Creatures of Little Faith Yeah, the sax turned me off at first too. I'm still not sure how well it sits, though I agree that it's tastefully done. And generally, the more you listen to the song, the more the arrangement stands out as quite well done, not just *professional.* I must have a jealous heart; I've always reacted viscerally to any sign of jealousy, in myself or others; it colors my feelings about "Jealous Guy" as well as this song. Generally I see it as a sign of weaknes, immaturity, insecurity. So I start out sympathizing with the narrator, but by the end of the song I don't sympathize with either party. If the trajectory of yesterday's song was blame her/sympathize with her/blame him, this one is blame her/blame him/pity them both. I'm generally good with RD's somewhat new talk-sing, louche-voiced, syllable-cramming vocal style here, but what I really love is when his voice rises on the "all we need" bit. The truth of a song is in the heart of the listener. Once the composer lets it out into the world, it takes on multiple lives of its own (very good example of this yesterday).
Popping in to say hi to all you fine people after breaking my commenting fast on the Paul Simon thread. As you may have seen, I've been following along but felt self-conscious about dropping out so I even stopped liking all the wonderful posts. I had a breakthrough earlier and have decided that I can both comment and like occasionally (jeezus, I think Ray would respect/sympathize with my neuroticism!) Anyway, thanks to our fearless leader and all you stalwarts who always give me something to think about. Re: OPL - I didn't buy the album when it came out (my Kinks fandom intersected with the debut of Working Man's Cafe) but I've been a big fan since I bought it. Creatures of Little Faith was always a standout to me, as was everything covered so far really (even After the Fall!) It was particularly interesting listening to the Jane Street incarnations of these songs, which were new to me - even though Ray still sounds great on this album, I detect vocal decline between that show in 2001 and this release. I don't like thinking about that (and especially about the rather precipitous vocal decline that came a few years later), but it's just something to note the passage of time. One last thing - Ray is credited for mellotron on the album, and not sure I hear it on anything other than Creatures of Little Faith. In any case, I love the touch of it - just a beautiful wash of sound, with the saxophone as the (unlikely) cherry on top.
Creatures Of Little Faith I've been singing along to this one now for over twenty years. Where have they all gone! 'Creatures Of Little Faith' was a regular entry on the solo concerts from the start of the century, so when the album came out it was treated as an old friend, with a new (saxy) coat. I always thought the opening lines were a bit too cheap for Ray, but hey-ho, I can't think of anything better, so shouldn't criticise! It was a favourite on the album, from it's live familiarity (where it had no sax), but it's lost a little of its sheen over the last decade and a half or more since release. Still a solid track, not quite great, and one that is no longer always a shoe-in for a Ray playlist. Using 'creatures' instead of 'people' is a masterstroke. A nice change of musical feel from the previous tracks. I think this album lacks the killer ballad, that Ray is so good at. The next album has them.
I don't like to think about the vocal decline of my favourite artists, and I don't really notice it on these two solo albums ('Other People's Lives' and 'Working Man's Cafe'), but it's clearly noticeable not long after. Presumably Ray, being smart enough to realise this, brought in a full choir to beef up the vocals on his next project. The two 'Americana' albums suffer, which makes me think they'll probably be his last. Ray won't put out anything embarrassing like some 'elder musical statesmen' do. I think that's why the only Kinks talk was of finishing off already part-done songs, not of creating new material. Mind you, even that's gone quiet.
"Creatures of Little Faith" I thought that was what I was hearing. This saves the song for me. A beautiful wash of sound is a great way to describe it. There is much to admire here, but it doesn't all come together in the end. I'm not a huge fan of the addition of the sax. He should have just given us a mellotron solo! I like the effects on the guitars, but the drum sound doesn't seem to fit the mood. The snare is a little too snappy. Ray's vocal is at times beautiful and mellow, but I'm not overly fond of all the talking style vocals. I also can't help but think he is going to sing another word that starts with "sh" after getting caught with his pants down.
Creatures of Little Faith This track is another highlight on the album, adding even more versatility to it. I like the contrast between the laidback, smooth feel of the music and the melancholy and tension of the lyrics. From the sound of it, the couple in the lyrics lack trust in each other and their relationship is going downhill. Ray's singing captures both their sadness and their mood of resignation. The instrumentation and the production is spot on, with the sax being played with great sophistication.
I got a call today from my next door neighbor, the one I told you guys about. He finally came back from the hospital and he sounds great.
One last word about "All She Wrote": if we are to believe both what Ray says - that the song is about all his break-ups bundled up together - and the literal reading of the final line, it gives a frightening insight into how Ray views himself as a boyfriend/husband. Creatures of Little Faith This is one I don't need help to find likable. Even if I'm not fond of the voice tone/mixing (which maybe is what bothers me the most on this album). I'm not sure the focus is on the couple story per se, it's more about jealousy in general, and the fact that we can all fall into the trap. It's like a disease. I contracted it for a few months, after my own trust had been betrayed, and it's dreadful. Then one fine morning it was gone. Like a disease, really.
Yes it should. Aptly titled. If you can, put up your tentative schedule sometime this weekend or next week. I may have a monkey wrench or two to toss in there as usual if they’re not already in there. They may very will be in there I can’t remember. I’m researching what audio we may need that is not currently on YouTube and building those I didn’t find. I’ve already identified several things that I can’t find like the whole Belly Up album and some Ray stuff too.
The subject of late-career masterpieces has been touched upon, as well as that of voices failing with age. McCartney comes to mind, even more Brian Wilson (though age is not the sole factor for the latter I guess). I find Ray's voice still quite effective in these albums from the 2000s. Of course it's changed in the last 2 albums, but it doesn't trouble me that much, it's more like a transformation, like Dylan's. Anyway, what I wanted to say is, I listened to most of the last 5 David Crosby albums, released between 2014 and 2021, and I must say they're absolutely incredible. The guy already looked like he was 60 in the 1970s, he's been inserting every known molecule into his body by every mean possible for decades, and he got the voice of an angel to the last breath. Plus, the sound on these albums is unbelievably good, it could have been recorded in the 70s. And the songwriting is really high level. To tell the truth, I've never been impressed by Crosby's work when he was young, even if I don't dislike it; it's a rare case of an artist whose later music sounds much better to my ears than what he recorded in his prime. Which leads me to 2 further comments (sorry for this free-form Friday night) : - how is our appreciation of these later-day works affected by the quality of the voice? Would we like Americana more if Ray had benefited from the Crosby miracle? - In my opinion, one of the main conditions for a late-career masterpiece is the willing adjunction of a talented collegue, younger if possible. McCartney had Godrich for Chaos and creation, Wilson had his guy named Scott Bennett for Lucky Old Sun, Crosby had his son on 4 of the last 5 records (and I haven't been listening to the 5th yet, the one from 2018). Paul Simon had none (that I know of), and Ray, who worked with a younger collegue until he was 50, had none either in his later years. Maybe that explains why both these very talented songwriters made very pleasant and interesting records over the last 20 years, but none that I would consider a late-career masterpiece.
Creatures of Little Faith Back during the Storyteller discussion and That Old Black Magic, we wondered what an album of Ray doing crooner lounge songs would sound like. I think like this? This song is just wonderful, and not typically the kind of music I normally seek out. But I think we have seen how Ray can morph into many different musical styles, and put his unique spin on these genres that make these songs so special. Those first two lines seem like Ray’s sense of humor to me. Taking a phrase that is idiom, but then turning it around to be literal. On this one, that jazzy hi-hat, those floating guitars, mellotron, smooth sax…. Ray’s relaxed and loungy delivery… I love what he adds here, that “Ooh…”, the “Forgive me!” That bridge is divine, into the sax solo. Then the next verse is just Ray and the keyboard (mellotron?) at first, before the percussion and guitar joins back in again. This has long been one of my favorites on the album. It seems longer than it’s runtime, and I mean that in a good way. 5 for 5.
Short term, so far Saturday - Run Away From Time Monday Jan 30th - The Tourist Tuesday - Is There Life After Breakfast Wednesday - The Getaway Thursday - Other People's Lives Friday - Stand Up Comic Saturday - Over My Head Monday Feb 6th - Thanksgiving Day + alt mix, and album summary Tuesday - Dave - Fractured Mindz Long Term, so far Ray - Other People's Lives 2006 Dave - Fractured Minds 2007 Working Man's Cafe 2007 Dave - Belly Up 2008 Ray - Come Dancing Musical 2008 The Kinks - Picture Book (6cd set) 2008 Ray - The Kinks Choral Collection 2009 Dave - Around The Galaxy live album 2009 Ray - Collected 2009 - compilation Dave - The Aschere Project (dave and russ davies) Two Worlds (2010) Ray - See My Friends 2010 Dave - Mystical Journey cd/dvd 2010 Ray - Meltdown Festival 2011 Ray - Leisure Society Sane 2011 *Dave - Hidden Treasures 2011* - Done Ray - Waterloo Sunset London Olympics 2012 Dave - Black On Blues Black Keys Tribute album Ray - Waterloo Sunset : The Very Best Of The Kinks And Ray Davies 2012 - compilation Dave - Who Are You Who Tribute album 2012 Kinks - BBC sessions box 2012 Dave - I Will Be Me (2013) Ray - Americana: The Kinks, the Road and the Perfect Riff 2013 Dave - After The Ball with Garth Hudson 2013 The Kinks - The Anthology 1964–1971 (5-CD box set) 2014 Kinks - Sunny Afternoon Musical 2014 Dave - Rippin' Up Time (2014) Dave - Rippin Up NYC Live At The Winery 2014 Ray - Ray Davies A Complicated Life - Johnny Rogan 2016 The Kinks - Kinks In Koncert 1965 (2016) The Kinks - Till Death Us Do Part ep 2016 Ray - Americana 2017 Dave - Open Road (dave and russ davies) (2017) The Kinks - Ravensize Session (The Pre-Kinks Regent Studio Demos) 2017 Ray - Broken TV theme 2017 *Dave - Decade 2018* - Done The Kinks Are The Village Green Preservation Society super deluxe box 2018 The Kinks - Kinks TV Session 2018 Ray - Our Country: Americana Act 2 2018 The Kinks - Arthur (or the decline and fall of the British Empire) Super Deluxe Edition) 2019 The Kinks Love Vs Powerman and The Moneygoround Super Deluxe Edition 2020 Dave - Living On A Thin Line autobiography 2 2022 Dave - Livin On A Thin Line compilation 2022 Dave - 21st Century 2022 TBA On my phone, so I can't clean it up, but there's some stuff we already went through
Creatures of Little Faith I’m going to join the minority in not being wowed by this song. Not that I dislike it. There aren’t any tracks on this album that I dislike. I won’t rule out the possibility that it might grow on me eventually. I just seem to lose interest in the song after a while. It could be the sound bordering on adult contemporary that’s doing it. The chorus just isn’t moving me. Fortunately my wife and I have rarely had trust issues in 34 years of marriage. Funnily enough my wife had to go back to the school she works at for an after school activity this evening. I was taking advantage - playing the entire OPL album at a good volume. When this song came on, it occurred to me that it hadn’t occurred to me that she might not actually be at work, lol.
Lol I have two angles on that 1 - it not healthy to jump to that conclusion 2 - even if someone's partner was "up to something", whatcha gonna do about it lol
Cool, thanks. One short term thing is Ray’s 2006 appearance on the US TV show Austin City Limits. Several songs on You Tube from the broadcast with TV audio/mix. One song has seen official release “A Long Way From Home” on some of the 2020 Lola Deluxe sets. I’ll have this ready in its official album release mix. Add in to the schedule Ray’s 2010 live Denmark show. Several of these performances have since seen official release on the Village Green, Arthur, and Lola Deluxe sets in pristine audio, none of which are on YouTube that I can find. There are videos of parts of this show in visual form from a decade ago but the audio is horrid. See? I said I had some monkey wrenches . Classic Streett!
“Creatures of Little Faith” – As it did for @stewedandkeefed, “Suspicious Minds” came to mind, along with another old Elvis song, “Suspicion.” It’s a good depiction of the damage that jealousy and suspicion can bring, on both sides in this case. Does anyone else hear the “Nothing Is Forever” coda in the “They say love is blind” section? I heard that and thought “oh, they started out with great hopes but they’re never going to make it.” The previous song colors this one for me. If this preceded “All She Wrote,” one could imagine that it’s the same couple and either (a) the woman in “All She Wrote” was totally imagining his transgressions and got more and more unhinged based on her unfounded suspicions or, more likely, b) he was a total cad and gaslighting her, eventually sending her over the edge of it. Oh…looking back at @Luckless Pedestrian's post, I’m reminded that Ray’s liner notes did put him in the cad category. Yep, I'll take Gaslighting for 100, Mayim (sorry, overdid Jeopardy yesterday). A good song with a gorgeous sound (especially the guitars), but the mid-tempo-ness of it and a mostly non-distinctive spoken-sung melody keep it out of the top tier for me. Aside: The first liquidy guitar chord reminds me of “Where Are We Now,” one of my favorite Bowie songs.
This isn't a concept album, but there are lot of connections across the album. We'll find when we get there, the first and last songs are intrinsically linked
Ok this is what I love about this thread and our fellow avids. I want to pull these few quotes together: First of all, yes, now relistening, I do hear that similarity. It is beautiful now, and was beautiful then. Back then for Nothing Lasts Forever, I wrote this about that coda: Now, again from today’s song, we have @Fortuleo with this, tying these two previous quotes together: This thread and the wonderful people with wonderful ears on it…
I’m definitely avoiding reading Ray’s comments in the liner notes until after I post. McCartney said something similar, I think, about not always being conscious of the subtext of songs he’s written until years later.
Oops, I messed up the title but you knew what I meant! That "Nothing Lasts Forever" coda is like its own little gorgeous love song within a song. Yes, beautiful then and now.
