Congratulations on finally biting the bullet on the VGPS deluxe box set. I concur w/Avid croquet lawns that's it's fantastic. Hope it comes to you real soon.
A little piece of trivia to start the week, shall we ? Ok, then, by popular demand… Most of us here know Robert Plant’s was called “Percy” in the seventies, right ? Now guess which film inspired this nickname, as a tribute to the guy's widely acknowledged generous manhood ? At least, that's what Dave Thompson states in his 2014 book "Robert Plant the Voice That Sailed the Zeppelin". Just another little Zeppelin/Kinks connection…
So was there ever a film called 'Plonk' to immortalise Ronnie Lane who was known to the general fan by his small face?
"God's Children". Single by The Kinks from the album Percy soundtrack B-side "Moments" Released 1971 Recorded 1970 Genre Rock Length 3:16 Label Pye Records Songwriter(s) Ray Davies Producer(s) Ray Davies stereo mix (3:12), recorded 12, 13 Oct 1970 at Morgan Studios (1), Willesden, London Man made the buildings that reach for the sky And man made the motorcar and learned how to fly But he didn't make the flowers and he didn't make the trees And he didn't make you and he didn't make me And he got no right to turn us into machines He's got no right at all 'Cause we are all God's children And he got no right to change us Oh, we gotta go back the way the good lord made us all Don't want this world to change me I wanna go back the way the good lord made me Same lungs that he gave me to breath with Same eyes he gave me to see with Oh, the rich man, the poor man, the saint and the sinner The wise man, the simpleton, the loser and the winner We are all the same to Him Stripped of our clothes and all the things we own The day that we are born We are all God's children And they got no right to change us Oh, we gotta go back the way the good lord made Oh, the good lord made us all And we are all his children And they got no right to change us Oh, we gotta go back the way the good lord made us all Yeah, we gotta go back the way the good lord made us all Written by: Ray Davies Published by: Coronado Music I have no idea of Ray's grounding in faith, nor does it effect my opinion on his writing and music, but regardless of that, this is a song that could quite easily be sung in a church, and it is a song that I would sing in a church, because at the end of the day it is very grounded in truth. In the first verse we open up with a short list of some of man's achievements, and then we get a list of some of God's creations. Man's achievements are very useful to us, and then God's creations have beauty and life. The second verse opens up with a list of types.... this is how people classify other people, we do it constantly. We want everyone and everything to fit neatly in a box.... but of course that is a complete nonsense, and anyone trying to put you in a category or a box is trying to dehumanise you, and we are all guilty of it at some point, but we are all much more complicated than that. Then we have how God sees us. We are all the same. He sees under our facades, and through our disguises, and for all our intelligence, He sees how stupid we all really are, because we only have our specific perspective and the bigger picture is completely lost to us, though we pretend we have some kind of clue, because we are all full of self importance. The world does try and turn us into machines, whether on a production line, in a house of learning or designing some new digital distraction to amuse ourselves to death. From the moment we are born the world is stripping us of our innocence, stripping us of our light and joy, and trying to ram us into a box to fit the mold required of us. In relation to the movie Percy, this is almost an argument against the movie. The movie is somewhat speaking to the technical advancement that allowed the main character to have some genitals sewn back on, due to the freak accident that ruined his own. In a typically subversive way, Ray has written an opening title theme song that speaks to the idea of returning back to our basic reality. Returning to the basic stem of who we really are, rather than a cog in the machine of human self aggrandisement. In reality this song almost directly speaks out against the premise of the movie, which is hilarious to me and also such a very Ray thing to do. I think of Frank Zappa here, because Frank probably offended nearly every person and type of person that ever lived, because he had a way of delivering pointed sarcastic put downs. It was as though he lived his life in such a way as to spend all his time pointing out how stupid we all are, and how stupid the system we operate in actually is. I say that, because more and more as we go through Ray's songs, I see the same types of themes. The difference is, to me at least, that Ray has a more gentle way of doing it, generally. Ray delivers his put downs in a compassionate loving way, rather than an acerbic and sarcastic way, comparatively. Ray's criticisms of the human race and its systems, are as delicate as it seems the inner workings of his mind are.... and that is a beautiful thing to me. It is one thing to say someone or something is stupid, but it is another completely to do it in such a delicate and compassionate way as to not hurt the subject of your criticism. Of course the basic underlying principle of this song, is a more focused and realistic look at the ideas that Ray has been exploring for quite a while now, and were brought into sharp focus on The Kinks Are the Village Green Preservation Society. This song is actually quite concise and states its case directly and beautifully, without getting into being too wordy, or longwinded.... unlike me I guess lol As I stated earlier, I had somewhat avoided the Percy album, partly because I had never heard any good comments about it. Partly because I didn't know any of the songs. Partly because it seems very rare that I actually enjoy soundtrack albums. When I got this album, as the bonus disc on the 2014 two disc Lola vs Powerman album ( in May this year), this song sort of stunned me, and frankly even if it was the only thing on here that I liked, I would have felt it was a worthwhile purchase, because I only bought it for the Percy soundtrack. I had to go back and listen to it again, because it was certainly not something I expected to hear from Ray. Musically this is beautiful. We open with a really nice guitar motif. A rolling arpeggio that is executed beautifully, and accented by some piano chords, and then we move into a beautiful rolling piano that rolls through the chords of the song with beautifully linked arpeggios. Over the top of that we get Ray delivering possibly his most delicate and beautiful vocal. As we move into the second half of the verse, Ray moves into a more earnest delivery, that in its essence of delivery almost denounces the opening section. The first chorus has the full band sound kick in, and again, it is perfectly executed. Mick gives us some really solid drum fills/accents, that drive us along nicely. Interestingly we go from the first verse and chorus directly into a bridge. The full band drops out, and Ray again with plaintive reasoning delivers an earnest vocal. The melodic construct of this whole song is beautiful..... I'm afraid beautiful is going to come into play here a lot, sorry, but Beautiful sums up this whole song. This is one of the most beautiful things to come from the pen of Ray in my opinion. Then with a roll of those drums we move into another verse that initially sounds like it may be going somewhere else again, but resolves itself into the second verse. We roll back into the chorus that gets doubled down in an attempt to drive the whole point home. Ray repeats this idea with the final line of the song also doubling down, an emphasis point. An important point. This song has some nice orchestration, and some excellent playing from the band, but the heart and soul of this song is the heart and soul of our writer and singer. This song has fast become one of my favourite tracks from the band. Dave Davies praised the song as "phenomenal, an amazing song which is timeless and if you play it now it could sit quite comfortably in any decade." Kinks organist John Gosling regards "God's Children" as one of his three favorite Kinks' songs. Johnny Rogan has stated that Davies' "plea for a return to Edenic innocence was powerful and moving and arguably the closest he has come to writing a religious song." Billboard Magazine described the song as "a potent lyric ballad set to a rock beat" and regarded it as a "strong entry for Top 40, FM and Hot 100." However, the single's success was hampered by lack of promotion by the label, and lack of live concert support from the band.
It seems I always misunderstood what Percy (the film) was. I understood it was about a ___ transplant, but I didn't realise it was a comedy. I assumed it was a serious film and thought, "Wow, who would want to watch that " (I could see myself winceing). There's also nothing in any of these Kinks songs to suggest any humour or levity. And as I'd never heard of the film outside of Kinks discussions, I also assumed it was an obscure film no one saw. I was baffled why the Kinks would throw away all these great songs on such an ill-conceived project. Now I understand that it was a comedy, and a wildly successful one, and I see it all in a wholly different light. It now seems like great exposure for them, and surely, even if the songs didn't chart highly, they must have made an impression on moviegoers and kept the band in people's minds. I know the early seventies weren't the high point of their career, buit maybe they'd have fared even worse if not for this soundtrack. God's Children Not my favourite song on the soundtrack, but a very good one. Very pastoral sounding, and also would feel at home in church as Mark says. It feels like a lot of songwriters could have written it though.
I really don't like the sound of this record, it’s murky and busy. But it doesn’t prevent the song to appear for what it is for me as well : one of Ray’s greatest/purest seventies masterpieces. Musically, it would be at home on Lola’s second side, somewhere between This Time Tomorrow and A Long Way from Home, two songs of which it shares the melancholy and soaring quality, the inspired band playing and some arresting Dave Davies harmonies, as well as the key of D and some melodic inflexions. The lyrics also sound like a down to earth not comedic version of Apeman, the need to “go back” to a less denatured state. Some of these lyrics are fantastic, it’s not only a matter of “message”, but how the sweet melody makes the words fly and reach the listener’s consciousness. I’m not a religious person, but I can hear (and relate to) the spirituality Ray’s trying to convey and express, with simple words transported on an air cushion of pop sensibility. “Man made the buildings that reach for the sky”, the way those words “ride” the melody is just sublime. Same with “Man made the motorcar and learned how to drive” (note to @mark winstanley : I think "drive" is the correct word, here. I love the idea that man made something but still had to learn how to use it after making it !). In both cases, the beauty of it also lies in the little instrumental chord progression that “complete” the melodic line. I adore that whole “man” thing in the first verses. Not “men”, “man”. By the end of the song the initial “he’s got no right to turn us into machines” becomes “they got no right at all”. Man in general (he) has become specific ill-intentioned men (they), and the song becomes a cry to arms, something that could be a political anthem in an Orwellian sci-fi movie. Ray’s voice has never sounded so sweet and fragile and committed. As we’ve already alluded to in some of our week-end’s discussion, the best songs on Percy are the closest Ray has (ever?) gotten to a singer-songwriter confessional setting. They just express his world view with no satire, no cynicism, no theatricality, no character embodiment or thematic constraints, just him and his band in plain sight, sharing their take on life with the listener. And you’ve got to admire how consistent it all is with the Arthur and Lola stories, or with the Village Green state of mind. This is a key Kinks song, almost a self-aware philosophical manifesto and unadorned display of its author sensibility.
The unfortunate thing about Percy is that it's not considered a 'proper' album, and therefore even a lot of Kinks fans have never heard it, and so they're missing out on great tracks like this one.
"God's Children" As I mentioned previously, this is a song I would have heard a lot in the mid-80s, but have neglected over the past 30+ years. It's a very nice song, and would very much fit sonically onto the Lola album, if not thematically. Listening to it this morning, it struck me that Ray's actually arguing against the kind of transplant technology that the Percy movie is about! It's lyrically and musically beautiful. I think that the five key songs on Percy act as an excellent coda to The Kinks' career on Pye - all work well as freestanding examples of Ray's songwriting and The Kinks' musical prowess.
Those of us who were in America during the ‘70s had the good fortune to know this song via The Kink Chronicles(72) and got another Percy track on The Great Lost Kinks Album (73).
The Percy LP I got in 1973 had notably clear, vibrant, transparent sound. The mastering presented here does indeed suffer as you described.
'God's Children' really tugs at the heartstrings of the (small 'c' I emphasise!) conservative end of my sentimentalities, exactly the same way 'All Things Bright And Beautiful' does. (in each respective hymn, 'How great is God Almighty who has made all things well' and 'He's got no right to turn us into machines' are the gut punch lines for me). The compelling Edenic idea that an all knowing creator made everything and made it all just right and then man came along and futzed everything up for the worse: I don't (usually) literally believe that, but it has a very strong idealized appeal to me, especially with regards to environmental issues and the relentless march of technology. When I first saw the (now largely forgotten) alarmingly cybernetic Google Glass accessory advertised in 2013, 'God's Children' came straight to mind as a response, and it still does with each successive futureshock cheerfully announced by Mark Facebook and other technocrats as our destiny through glassy smiles. As a song, 'God's Children' is a great comfort and a quiet protest to me in the uncertainty of current times. Now, having said that, I also acknowledge that 'Gods Children' can be seen as somewhat ridiculously reactionary if heard literally: the song was written just a few years after the first heart transplant, and in response to the comedically floated idea of a p*nis transplant (now a reality of course: ***** transplantation - Wikipedia ).. is Ray saying with lines like 'same eyes he gave me to see with' that those with failing hearts should be left to die, that if you lose another nearly as vital organ you should put up, and by extension that humans should live in a nasty, brutish and short Hobbesian state of existence because 'that's the way God planned it' ? .. I don't think he literally does, just as 'saving virginity' would be unworkable.. but as a stirring expression of an ideal, and a steadying, reassuring anthem and restatement of essential values at certain times it has tremendous appeal. This is kind of kind of regurgitating what I said in my post about the movie, but I just have to repeat how I love Ray's lateral thinking process that must have led to this song. The brief was 'write a song about a ***** transplant'.. so Ray starts thinking about the technology that would make that possible and related issues of technology and transhumanism.. and by the end it's turned into a pious ballad standing against such advancements and the effect they'd have on humanity! I hesitate to call anyone a genius, but it's safe to say that is a very special creative mind at work there.
This is my feeling, I think. I’m a bit baffled by how high (amongst all of Ray’s vast songwriting credits) fellow Kinks members are putting this. I didn’t know that this was a general opinion…but it is what I said, too, upthread. I suppose I have a couple of weeks to see if my opinion changes (though at this junction I see it as the equivalent of Elton John’s ‘Friends.’)
I always hoped that Ray would have given Celluloid Heroes a rest and played God’s Children instead, either in a Kinks set or his solo shows.
As Mark mentioned, this song was a great favourite of John Goslings. Don't think The Kinks played it much if it all live at the time, but the Kast Off Kinks (when Gosling was with them) played it a lot, and even recorded it for their one record 'The Archway EP'. (Note how in both this picture and video, Mr John Gosling seems to have barely aged since the 70s.. the benefits of growing a beard and commiting to it in your younger years!)
God's Children I don't think I can add anything to mark's wonderful introduction. This is a beautiful song in both words and music. That it remains a hidden treasure is a bit like the story of the Kinks themselves. Poor record company promotion and the fact it was part of a soundtrack didn't help. This is one of my favourite Kinks songs of the seventies - up there with 20th Century Man, Celluloid Heroes and Sweet Lady Genevieve.
Further thought: God’s Children has a bit of a Byrds (cover) ‘Turn, Turn, Turn’ cadence/feel. Of course, this song, too, could be sung in a church (as the lyrics are Biblical).
God's Children I always knew this had been a Kinks Australian 7" single A side but i never gave it much of an ear because i believe: • I didn't have or desire the soundtrack • The song wasn't played on the radio nor well known or regarded amongst Kinks fans Some lovely musical passages and pure near innocent lyrics of man's true reality but I find it a touch preachy and some musical passages a little heavy handed. Now given time i may refine that opinion further into the positive but a post is required and i have not heard this in so long and only just acquired 2 Kinks Kompilations Kontaining the Kit so never mind me as i will probably love it more given some future tomorrows!
God's Children Just started listening to Percy a few weeks ago, and agree with the general consensus that there are some beautiful songs on this set with God's Children certainly being among them. I never really heard much good things about the album, and I just basically skipped from Lola to Muswell Hillbilies, and that's where my knowledge of 70s Kinks basically ends. Upon initial listenings, I have a few thoughts/observations. Dave's harmonies are again great, but I myself would prefer them a bit higher in the mix. I also feel this: It does seem extremely of it's time in 1970/71, and while I fully realize some of these lyrics are 100% Ray (more on this below), I could imagine the general idea of this song, as well as the chorus melody of this song, fitting nicely on Cat Stevens' Teaser and the Firecat (released October 1971). Musically, the only thing I'll add to the conversation is the question of what is that bass instrument that comes in and fills the space starting around 2 minutes in. Is that a synth bass? It adds this sound that (unless I am wrong), haven't heard on a Kinks record until this time. Lyrically, there are something about "Man made the buildings that reach for the sky and man made the motorcar and learned how to drive" that is just very Ray, and puts me in the first verse of Apeman again. As highlighted by @Fortuleo: I can't think of any contemporary writer that uses "motorcar". The only other usage that comes close is Paul McCartney's use of "motor trade" in She's Leaving Home. This section gets me: "The day that we are born We are all God's children And they got no right to change us" People are inherently born good. We are all innocent, just as God intended. But then the evils of the world and the environment we grow up in challenges all that. Society can be very cruel. It's not just about us getting back to how God made us. But it's about ridding society of its evils that change us. Whether rich, poor, saint or sinner, we all start the same and our environment shapes us into these man-made classes. I believe it was Ray Davies who also wrote: "If only life were easy it would be such fun. Things would be more equal and be plenty for everyone."
Use of motor car, Thick As a Brick: “And so you finally ask yourself Just how big you are And you take your place in a wiser world Of bigger motor cars And you wonder who to call on” I don’t think it’s that unusual …though can’t think of anything else offhand.
