hair to headbang with and are actually very engaging and appropriate for the gig!
     
    Smiler, The late man, Steve62 and 7 others like this.
  10. ajsmith

    ajsmith Senior Member

    Location:
    Glasgow
    OK, 'The Road' might be the least distinctive Kinks live LP overall, but conversely it might have the best opening to it's live potion with Ray's masterfully arch intro and extemporizations around 'Destroyer'.
     
  11. ajsmith

    ajsmith Senior Member

    Location:
    Glasgow

    I suspect 'Apeman' was back in the set because the group had recently re recorded it for the Club Paradise coundtrack.
     
  12. mark winstanley

    mark winstanley Certified dinosaur, who likes physical product Thread Starter

    Oct 1963 - Nov 1966 -
    Apr 1967 - Feb 1970
    Nov 1970 - Jun 1976
    Feb 1977 - Dec 1983


    Starstruck promo video/ Days video/ Sunny Afternoon TOTP

    Oh Tokyo live in 1982 - lyrics

    Album flow chart

    Live In Frankfurt in 1984

    Nov 1984 Word Of Mouth
    Do It Again - video - live 84 - live 87 - SNL - interview
    Word Of Mouth - SNL - live 84
    Good Day - live 84 - 12"
    Living On A Thin Line - live 84 - Dave 2001 - Sopranos
    Sold Me Out
    Massive Reductions
    Guilty - live 89
    Too Hot - single
    Missing Persons
    Summer's Gone - Full length
    Going Solo - original album edit

    The Dave songs up to this point

    Kompilations part 4 - 1984

    The Arista Years

    Kompilations Part 5 - 1985
    extras - 69, 73, 77
    Supersonic Rocketship alt mix
    Celluloid Heroes mono
    Moving Pictures alt mix

    Interview

    Magazines - 2 - 3 - 4

    Jul 1985 Return To Waterloo - documentary - Fan Soundtrack - Movie
    Intro
    Return To Waterloo - alternate - info - promo video
    Ladder Of Success - the late mix
    Going Solo

    Missing Persons
    Sold Me Out - original lp mix
    Lonely Hearts - album version
    The Good Times Are Gone/Not Far Away
    Expectations
    Return To Waterloo/Voices In The Dark - alt mix

    The Great Lost Kinks Movie -Village Voice 1985

    April 1986 Absolute Beginners/Quiet Life

    June 1986 Come Dancing With The Kinks

    Kompilations pt 6 - 1986

    Ray promoting Think Visual
    Musician Magazine
    Interview record
    EC Rocker Magazine
    Ray 86 Interview
    People Magazine
    Ray guest VJ

    Nov 1986 Think Visual
    Working At The Factory
    Lost And Found - video - live 87 - excerpt and questions
    Repetition
    Welcome to Sleazy Town - live 89 - Ray Interview with Sue
    Video Shop
    Rock And Roll Cities - Video - MTV
    How Are You? - video - tv 86 - video
    Think Visual - live - live 87
    Natural Gift
    Killing Time
    When You Were A Child

    Ray and Howard Stern

    1987 Kompiles - Hit Singles - The Kinks Are Well Respected Men

    Jan 1988 The Road - Setlists
    The Road - video - Ray on Letterman 88 - single edit
    Destroyer
    Apeman
    Come Dancing
    Art Lover

    1988 80 Days (complete album)

    Kinks live TOTP 1994

    2001 Dave Davies Fragile
    Violet Dreams

    No More Mysteries
    Wait
    Bright Lights
    Give Something Back
    Hope
    Long Lonely Road

    Dave Creeping Jean live 2004

    2005 Thanksgiving Day Ray live on Conan Obrien

    Oct 2018 Dave Davies - Decade - interview
    If You Are Leaving (71)
    Cradle To The Grace (73)
    Midnight Sun (73)
    Mystic Woman (73)
    The Journey (73)
    Shadows (73)
    Web Of Time (75)
    Mr Moon (75) - Why
    Islands (78)
    Give You All My Love (78)
    Within Each Day (78)
    Same Old Blues (78)
    This Precious Time (78)

    2019 Kast Off Kinks with Ray

    2022 Celluloid Heroes

    Rob Kopp has made his 1999 Kinks discography 'Down All The days Till 1992'

    US Chart Stats
    The Music Industry Machine

    Mick Avory
    Pete Quaife - interview - Kast Off Kinks - I Could See It In Your Eyes - Dead End Street
    Rasa Didzpetris Davies
    John Dalton
    John Gosling
    Jim Rodford
    Ian Gibbons
    Andy Pyle
    Gordon Edwards
    Clive Davis

    Bob Henrit
     
  13. Fortuleo

    Fortuleo Used to be a Forum Resident

    Good catch and reminder! I think there’s also an instrumental / set up logic in these first few songs, they all share the synth horn / synth marimba sounds and the resonator guitar (which is interesting for our projected quiz), before the show shifts in a very different direction with Clichés of the World. Some beautiful ooh-oohing by Dave Death of a Clown Davies on Apeman and Come Dancing, too. On the latter, I like how he doubles the fake horns hook on guitar. Very nice touch. I don't think it was on the studio version? These are very confident entertaining live cuts of big hits and big songs.
    Sometimes a live LP's a great listen and sometimes, it just makes you wish you were in the room. In this case, I can feel the excitement and wish I could rush back in time and buy my ticket right now. This Destroyer destroys the original Destroyer, doesn’t it ?
     
  14. ARL

    ARL Forum Resident

    Location:
    England
    "Destroyer" - The album version gets close to my threshold for arena shoutiness - I think this live version probably crosses the line. Ray has some fun with the song structure, but I don't think I'd be keen to listen to this one again in a hurry.

    "Apeman" - This is actually quite a nice version, just a pity that they only perform half the song!

    "Come Dancing" - A surprisingly decent version of this, the faster pace takes your mind away from the fact that some of the elaborate arrangement from the studio version is missing.

    "Art Lover" - Again, this stands up pretty well. I'd take the studio version of this any day, but I think I'd be happy with this if I was at the gig.

    Quite impressed so far, bearing in mind that I'm not a fan of live albums. Nice to hear the Ray/Dave vocal blend present and correct where it is needed.
     
  15. ajsmith

    ajsmith Senior Member

    Location:
    Glasgow
    Featuring the off colour double entendre/punchline that Ray couldn't resist appending to live versions: 'Ray, I came dancing tonight'. I remember some fans on the KPS mailing list found this a bit distasteful/tacky, but I dunno, ok it's perhaps a bit groanworthy, but I don't think it cheapens from the theme of the song: lets face it, the palais and dancehalls were sexy scenes in their day, even if they seem quaint seen through the gauze of the passing decades.
     
  16. DISKOJOE

    DISKOJOE Boredom That You Can Afford!

    Location:
    Salem, MA
    Avid All Down the Line, your situation reminds of this:

     
  17. DISKOJOE

    DISKOJOE Boredom That You Can Afford!

    Location:
    Salem, MA
    After “The Road”, the live album kicks off w/an energetic version of “Destroyer”laced w/Ray’s wit, then goes into “Apeman”, after teasing the audience w/“Lola”, which the actual audience probably got later on (Ray was always a tease about playing that song live). A serviceable edition of “Come Dancing” follows and then “Art Lover”, which Ray had some affection for to play even though it was four albums old at the time. A nice mixup of songs to kick off the album.
     
  18. mark winstanley

    mark winstanley Certified dinosaur, who likes physical product Thread Starter

    I don't even see it as off colour really.

    The reality is, 99.9999999% of guys that took girls dancing, weren't hoping to do the foxtrot......
     
  19. croquetlawns

    croquetlawns Forum Resident

    Location:
    Scotland
    Was happy to do the foxtrot or equivalent, but hoped for some lovin' afterwards! :D
     
  20. mark winstanley

    mark winstanley Certified dinosaur, who likes physical product Thread Starter

    Teenage guys will crawl over broken glass and fight grizzly bears for some lovin' lol
     
  21. pyrrhicvictory

    pyrrhicvictory Forum Resident

    Location:
    Manhattan
    Destroyer

    Dave’s finds a perfectly menacing tone with his Telecaster Elite and adds some sizzling fills. A powerhouse performance by the boys, the energy level is through the roof; makes the GTPWTW version sound stodgy (well, it kinda was).
    Around the time The Road came out, I met Patrick, who would become a great friend. We were both passionate about music, but different genres. Both passionate about sports, but different teams. By summer of ‘88, Pat was assembling a band for a local talent show. I was in my own band, but helped him to find a singer and rehearsal space. I had taken Pat to see the Kinks at the Beacon in March, and even though his band were leaning more toward covering the likes of Iron Maiden and Anthrax, I kept nagging him to put in a Kinks number. He chose Destroyer, and we gave this flaky vocalist we found, Jake Stagg, a high school sophomore, a tape to learn. Jake had lived around the block from me five years earlier, and once almost took my eye out as we ‘fenced’ with umbrellas. The next week was rehearsal, and I’m helping Pat arrange his guitar pedals, when Jake arrives; feather boa, spandex, possibly a strategically placed cucumber. I’ll never, ever forget, as Pat starts crunching his power chords, Jake begins spitting out the entire Philadelphia ad-lib rap. I caught Pat’s eye and then we had to immediately look away. Jake the Flake thought that was the lyric, as you do. Imagine that coming through the P.A. in northern NJ. Reveling in this theater of the absurd, we thought we wouldn’t inform Jake of his miscalculation, but someone clued him in, and on the night of the talent show, it worked well. Jake ended up with the young girls swooning while singing his selection for the night, Every Rose Has it’s Thorn. So he wasn’t completely useless; they actually came in second or third, I forget which.

    Apeman

    An abbreviated version, and not as adventurous as the Cajun-inflected take on To the Bone, but always welcome. Funny how Dave teases the listener with a snatch of You Really got Me before pumping out Destroyer, then Ray teases with the opening bars of Lola before settling into Apeman. At least the people at these concerts eventually got to hear these seminal classics, not so the poor purchaser of The Road, who had to make due with the likes of Think Visual and It instead. Suck it, MCA, indeed.

    Come Dancing

    A reasonable performance, though nothing special. The Kinks final big hit notwithstanding, it still seems to cause the pace of the concert to falter.

    Art Lover

    Another pleasant rendition, but further slowing down proceedings. The air is going out of the room and the next two selection won’t exactly be lifting fans out of their seats.


    ps. @DISKOJOE if you ever see one of these in your travels please pick one up for me, I’ll even cover postage.
    [​IMG]
     
  22. All Down The Line

    All Down The Line The Under Asst East Coast White Label Promo Man

    Location:
    Australia
    Sorry I can't see anything?
     
    DISKOJOE and mark winstanley like this.
  23. stewedandkeefed

    stewedandkeefed Came Ashore In The Dead Of The Night

    First of all, "Destroyer" rocked live. It was hugely popular with American audiences and was generally received with a very positive response. My recent listening included Roseland Ballroom in NYC at the end of 1983 - mid set rocked up sequence included "Destroyer" and "The Hard Way* and it blew the lid off the place, albeit the small venue attracted mostly Kinks fanatics. "Apeman" had been mostly absent from the show for some time. Good God I saw Club Paradise when it came out (Robin Williams in a bathing suit was not pleasant). "Come Dancing" is a natural choice and in the show nightly at this time. "Art Lover" is Ray saying I gave you the big modern hit but please hear this other somewhat recent song that I really believe in. As a big fan of this song I am glad it is included and as I have mentioned before, I find this rendition wonderful.
     
  24. All Down The Line

    All Down The Line The Under Asst East Coast White Label Promo Man

    Location:
    Australia
    I see Mark more the horizontal mamba without the mam bit eventuating!
     
  25. Wondergirl

    Wondergirl Forum Resident

    Location:
    Massachusetts, USA
    I was a huge Stern fan back in the 90s. Sometimes I would laugh so much I would cry.

    one thing about Stern that a lot of folks don't get, he's an awesome interviewer. I've seen him get stuff out of people that I've never heard. I know many don't like his style, but as I've always said, my humor is at the 12 year old boy level. Farts are always funny. :laugh:
     

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