Search - Kinks :: BBC Sessions 1964-1977

Untitled review

allismile0 | Washington, DC | 03/24/2001

(3 out of 5 stars)

"I am a big fan of the Kinks- I like every single album between Kink Kontroversy through Preservation Act II (I even like Soap Opera)- so I was very excited when I heard this BBC song collection was coming out. But now that I have heard it through, it has two very large flaws in it. One is the radio announcers voice on about than half of the songs. The song begins and just before Ray Davies starts to sing, the song is announced in a very phoney radio DJ voice- needless to say the gimmick only last so long before you just wished they cleared it out.Secondly the song selection- On the first page of the book it shows all the songs that the Kinks did for the BBC show and there was plenty to choose from but for some reason they decided that it would be a good idea to put both "Skin and Bone" and "Money Talks" in twice- granted both of the songs have slightly different versions but when there is soo much to choose from in the catalog it seems like such an incredible waste. There are some difinite plus's to the album though- the songs that are in it are very well done both in performance and sound quality- and their later stuff is different in approach from the ambitions of the studio. Mirror of Love, Demolition, Monica, Waterloo Sunset, Get Back into the Line and Skin and Bones/ Dry Bones are stand outs in my opinion.Also there are a few songs that aren't on any albums that are really quite good and fun to listen to; the humorous "When I turn off the Living Room Lights" and "This Strange Effect" are both excellent. So if you don't mind abnoxious radio announcers and you're a big Kinks fan you might find this interesting."

Essential for completists, good overview for beginners

Michael Topper | Pacific Palisades, California United States | 05/19/2001

(4 out of 5 stars)

"This two-CD compilation collects the bulk of The Kinks' truly live performances for the BBC between 1964-77; although many more songs were aired, these were usually the studio records with maybe re-recorded vocals. The years covered span the peak of their career from an artistic point of view, and most of their big hits from the time (sans the 1966 singles and "Lola") appear here along with quality album cuts and several unreleased tracks. Although about 90% of the songs here are five-star classics, the performances on disc one stick largely to the studio originals (perhaps a bit rougher, with a bit more of a "band" feel). It is on disc two where the true finds lie: the band's mid-70s period is represented by two 1974 shows which surpass their other 70s live document "Everybody's In Showbiz"; excellent versions of "Victoria", "Here Comes Yet Another Day", "Skin And Bone" (much lengthier) and "Celluloid Heroes" sound much punchier and energetic than the originals. The sound quality on everything is startingly clear, even on the '64-'65 cuts. There are also a couple of tracks, like "Good Luck Charm" and "When I Turn Out The Living Room Light", which have never seen official release by the group. As a crucial missing link in their catalogue, this long overdue compilation is absolutely essential for Kinks fanatics, while the track selection and quality of performances even makes it a good intro to the group for beginners (this would otherwise be a five-star review, were it not for the slightly unadventurous performances on disc one). God save The Kinks."

Great Live Kinks From Their Prime Period!

J. E FELL | Carterville, Illinois United States | 01/27/2003

(5 out of 5 stars)

"The BBC Sessions by the Kinks is an excellent live document of the band from this time period and contains many of their best tracks. Fans of the band will especially be excited with the inclusion of three rare cuts "This Strange Effect", "When I Turn Off The Living Room Lights" and "Good Luck Charm". These cuts are as good as the Kink's other material from this period especially "This Strange Effect". The material ranges from raucous versions of well-known tracks like "You Really Got Me", "All Day And All Night", Dave's "Love Me 'Til The Sun Shines" and a cover of "Milk Cow Blues" to Ray's more introspective material like "See My Friend", "Waterloo Sunset", and "Days". I am also glad favorites like "Tired Of Waiting For You", "Where Have All The Good Times Gone?", "The Village Green Preservation Society", "Victoria" and Dave's "Death Of A Clown" were included. The second disk contains later era favorites like "Here Comes Yet Another Day" and "Celluloid Heroes" with the later tracks augmented by a horn section. The booklet is excellent and contains detailed information about the history of the Kink's BBC sessions.There are a couple of drawbacks to the set. Occasionally the host of the show talks over the beginning and ending of songs which can become annoying after a while. In addition the songs "Skin And Bone" and "Money Talks" appear twice on the second disk (each version is from a different session). The disks themselves are only about 50 minutes each so more material could have been added. The detailed booklet mentions that songs like the previously unissued Chuck Berry cover "Little Queenie" along with great tracks like "David Watts", "Autumn Almanac", "Suzannah's Still Alive", "King Kong", "Dedicated Follower Of Fashion", "A Well Respected Man", "Sunny Afternoon" and even "Lola" were performed at some of these sessions but none of these is included here. Perhaps the tapes were too bad to use or lost.Despite these omissions this is still a worthwile set and would prove to be a valuable purchase. The rarities and differences from the studio versions will please the avid fans while set provides a sort of anthology of great songs for the new Kink's fan. Now that this is finally out when will they get around to issuing the Rolling Stones BBC sessions!"