The Kinks - Album by Album (song by song)

I've got all The Goodies episodes on DVD, a box set that came out three years ago.

 

Not even close..... but I'm pretty sure many would disagree.

Put it this way.... if you can go through Uriah Heep's eighties albums with me, then the next few Kinks albums will be a doddle.
In my opinion, and obviously several others, after the next four albums, which are good, and have some very good stuff on them, The Kinks are renewed as a rock band, and get a new lease on life.
There are a couple of questionable tracks, but for the most part, excellent stuff.
I reckon if you like tomorrow's track, you will like most of the Arista years to be honest.

 

Cool. I missed that. Cheers.

 

Yes. But we do not all agree when Ray is disappointing. I know that the next few albums coming up are not gonna have the same praise as the previous albums, but it’s double the frustration when albums you love are ridiculed and not appreciated by the majority of fans. I don’t have a lot of patience these days for the negativity around the next 4 albums. It’s all been said before. We get it. Many fans don’t care for the theatrical concept albums. I think they are still filled with brilliant moments and are unfairly maligned. I think these albums deserve a re-evaluation from the decades of being told they are worthless. I was delighted to learn many years ago that they are not!

I also have some critiques of the next several albums, but honestly I am not sure I can handle the barrage of negativity that is most likely coming. Hopefully, I will be pleasantly surprised.

Not in my opinion! I’m sure there will plenty more for you to love!

 

Maybe I’m interpreting the “mourning” post incorrectly. I take it to mean mourning about what we’ve already been covering. Specifically, today’s song? But you could be right that it’s a reference to going forward.

 

This is usually a good thing!

 

Definitely, but there is some excellent stuff.
I look at it this way. Ray was trying some things out, shaking it up a bit. I don't think it was totally successful in every way, but it is by no means a complete write off lol
I think the next album is excellent to be honest.

 

OMG! Awful and fascinating at the same time. But that’s the point of these threads, to really, truly absorb the discography. The Good, The Bad…and The Ugly.

 

It's hard to tell exactly, but for many it will be going forward.
I understand folks not loving today's song, it takes quirky to the limit I guess, but I think it fits the album, and works well as a lead in to tomorrow's masterpiece.

 

I like the next four albums very much. Totally unique and I feel they are misunderstood. I’m not sure what other direction Ray could have went at this time. It’s too bad not many wanted to come along for the ride. These albums don’t get much defense so I react more strongly to the negativity. It’s like sticking up for the kid who constantly gets picked on. I’m fed up!

 

I am also known to not agree with the masses and like a quirkier or less appreciated side of a lot of bands. I prefer today’s song over tomorrow’s much loved classic, but that’s for tomorrow.

 

I have taken a preliminary gander at Preservation Act I so already know my general thoughts. About 1/3 or 1/2 way through that discussion I’ll move on to the next album. A blank slate.

My (patented) rule-of-thumb. My earlier analysis showed that I was selecting 38% of all songs studied (prior to Showbiz). And my opinion is that The Kinks discography is, simply put, stellar. So that’s where the bar is set. How many tunes will meet the committee’s strict criteria this go-round? I’ll say when we do our wrap-up but…I don’t think Showbiz has anything to worry about in my little world.

 

It's still available in the UK. I saw it in Sainsbury's last Saturday.

 

I would also say that the next few albums take longer to click or make sense. This could also be a reason they are tossed aside. Give yourself time to fully immerse yourself in their world. I appreciate Act 2 more than ever. I use to only listen to a couple songs, but now I like most of it, and the entire vibe it creates. Taking walks with headphones on really made me pay more attention to it. It’s likely not an album that someone would think was brilliant on the first listen.

 

I listened to it only the other night and I was surprised how clean it sounded. Muswell Hillbillies, although easily the better album, sounds muddier than Showbiz.

 

I read about that fracas with Slade in a book about the Kinks. Something about Dave Davies fighting with Dave Hill, but Dave Hill didn't mention it in his autobiography (Nor did Noddy in his), so it can't have been that much of a to-do.

 

If I'd been on the thread since the start I'd have been as enthusiastic as anyone, unfortunately I joined the thread when we'd moved on to some albums I don't like as much - that's not my fault (it's Ray's.... that was a joke.... or was it?) I said at the start of the "Everybody's in Showbiz" that I thought it had three great songs and a lot of not very good songs, by the way. Anyone who is familiar with the albums should be able to comment on them, even if they think they're crap.

 

Couldn’t the same be said about a lot of the positive comments about late sixties output?

 

Ok folks.
We've been going along nicely, let's just take it as it comes.
I know that lots of stuff I love has been, and will be bagged... we'll survive.

 

Trying to map the political and social concerns of early 70s UK on to current day US seems a foolhardy exercise to me.

 

I agree. My sympathies to the songwriter.

 

Absolutely. USA, love you guys, but not everything is about you or applicable to you or just there to be absorbed and assimilated by you.

 

I don’t get the comparison. This is a Kinks thread for fans of the band and the sixties praises are well deserved. The sixties material had its share of not very enthusiastic reviews. I’m all for someone expressing their opinion whether good or bad. I just don’t understand what fun it would be to dump on the majority of songs. I was thinking I may even sit out a few later albums because I don’t want to drag the thread down in the dirt. But I also think I may learn about why someone likes something and have a change of heart. This has been a wonderful and well articulated thread so far for both positive and negative. Nobody wants to read everyday about how someone thinks every song sucks. I just want the thread to remain respectful and enjoyable.

 

Fans don't have to like everything. Lots of bands/artists I love have put out some utter crap in their time - I'm a Lou Reed fan for one! Sometimes, the crap can even, in a perverse way, be more interesting than the good stuff!

 

I agree. But keeping an open mind is good because one day what you thought was crap could become your favorite. I’ll take Lou Reed and The Kinks on a bad day over many bands on their best day. A Lou Reed thread would certainly be a rollercoaster.