The Kinks

[JohnRHaupert]

What are some good Kinks albums? I havent heard really anything by them.

[thelatebphelium]

Arthur, Village Green, Something Else, Face to Face, Muswell Hillibillies,
Great Lost Kinks Album....

a good place to start is the Kinks Kronicles.

[sammyjankis48]

I'd say Arthur is the best.

[JohnRHaupert]

Thanks, I will definatly check some out.

[vacantmoon]

they're all very good until you get to the mid 70s and then it's more hit and miss imo. if you had some extra cash i'd start at the beginning and go from there. yeah, kinks kronicles if you can find it used is a good idea too. happy listening ;)

[DrinkTeaEatBooks]

The Ultimate Collection compilation is also very good, as it contains some of their 70's and 80's stuff, but I don't know if you can get that over in the US.

My personal favourite is probably Arthur as well. I'd also say a good starter album would be anything between Face to Face and Muswell Hillbillies. Don't get the first two albums just yet, they're not really the same thing at all.

Incidentally, what do y'all think about the new Ray Davies album? I'm kinda worried that it'll sound something like the average Brian Wilson solo album, but then, I haven't really listened to much Kinks post-early 70's, so I have no idea what kind of directions he's been heading in. Apart from Art Lover. That was scary.

[jml]

he was working in the studio with yo la tengo a few years ago. whether those sessions will end up on the album or not i have no idea.

[pierrecoghill]

in this order
1. village green preservation society
2. arthur
3. something else by the kinks
4. face to face

and then buy the ultimate hits collection which has all of the really great songs not on the albums, and all the really wonderful songs from their first few albums.

if you really want ot hear the rest of the songs from the early albums download them, because lots of them are kind of not great.

i love the kinks and have tried listening to all their albums but everything muswell hillbillies and beyond is hard to handle (not very good). the great lost kinks album isworth checking out but if i was you i would be more interested in getting the 3 disc reissue of village green which includes many of the better tracks from the great lost kinks albums, and some others that arent on there, PLUS! you the bonus of having them all properly remastered.

thats my advice

[DrinkTeaEatBooks]

Originally posted by pierrecoghill
in this order
1. village green preservation society
2. arthur
3. something else by the kinks
4. face to face


I concur.

Over here, they re-released and remastered all of the albums, with a whole load of bonus tracks. Is that not so in the US?

[hypecity]

http://www.blacktable.com/images/0412pics/jesus/28000.jpg

[Edited on 3-22-0606 by hypecity]

[jml]

when those castle reissues came out in two batches in 98 they were easily found in the US as cheap imports (~$13), but i havent seen them so much lately. castle has since been acquired by sanctuary, and i know that the ten albums were re-reissued at least once with corrected booklets (typos), and i believe the label pulled a scummy move by reissuing them AGAIN but with LESS bonus tracks. so watch out for that.

[Edited on 7-20-2005 by jml]

[jml]

the post-pye albums ('muswell hillbillies' through 'word of mouth') were reissued in 98 and 99 by velvel, which went under soon after. recently those albums have been coming out again as sacd's. i assume the bonus tracks (there weren't many in the first place) are the same. "the road," "uk jive," "lost and found" and "phobia" remain out of print. not that there's any need to get those anyway.

[vacantmoon]

>>he was working in the studio with yo la tengo a few years ago. whether those sessions will end up on the album or not i have no idea.

yeah the rumor i think was ylt recorded as his backup band on some tracks, but i want to say it was a planned double album, w/ them on one disc and more of a solo affair on the other. i'm a little hazy on this though. they did serve as his backup band for most of 3 consecutive nyc shows back in 2000 which featured a bunch of new songs that i thought were pretty exciting, at least in a live context. it's too bad an official release hasn't materialized yet.

i'd say the songs on the first few kinks LPs aren't always as consistently amazing as by Face to Face or whatever but they're still really great, definately underrated. i think it's easy to be skeptical about post Muswell Hillbillies output but some albums are surprisingly tasty like 1975's Soap Opera. hell i'm still a fan of 'come dancing', one of the first songs i heard by ray davies & co. and never knowing their history.

[jml]

i havent listened to it in a while, but i was always a big fan of "schoolboys in disgrace." nothing after that ever floated my boat aside from a track here and there ("father christmas," maybe "did ya," etc). as far as the way early stuff, "kinda kinks" is fantastic all the way through, especially the bonus tracks.
the solo record is supposed to be out this fall. we'll see.