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Rating:
I must admit that I only knew "You Really Got Me" by the Kinks, known even to stones…
Upon first listening to this album, I was enthralled, which is why this review, the result of my personal "sensations," might be overblown and/or contain many errors! Have mercy…
"Face To Face" is the fourth album by the Kinks (recorded between '65 and '66) and represents, in my opinion, their "Rubber Soul": a departure from the early rock, with the search (first in the lyrics and then in execution) for that originality that will lead them to experiment with concept albums and rock operas in the following years.
It starts with a very tight "Party Line" with a country flavor, introduced by the rings of a telephone, and here I already find many similarities with the Beatles' Help era tracks, but I presume it was normal at that time to find such influences.
There is, as a session man on keyboards, Nicky Hopkins who embellishes the scenarios narrated by Ray Davies. His contribution is fundamental in tracks like "Rosie Want You Please Come Home," a desperate cry from Ray Davies to his sister who moved to Australia…
But the gem of the album is "Sunny Afternoon" (May 1966) which immediately reminds me of "Happy Together" by the Turtles (1967); "Sunny Afternoon" managed to dethrone none other than the Beatles' "Paperback Writer" from the top of the charts!!!
The judgment between the two is up to you…
The freshness of "Holiday In Waikiki" is also pleasant, where Dave Davies' slide interventions, combined with the sounds of the sea, evoke a seaside atmosphere. "Dandy" is instead a quick ballad, closely related to their single "A Well Respected Man," which will represent the turning point for the new direction Ray Davies will take in writing lyrics.
In "Session Man" we curiously find some harmonic passages that will later be dear to George Harrison. "I'll Remember Everything" instead greatly resembles "If I Needed Someone"…
The decadent tales of misery and poverty in "Big Smoke" and "Dead End Street" are from the same period, two singles added as bonus tracks to the deluxe version of 2011.
There are some references to R&B, as in "Your Looking Fine," or to India as in "Fancy," where without invoking sitar, tabla, and gurus, the sensation is that…
The album is surely psychedelic in nature, despite not having all the typical trademarks, e.g., of Revolver: sitar, backward voices, ghostly drums. A sort of embryonic psychedelia. Could it also be a concept album without intending to be?
The Kinks appear to me stylistically clear, sober, and without the desire to overdo; the rhythm section is almost impeccable, the lead guitar by Dave Davies is balanced, essential, and decent. The arrangements seem more oriented towards the song's structure rather than the pursuit of execution technique: every riff, lick, or other element serves the song, never the opposite.
It's certainly true that production makes a big difference! I presumably suspect that not having a George Martin or the Abbey Road technicians makes a well-played drum kit seem "acceptable," whereas a poorly played one seems "out of this world"!!!
Consider that Ray Davies wasn't even allowed to impose his own album cover! He wanted to use a black background, serious and in line with the album's adult themes, but he was forced into this one, colorful and psychedelic (which I still find pleasant).
There are none of those clichéd stylistic flourishes typical of other contemporary bands similarly lacking true guitar heroes, seeking solos at all costs as self-gratification of the current soloist, usually resulting in ridicule when compared to the likes of Clapton, Beck, Hendrix (just to name a few axemen).
The power chords that made them famous in the early albums also disappear; in summary, the Kinks were trying, at least until then, not to overreach…
Presumably, this stylistic choice was also linked to their ban from the US and/or the fact that their albums didn't perform well on the charts, which is why I hypothesize that a genius like Ray might have thought: "At this point, what do I care, let's make it weird..."
It's important to note how in all tracks there is always the search for "melody": from this point of view, I compare Ray Davies to McCartney, while as a lyricist, I consider him superior!
(I'm always afraid to make comparisons with the Fab Four; I almost feel that I risk less using Mozart, King Crimson, or Hendrix as references!!! 😉)
But there's a strange sensation I keep having listening to the Kinks: a strange déjà vu that brings to mind melodies by famous artists, only published later…
I wonder, therefore, what and how much their influence was on the pop-rock music scene.
If only they had had more money and/or the same production as the more renowned bands, who knows what we could have heard today!
Maybe something worse… 😉
Thanks for your patience!
P.S. I recommend the deluxe version of the album as, besides bonus tracks and extracted singles, there are both mono & stereo versions of the album.
Tracklist Lyrics Samples and Videos
03 Dandy (02:10)
Dandy, dandy,
Where you gonna go now?
Who you gonna run to?
All your little life
You're chasing all the girls.
They can't resist your smile.
Oh, they long for dandy, dandy.
Checkin' out the ladies,
Tickling their fancy,
Pouring out your charm
To meet your own demands,
And turn it off at will.
Oh, they long for dandy, dandy.
Knockin' on the back door,
Climbing through the window,
Hubby�s gone away,
And while the cat's away
The mice are gonna play.
Oh, you low down dandy, dandy.
Dandy
Dandy, you know you're moving much too fast,
And dandy, you know you can't escape the past.
Look around you and see the people settle down,
And when you're old and grey you will remember what they said,
That two girls are too many, three�s a crowd and four you're dead.
Oh dandy, dandy,
When you gonna give up?
Are you feeling old now?
You always will be free,
You need no sympathy,
A bachelor you will stay,
And dandy, you're all right.
You're all right.
You're all right.
You're all right.
You're all right.
You're all right.
04 Too Much on My Mind (02:27)
There's too much on my mind,
There's too much on my mind,
And I can't sleep at night thinking about it.
I'm thinking of the time,
There's too much on my mind,
It seems there's more to life than just to live it.
There's too much on my mind,
And there is nothing I can say.
There's too much on my mind,
And there is nothing I can do
About it,
About it.
My thought just weigh me down,
And drag me to the ground,
And shake my head till there's no more life in me.
It's ruining my brain,
I'll never be the same,
My poor demented mind is slowly going.
There's too much on my mind,
And there is nothing I can say.
There's too much on my mind,
And there is nothing I can do
About it,
About it.
There's too much on my mind.
07 House in the Country (03:00)
He don't need no sedatives to ease his troubled mind.
At work he is invariably unpleasant and unkind.
Why should he care if he is hated in his home,
'Cause he's gotta house in the country,
And a big sports car.
He's gotta house in the country,
And a big sports car.
But he ain't gotta home, oh no,
And he's as wicked as he can be,
'Cause he's gotta house in the country
Where he likes to spend his weekend days.
Oh yeah, oh yeah, well all right
Well, he got his job when drunken Daddy tumbled down the stairs.
From that very day this boy is more than having his share.
One of these days I'm gonna knock him off of his throne,
'Cause he's gotta house in the country,
And a big sports car.
He's gotta house in the country,
And a big sports car.
And he's oh so smug, oh yeah.
He's got everything he needs,
'Cause he's gotta house in the country
Where he likes to spend his weekend days.
Oh yeah, oh yeah, well all right
And he's oh so smug, oh yeah.
He's got everything he needs,
'Cause he's gotta house in the country,
And a big sports car.
He's gotta house in the country,
And a big sports car.
But he's socially dead, oh yeah,
And it don't matter much to him,
'Cause he's gotta house in the country
Where he likes to spend his weekend days.
Oh yeah, oh yeah, well all right
House in the country
House in the country
House in the country
House in the country
08 Holiday in Waikiki (02:45)
I won a competition in a little column in my local paper.
So I packed my bags and flew across the sea all on my local paper.
I sailed to Hawaii in the u.s.a.
I'm just an English boy who won a holiday in Waikiki.
I didn't realize it was commercialized when I unpacked my cases,
Because a genuine Hawaii ukulele cost me 30 guineas,
And even when I'm swimming I have to pay.
I'm just an English boy who won a holiday in Waikiki.
Oh yeah, yeah.
Across the coral sands I saw a hula hula dancer, looking pretty.
I asked her where she came from and she said to me,
I come from New York City,
And my mother is Italian,
And my dad's a Greek.
I'm just an English boy who won a holiday in Waikiki.
It's a hooka hooka on the shiny briny on a wake a hola[? ],
And in a little shack they had a little sign that said Coca Cola,
And even all the grass skirts were PVC.
I'm just an English boy who won a holiday in Waikiki.
Oh yeah, yeah.
In Waikiki
In Waikiki
09 Most Exclusive Residence for Sale (02:51)
It was the biggest house in the neighborhood.
He went and bought this house when he made good.
Ten bedrooms and a swimming pool,
Where he entertained all the people that he knew.
But he hit the hard times and had to sell out.
Most exclusive residence for sale.
He went and spent all the money that he had.
Because he had a heart and not a head.
He spent it all on girls and fancy jewelry.
Then he found himself in front of a judge and jury,
And the judge said to pay up, our you must sell out.
Most exclusive residence for sale.
He had to tell all the servants to go away.
Couldn't even afford to pay their way.
He took to the bottle and drunk himself down,
Then he soaked away all the troubles and let them drown.
Then he saw a notice on the wall,
Most exclusive residence for sale.
Most exclusive residence for sale.
La-la-la-la-la-la-la-la-la-la
10 Fancy (02:28)
Fancy, if you believe in what I believe in,
Then we'll be the same, always.
Fancy, just look around thee
If you will fancy all the girls you see, always.
My love is like a ruby that no one can see,
Only my fancy, always.
No one can penetrate me,
They only see what's in their own fancy, always
11 Little Miss Queen of Darkness (03:16)
Well I met her accidentally,
In a little discotheque.
And she acted oh so friendly
To every fella that she met.
And her hair was hanging down,
Like a bright and silver machine[? ].
Little miss queen of darkness
Dancing night and day.
Little miss queen of darkness
Dancing, dancing on.
Although she looked so happy,
There was sadness in her eyes.
And her curly false eyelashes
Weren't much of a disguise.
And her bright and golden hair,
Was not all that it might seem.
Little miss queen of darkness
Dances sadly on.
Yes little miss queen of darkness
Dancing, dancing on.
There was something missing
From her carefree little life,
And she'll never understand you
When you're kissing her good night.
'cause the only boy she had
Went and coolly stepped aside.
And little miss queen of darkness
Might as well have died.
Little miss queen of darkness
Dancing, dancing on.
12 You're Lookin' Fine (02:47)
When I first saw her
She looked alright,
Second time that I saw her
She looked outta sight.
And I said,
You're lookin' fine,
You're lookin' fine,
You're lookin' fine,
And I feel alright,
Yes, I feel alright.
She got all the angles,
So directly applied.
And when I see her,
I have to cry,
You're lookin' fine,
You're lookin' fine,
You're lookin' fine,
And I feel alright,
Yeah, I feel alright.
You're lookin' fine,
You're lookin' fine,
You're lookin' fine,
And I feel alright,
And I feel alright.
13 Sunny Afternoon (03:35)
The taxman's taken all my dough
And left me in my stately home
Lazing on a sunny afternoon
And I can't sail my yacht
He's taken everything I've got
All I've got's this sunny afternoon
Save me, save me, save me from this squeeze
I've got a big fat momma trying to break me
And I love to live so pleasantly
Live this life of luxury
Lazin' on a sunny afternoon
In the summertime
In the summertime
In the summertime
My girlfriend's run off with my car
And gone back to her ma and pa
Tellin' tales of drunkenness and cruelty
Now I'm sittin' here
Sippin' at my ice-cool beer
Lazin on a sunny afternoon
Help me, help me, help me sail away
Or give me two good reasons why I oughta stay
'Cause I love to live so pleasantly
Live this life of luxury
Lazin' on a sunny afternoon
In the summertime
In the summertime
In the summertime
Save me, save me, save me from this squeeze
I got a big fat momma trying to break me
And I love to live so pleasantly
Live this life of luxury
Lazin' on a sunny afternoon
In the summertime
In the summertime
In the summertime
In the summertime
In the summertime
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Other reviews
By northernsky
Face to Face is the first exhibition of class, substance, and concreteness by the Kinks.
'Sunny Afternoon' encapsulates so much in so little time!
