To the Bone

by

The Kinks

Edit

There are no 5 star cd's if this isn't one of them. After many listening sessions with this record, it occurred to me that this is the perfect cd for both the long-time Kinks fan (that be me) and the rock fan who though knows some of the Kinks songs, has never purchased their records and is now looking at them on CD. The sound quality is excellent which cannot be said about may Kinks releases over the years. The song selection provides a diverse historic perspective. In other words songs like "You Really Got Me" co-exist along with songs like "Days", "Celluloid Heroes", "Gallon Of Gas", etc. Thirdly, the live performances are outstanding, vocally and instrumentally. The band has never sounded tighter. This truly is a greater treasure than One for the Road which has always been one of the best live records of all time. Above all this record gives a listener a 2 disc proof that Ray Davies is the single most accomplished songwriter of the rock era. Songs such as "I'm Not Like Everybody Else" will thrill both the old fan who is familiar with this song as well as the new fan who has never heard it. Throughout there are new treatments of old songs that showcase the greatness of the songs as well as the skill of the band. The version of "All day and all of the night" just might be the best ever. In summary, old and new fans alike should enjoy this record immensely.

To The Bone is an odd bird even by Kinks live album standards. THe song selections are pretty safe as Ray digs into his classic bag of rock tricks and dazzles us with his slight of hand. Here's the problem. The selection makes this album a bit more one diminsonal than expected.

When TTB was released on Konk overseas it consisted of only acoustic performances of classic Kinks tunes. This reimaginating of these classics brought an unexpected edge and freshness missing from some of the more recent live collections. The selections themselves play it a bit safe. Dave's contributions to the band are woefully unrepresented. Death of a Clown, while a classic, was superceded by much better songs written down the line (including the powerful Mindless Child of Motherhood and Suzanna's Still Alive. Considering the wealth of material the band has to offer, what's been recorded before for live albums and the more recent Kinks output it would have been nice to see Ray pick more of the unusual tracks like See My Friends for inclusion on the album.

Reducing Dave's songwriting contribution to a single track does the man's talent a great injustice and doesn't give a well rounded picture of the group's sound. Where's Trust Your Heart or Living on a Thin Line (both equal in their own way to Dave's best material)or even the unusual Lincoln County? While Ray's songs have atttempted to portray the world at large and try and emphathize with the average man, Dave's songs have always been more personal and about his emotional stage of mind. The balance would have been far more interesting.

Finally, the mix of electric and acoustic stuff is jarring. It would have made far better sense to use Richard Thompson's You Me Us? as an example for the album; one disc completely acoustic with the other "voltage enhanced". One big plus is that Dave's performance of Death of a Clown is superior to the original performance on Something Else by the Kinks.

See My Friends manages to surpass the original minor Kinks classic and improve on both the vocal and instrumental backing. Altogether, a fine collection but a bit uneven. I could have done without the haphazard editing from acoustic to electric.