"Lincoln County" - I may have only heard this a handful of times ever. I think I only have it on the The Album That Never Was CD, which I've hardly ever played as it has a glitch on it. Anyway - it's a good track. It has a country-esque feel, accentuated by the strings, and the Wurlitzer organ gives it a sounds which to me is somewhat distinct from the official Kinks tracks of the time. The song is catchy and Dave gives a great vocal performance. Nothing wrong with this at all - its failure was probably due in good part to the The Kinks' own sinking profile. I need to get that CD out and reacquaint myself with this and the upcoming Dave tracks. (I'm wondering why I know "Mindless Child Of Motherhood" and "This Man He Weeps Tonight" much more - do I have them on another compilation??? EDIT - yes, they are on Well Respected Men)
There is a 'Lincoln County' promo video that only became known to fans last year, but after appearing on Yotube then it's since disappeared: the lesson here is, of course DOWNLOAD ANYTHING RARE ON YOUTUBE ASAP!!!!! As a poor consolation, here's my 2020 thread about the video when it appeared online: Dave Davies ‘Lincoln County’ 1968 music video (partial)
I always enjoy mishearing 'I'm gonna shout for more' as 'I'm gonna sh*g them all!'.. it really sounds like it, and it doesn't change the meaning of the song either, just makes it a bit more coarsely direct.
Thank you sir, if anyone thinks Ray is not a good singer that emotes well please listen to the partly isolated vocal on @FJFP 's Mixology series (on Days) that Frederick himself has linked above!
Not trying to throw shade at Shel Talmy, but I think a marked difference and a demarcation of sorts in the quality of the music occurred when Ray took over production duties -- or at least a high point in the Kinks' body of work was reached at roughly the same time. I like to think Ray had something to do with that at the producer's level.
"Lincoln County", another Dave rocker that crops up, amongst others, as a post album bonus track on the (much maligned) Essential extended Kinks CDs. All these sort of one-offs and b-sides (including "Polly") I always thoroughly enjoy, because the pressure is off. They don't need to connect to the 'theme' of a parent album, or be compared unfavourably with previous or subsequent A-sides. This is slightly atypical, a curious 'country' edge creeping in, another string to the Kinks' bow. I'm not quite convinced I'd play a Dave solo album much, but I'd never ever do without his songs/lead vocals as part of the kanon. Mr Reporter, This is Where I Belong.. Suzannah's Still Alive.. actually maybe I will give that solo album a try..
Lincoln County This song was recorded way back in March 1968 in the same sessions as its B-side and Polly. Doug Hinman says Nicky was playing harpsichord (maybe he meant organ?) so it could be Ray getting those convincing fiddle sounds out of a mellotron. Dave in his autobiography said the song was about his mother claiming a scarf Dave had secretly bought for his girlfriend Sue's birthday - though this gets only one vague reference in the lyrics. I agree with Fortuleo that it sounds a bit like Ronnie Lane - though it's played at a more frantic pace than Ronnie's best work. In Lincoln County Dave gets country-tinged before it became sort-of-fashionable; glossing over Act Naturally (sorry Ringo if you are reading this. And Peace ). The Stones did Country Honk in 1969, while over the Atlantic, Music from Big Pink and Sweetheart of the Rodeo were only released in July and August 1968 respectively. So I reckon Dave was blazing his own trail. This song is a grower and after a few spins I could happily listen to it again.
Lincoln County never heard this one. First impressions are it’s not as catchy as some of Dave’s previous few songs, and not as good or as powerful as some the other ones that are listed as bonus tracks on Arthur. Overall, I think what we hear here is Dave really finding his voice though. It’s incredible to note the difference in his lead vocals from ‘65 to ‘67/‘68. There’s more inflection, some more bends like how the first syllable of “Lincoln” bends up a bit, and the first syllable of “County” bends back down. And his songwriting/arranging is getting a bit more complex and deeper and fuller. I don’t see this being a hit though. It seems like a good B-Side though. It should have been a bit more well known that it was. Being tucked into a deluxe bonus track wasn’t enough for me to know it existed after being a Kinks fan for over 20 years.
Days I adore this song and have just bonded closer to it over time like a very pleasing relationship! I first heard and enjoyed it 25 odd years ago and soon after saw the '69 Pop Go The Sixties clip and watching the close ups of Ray singing and it really disarmed, captivated me and drew me in. I was so moved by the mixed ingredients of maturity, reflection, acceptance, honesty, frailty, wistful regret, acknowledgement and sentimentality all existing in a simply beautifully balanced and melodic piece. I also love the acapella parts on the Kinks To The Bone, Dave's stunningly emotive backing vocal and even when Milford And Son did a beautiful acapella introduction of their own interpretation. I wouldn't say it was not in part about an ended romance but please allow me to share with you a little postscript...... In 2001 Ray & Larry Page were specifically interviewed for an Australian 3 hour radio show on the Kinks. Getting to 'Days' Ray spoke of the original line up with Peter Quaife and said he gave thanks to them for their shared effort and experience adding that he knew they would break up and it wouldn't last. The opening 'especially' of Days at Glastonbury (shortly after Pete's passing) where Ray looks up to the sky i still find incredibly moving to this very day as to me it conveys far more than words could. For me it became clear that the song has so much hard won life experience i can transpose to my own existence that it has brought me to the verge of tears. For this there are some Days when i am even tempted to consider putting it above Waterloo Sunset, believe me!
Not so much country, IMO, as western. The lyrical imagery conjures the Great Wild American West. Lincoln County is a thing in western lore. Not a major event, but Billy the Kid figures into it. You can google it. For many years I worked for a company that published Wild West Magazine, and we'd every so often do a story on The Lincoln County War. (More than once at such times I brought up the fact there is a Kinks song that uses the title. I would be greeted by blank stares around the conference table.) Now, this song is not about the fight that happened there, but about an outlaw released from jail--possibly because of his connection to the event?--and going back home to celebrate and raise some hell. On Dave's NYC Bottom Line show Live LP he says "Jesse James" when he probably meant "Billy the Kid." You are right, it is an English kid writing about a very American thing with only a vague awareness of the details. Historical accuracy wasn't his goal here. Like most people world wide, the American Wild West has mostly been Hollywoodized, with a fantasy depiction substituted for reality. But that's okay. As legendary director John Ford once said, "when legend becomes fact, print the legend." Anyway, I digress. As for Muswell Hillbillies and Ray's dabbling with Americana, his "country-ish" phase never ventures much beyond Appalachia and the Delta Valley. His concept of country is in the mountains, not the plains. "Lincoln County" stands alone as the Kinks only true foray into what Americans understand as the authentic West, i.e. cattle drives, hoedowns, rodeo's, gun fights, etc. Unless one counts the musical arrangement for "Scrapheap City"...or the oblique connection with Western film via the unreleased "Duke." BTW, I love this song. This may well be my favorite Dave original.
I felt the need to post a similar observation back when Death Of A Clown was being discussed- I hear Ronnie when Dave sings “whiskey and...gin”!
Lincoln County: a few more thoughts (beyond the “sounds like Ronnie Lane”). I don’t see this as an A-side single. The whole Dave Davies as a solo artist campaign seems haphazard and botched. There’s no direction. Everything seems an afterthought. And I can’t figure out why Dave allowed Ray to produce if he was feeling resentful and overshadowed. I think Ray did a great job in producing, that’s not my point, but from the “let’s let Dave have his moment, his career, separate from The Kinks,” it doesn’t compute. Back to the song itself. I like it with it’s circus/amusement park organ and Dave’s raw vocals. But I can’t see it as “single” material.
I wonder if it is just that Ray knew Dave well enough to know he would lose interest? All this stuff will make the Hidden Treasures discussion really interesting. I also wonder if Dave was the one making the decisions, or if it was Pye, or someone else.
I suspect it wasn’t Dave at all (re: decision making). I’m a complete novice when it comes to Kinksian Studies but it seems, so far, as if Dave was perfectly content being led/guided. He didn’t need (?) or want (?) to assert himself. Edit: or probably wasn’t in a position to have a say.
That is a rather good insight. I can imagine the Davies boys spending their childhood Saturdays at their local theatre watching American western movies. The American Wild West has always been of interest in the UK & Europe. There was an author in Germany whose name escapes me, who was quite famous for writing Wild West stories despite the fact that he never left Germany. I've heard the B-side of "Lincoln County" years before the A-side, which was on a bootleg album called Kollectable Kinks before making the rounds as a CD bonus track. It's a good song & it does fit the "back to the basics". I know that Dave at least was a big fan of The Band, although I'm not sure whether it was a direct influence on the song. It seems to me now that the Kinks seem to be in a state of flux in 1968. On one hand, there's this attempt to establish Dave as a solo act, which was half-assed since he wasn't sure he wanted to be one. On the other hand you have Ray recording the songs which became the VGPS & he's not sure whether or not to be a solo act himself. I think that both of them wanted to stay together as the Kinks for one reason or another & didn't want to fully commit to solo careers.
I LOVE Lincoln County. It's probably my second favorite Dave track, after "Strangers"--maybe even a tie. It's weirdly obscure compared to his prior singles and even its B-side --not showing up on either early 70's Reprise compilation-- and equalled in difficulty accessing, over the pre-CD years, only by his next single. I think it's a much better single than "Suzannah's Still Alive." It was a name I would see now and then, generally on some import comp, when I was record shopping in the 80's. Always on an overpriced set that otherwise contained things I already had. I was shocked, when I finally heard it, by how good and atypical it was. This is not a Mellotron, folks, it's a real string quartet, and yes, probably the same one we are hearing on "Polly." (and, I suspect, the same cellist from the end of "Wonderboy."). Notice, as well, that this is exactly the same organ sound we hear on "Did You See His Name?", meaning it probably dates from the same session or block of studio time. I love his vocal, I love the strings, and I think it's a cute lil song. No particular point being made, not a genius piece of writing or anything, but a truly enjoyable track that highlights the best qualities of Dave's ability to project his personality. I like the mono mix better than the stereo. The strings don't feel full enough in the stereo mix. I like that he's going to buy his mom a scarf that he already knows "she won't wear." I love the way he spits out "gonna lift the lid off hell!" The whole thing makes me smile, and it's near the top of my fave Kinks tracks from this era. Top 20? Top 30? Somewhere in there.
Hi everybody. I had a rough week last week, so I fell behind for the first time. I am 15 pages back from you guys at this point. I'll catch up a little with a few songs here. "Susannah's Still Alive" - One of my favorite Dave songs from the period (and yes I have no idea what he's saying in that first line). Is that harmonica in the choruses? I think that's a cool touch. "Whiskey or gin, that's alright." Great drums too. I wasn't around in the 60s but I figure a song title like this would be quite the attention grabber. Much like a band calling themselves the Zombies. A song so catchy you can listen to it for years without wondering what it's about. I love lyrics like these--kind of mysterious, but sung with passion showing some meaning only Dave may truly understand. I'll revisit Kelvin Hall sometime this week. I may have only played it once or twice. My only copy is in the mono vinyl box. Not sure I'll have much to say on it, but we'll see. "Wonderboy" - I have 15 pages to read so I'm not sure how much it's been mentioned that Oasis nixed a bit of this song for "She's Electric." This song never did a whole lot for me. It didn't seem like a great idea that this one was a single. It does get in your head with a melody that makes me think of a carousel or something. I didn't know it was about his son. The lines "Day is as light as your brightest dreams / Night is as dark as you feel it ought to be" hold some wise advice there. Not sure I'd tell my son that at birth, but it's good for the adult me to hear. "Polly" - Love that crashing piano. This song rocks! May have been a better single than "Wonderboy," though that one likely meant more to Ray. There are so many changes in this song. Ray does that rapid "pretty pretty pretty pretty" at the end. I didn't discover this one until the 3-disc VGPS release.
So to date, are these the Dave Davies tracks jostling for position (for favorite D.D. song)? Death of a Clown Wait Till the Summer Comes Along Got My Feet on the Ground I Am Free Funny Face Love Me Till the Sun Shines Susannah’s Still Alive Lincoln County
I just conducted a whirlwind, snippet listen of the above 8 and, in my world, hold these three at the top: Death of a Clown Susannah’s Still Alive Lincoln County Lincoln County: when listened to back-to-back with Dave’s other songs I would venture to say this is the most well-crafted (from a songwriting perspective) one of the bunch. I already like it more than I did upon first listen (which was this a.m., by the way). That doesn’t mean I elevate it above the other two. I don’t because I like a ramshackle, lurch here and there, raw and rough track, too.
It's a really hard call.... we have a bunch more leading towards Arthur, I might throw out some faves around there.
Lincoln County Dave is in fine voice on this tune. I always liked this song, but I am finding out this morning that I actually love it. It could also be in my top three Dave songs up to this point. When we get to the end of the 60s I will try and break down my favorites. I don't believe I ever made the Ronnie Lane connection, but that's so clear to me now. I love those Ronnie albums and it makes me realize why I am so fond of this song. It puts a smile on my face and I can imagine Ronnie and Dave playing together under a circus tent until the sun comes up.