After The Fall Yesterday I reread @StefanWq's absorbing post concerning this album so i was certain he would rank this song highly and i see from cross country it's reached the summit! It made my short list but just like other people's live-liest songs here it was not one, no not at all. Scores Ray 1 Dave 1 (I think) Today's Win is Ray so...... Ray 2 Dave 2
16 - Unfinished Business (Unfinished Business) 79 - 7. stereo mix (5:08), recorded May 1996 at Konk Studios, Hornsey, London Took a walk outside, the truth was on my side, But I didn't even make the corner. Revolution in my sights, the time seems so right, But I never even saw it coming. Can't let it go. Oh no, no. Can't you hear me call, bang my head against the wall, Can't stay around this place forever. Can't you see, we gotta be free, We all gotta come together. Don't let go, oh no. Unfinished business, You thought you'd keep me quiet. You put a bullet in my side, but you can't put out my light. Unfinished business, Yes, love's the only way to find peace today. The future's here today, we gotta find a way, To put all the pain behind you. You gotta put down the guns, all religion is one, Politicians only want to blind you. Break away, oh there's a way. Oh, the message is clear, wipe away all the tears, And build a better world around you. Got to give out your love to each and every one, Can't you see it's only fear that holds you, Let it go. Oh, let it go. Unfinished business, I thought that I was right[?]. What that fool put out that night, [?] burn so bright. Unfinished business, Oh yes, love's the only way to find peace today. So you thought you'd take my life, Put a bullet in my side, but you can't put out my light. Unfinished business, Love's the only way to find peace today. Unfinished business Unfinished business Unfinished business There's a long road behind you, It's a hard life if you make it one Come on to the other side [?] There is no place to hide Unfinished business Unfinished business Written by: Dave Davies & Richard Lawrence Published by: Dave Davies/April Music (PRS) Here we have Dave doing a bit of a re-write of Dear Prudence... Musically I like this arrangement and Dave did a really good job of putting this song together. I think it comes together really well. Just over halfway through we get a nice laidback lead break, the run back into the chorus is a little awkward, but it works. Not a song I'd seek out, but on an album, it certainly wouldn't bother me at all. Full write up
16 - Yours Truly, Confused N10 (Thanksgiving Day EP) 96 - 9. stereo mix, recorded 2002 at Pyramid Room, Helicon Mountain Studios, London Dear sir or madam, I don't normally write to the press But the neighbourhood where I grew up is really quite depressed. Society is crumbling but the media's obsessed with boobs, bums, Dot-com millionaires, fame, fashion, FTSE shares But people, they couldn't care less. While parliamentary yobbos shout abuse around the house Do-gooders and reformers lead our nation to defeat. While murderers and terrorists get compassionate release You're out now. You're back on the street yeh, back on the street. That's why I remain yours truly, confused N10. I close my eyes and lay back and I think of England. I dream about that green and pleasant land we knew as England. That throne of kings, that sceptred isle set in a silver sea Has turned into a laughing stock divided without harmony. That's why I remain yours truly, confused N10 The burglars have ransacked all the houses in the street While Mercs and Porsches double park with sheer impunity. When towed away the ponces plead to all and sundry Referee, what about me? So forgive my lack of confidence and total low esteem But the dog eat dog society has deemed us all has-beens. While our smiling bland spin doctors slyly lead us down the track to a stab in the back. I'm much too terrified to go out at night but the television's boring. They're vandalising all the cars on the street but I won't lay down and take defeat. That's why I remain yours truly, confused N10 Thank you goodnight Written by: Ray Davies Published by: Davray Music Ltd. So this track was originally released on Jools Holland & his Rhythm & Blues Orchestra More Friends - Small World Big Band Volume Two This song though.... Like most, if not all of the Other People's Lives album, I really enjoy it. This is great... I guess I need to chase down this EP.... hmmm though it is also on Waterloo Sunset - The Very Best Of The Kinks and Ray Davies (2cd) ... which also includes Fortis Green.... hmmm I may need to get this. Great track. Full write up
Still batting 0.0000000000 on the Dave list. "Unfinished Business" is one that wasn't in my selection pool, as I don't have the album. It's a good track, but perhaps a bit too obviously Beatley in its descending chord sequences. Has nobody else selected anything from BarCode or Glamour? 3 for 5 on the Ray list now. "Yours Truly Confused N10" was #13 on my list - I probably enjoy this more than most of Other Peoples' Lives (the reason why I don't often type the full title is that I'm never sure where to put the apostrophe). It's lively and has elements of old Ray and new Ray - importantly it has a strong melody when required. Can't remember whether we covered this when we covered the song, but "N10" is the postcode for the area of London that includes Muswell Hill.
Unfinished Business / Yours Truly Confused N10 I have "Unfinished Business" at #14 in my Dave solo top 20. A very catchy song which would have deserved to become a hit at the time. I seem to remember reading about the song a lot on the Kinks mailing list before I first heard it, people who had been to his solo shows all seemed to like the song very much so my expectations were very high when I eventually got to hear it (on the anthologies of the same name). It is such a great song. Dave's singing is excellent and I really like the blend of the electric and acoustic guitars. "Yours Truly Confused N10" was unranked by me, but it was definitely one of the songs which were just outside my top 20. The big band feel of the song is quite different to Ray's other solo songs and it would have been nice to hear more songs with this backing. Very well-written lyrics too. A great song! My score card so far: Ray: 2/5 Dave: 2/5
I didn't have Unfinished Business on my list Yours Truly Confused, N10 came in ironically at number 10 for me
‘Unfinished Business’ is my #13. This was part of the curriculum in mid-December of 2022! Evidently my attendance was sporadic as I wrote, “Dave’s vocal is terrific, his guitar sounds warm (? is that a description? Ha) and I’m glad I listened to it.” ‘Yours Truly, Confused N10’: My #9 and a brilliant piece of songwriting. The lyrics sneer and skewer and sum up the state of society in the “sceptered isle” (I’m not saying it’s accurate as I don’t live there!) and the music is propulsive.
Yours Truly, confused… that was me when I listened to this song, up until our fearless leader broke the lyrics down for us all a thousand pages ago. Is Ray the old neighbor complaining, or is he "in character", satirizing that type of attitude ? Probably both at the same time, like in the Victoria days. Speaking of which, I remember the song had been offered to his daughter Victoria to sing… She obviously refused to take on that reactionary stance in song. Older Ray singing it gives it another savor altogether, especially with the big band backing. I'm not a huge fan of this track and didn't rank it, but I enjoy the energy of it and (as often), the How Are You two chords outro, almost a latinified version of The Deal's ending (Ray's lyrics here are foreshadowing the "people in this town have to be locked up" from that subsequent song). I'm not crazy about this song, but as one of the (few) stray songs in his catalogue, I treasure it as part of my "lost Ray Davies tunes" playlist.
It's a funny coincidence that one of today's songs is Unfinished Business, because my unfinished business as I finalised my top 20 for Dave was to check out Unfinished Business again. It's a shame too because I like it and am pretty sure it would have found a place in my top 20. I don't hear much Dear Prudence but I do hear a bit more of Harry Nilsson's Without You. Nice work, Dave. And I was so diligent in going through Ray's solo albums that to forgot about the orphan, Yours Truly Confused, N10. This is another song that would likely have made the lower reaches of my top 20 had I chased it up. I really like @Zeki's description of the music being "propulsive". This song really moves. I think I'm 0/5 for Dave and 1/5 for Ray, but I've been enjoying the songs that others have picked.
“Unfinished Business”: This was #1 on my Dave list. A fave rave Dave song from when I first heard it back in 1998. It reminds me a bit of Oasis. I can see Liam Gallagher singing this. To me it’s a bit of an “ear worm”, as the young folks say. “Yours Truly, Confused, No. 10”: This was #9 on my Ray list. A song w/the spirit of “A Well Respected Man” and “Dedicated Follower of Fashion”, updated for modern times and still pretty relevant. Does Ray really believe in the lyrics? He’d probably plead “singing in character”, but you never know. Yours Truly, Embittered 01970
Unfinished Business, I like it a lot. It’s part of my Dave’s playlists, I love the Quarry/Rutles/Oasis feel of it and I appreciate Dave reclaiming his scepter as a Britpop king (and Kink) with it. This is a brilliant song, a bit too much on the pastiche side of thing perhaps and when compiling my top 20, I did leave it on the cutting floor, in favor of more “Dave sounding like Dave” tunes. But it was just an (poor) attempt to balance out the bonkers versus poppy factors in my list. I still like it a lot, and it’s another clear win for Dave today in the battle of songs, which sees him unexpectedly taking the lead in my personal score board : on day 5, I'm at Ray-2 / Dave-3.
After The Fall - #16, Yours Truly - #4, I've had every Ray song so far, and 0 Dave songs. I vastly prefer Dave's more adventurous work, it will be interesting to see if the consensus selections remain on the safe & gentle side of his output. Give me William Shakespeare! From Richard II: This royal throne of kings, this sceptred isle, This earth of majesty, this seat of Mars, This other Eden, demi-paradise, This fortress built by Nature for her self Against infection and the hand of war, This happy breed of men, this little world, This precious stone set in a silver sea Which serves it in the office of a wall Or as a moat defensive to a house, Against the envy of less happier lands, This blessed plot, this earth, this realm, this England, This nurse, this teeming womb of royal kings, Feared by their breed and famous for their birth, Renownèd for their deeds as far from home For Christian service and true chivalry As is the sepulchre in stubborn Jewry Of the world's ransom, blessèd Mary's son. This land of such dear souls, this dear, dear land, Dear for her reputation through the world, Is now leased out - I die pronouncing it - Like to a tenement or pelting farm. England, bound in with the triumphant sea, Whose rocky shore beats back the envious siege Of watery Neptune, is now bound in with shame, With inky blots and rotten parchment bonds. That England that was wont to conquer others Hath made a shameful conquest of itself. -Yours truly, John of Gaunt, N10
Stats to date: I’m 4/5 on Dave and 2/5 on Ray. (Disclaimer: this isn’t an indicator of preference or enhanced endorsement in any way, shape or form blah blah blah.)
What fun symmetry we get today, with Ray and Dave's tracks both being proverbial "one off" efforts not part of full studio albums. I didn't rank either of them. I do like Unfinished Business a plenty; it's got a nice vocal, the descending chord progression is pleasant, but it's all just a little too familiar. On the other hand, Yours Truly... is a song that I had just forgotten about, and I was kicking myself when I realized I left it off my list. It has so much "Ray-ness" to it; the questionable OpEd lyrics, the "lay back and think about England", the Latin stylings... and then of course the kind of hilarious idea that Ray's cool punk rock daughter would cover such a thoroughly Boomer-y song (I mean it as a compliment). It just comes together so nicely. If I'd remembered to rank the track, it probably would've come in around 6-8 on my list, but I didn't. I was about to say that was a Ray-ish fate for the track, but that's not true; Ray would never forget one of his songs. Anyway, Ray wins today and chases Dave at 2-3.
Unfinished Business / Your Truly, Confused N10 Dave missed my list and Ray was at #6, so I'm now Dave (1/5) and Ray (1/5) and chalking up another win (after Jasper Dailey) for Ray on day 5.
Another 0 for 2. It doesn't help that I don't have either of these songs. I couldn't remember either of them. "Unfinished Business"- I originally wrote that it sounded like "Dear Prudence". A few others also pointed this out. It's ok, but it wouldn't have made my list. I like the guitar and the verses, but I'm not a huge fan of the chorus. "Yours Truly, Confused N 10"- It looks like I enjoyed this song when we discussed it. I'm still not very familiar with it. It might have been a contender for my list, but I don't think it would made the cut. I still think the horns are too much and Ray's vocals are at times great and sometimes bordering on annoying. This one is a toss up, but I will give the nod to Ray. Song #16 goes to Ray. Dave- 3 Ray-2
I have 'Unfinished Business' at number two in my Dave list. I think it's great, and was a highlight of the one and only Dave concert I managed to attend. Now, I regret not going to more, but that's the way of the world. Ray's 'Yours Truly Confused N10' would be vastly improved without Jools Holland. As such it's not in my list. I had to buy the Jools album at the time to get this track. There was very little I found that was pleasingly listenable. Dave wins today for me. I really ought to keep a tally of the daily wins.
1 out of 2 for me today. Unfinished Business was on 7 people's lists and is # 7 on my list. I don't mind that the melody is familiar, and think of it as a feature not a bug; besides, I really like the melody. I mentioned when we covered it, that it reminded me of Free as a Bird, and with Dave possibly thinking about John Lennon when he wrote it comes bound up in certain emotions for me. Yours Truly, Confused N10 did not make my list. It has a great sound, but the melody isn't that memorable. I do like the performance, and really like the lyrics, which, without the specifics, feel as relevant to NY as they are to London.
Yours Truly No 10 was high on my Ray list at number 3. It’s a good, enjoyable character song (with the usual caveat that Ray himself inhabits all of his character songs) and I have no issue with the musical backing. I’m a bit surprised it didn’t come in higher. I didn’t have the song Unfinished Business on my Dave list . Maybe it was the blatant Be@#$s cop or maybe it was again the lyrics I don’t have much use for. Ray may have repeated himself over the years writing about the daily grind, repetition, being a wanderer with no fixed abode, but so many Dave songs center on how awful the world is or, less often, how awful the world is but we can conquer with love. These may be worthy subjects, but he doesn’t offer much different in each. Give me Look Through Any Doorway.
16 - Unfinished Business (Unfinished Business) Pretty close, as I had this at #15 on my Dave list. It was an instant playlister when we covered it. Good melody, and Dave sounds good singing it. More of a fan of the less bonkers Dave tracks. But excuse me.. … but don’t you mean Badfinger’s Without You? 16 - Yours Truly, Confused N10 (Thanksgiving Day EP) Unranked by me. I was quoted above saying the horns were a bit too hot when we first covered this, and I’ll stand by that. A nice song, good lyrics, but my list is dominated by the more proper studio album tracks (and a couple of demos).
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