Kink Floyd
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As many of you would know, this album was conceived during the "Dark" days in the Kinks history when they were banned from entering the US. Whatever the reason, whether it was their notorious reputation for rowdy brawling during concerts, remains unknown. The fact is they couldn't tour the US, and this event may simply be the best thing to happen to the Kinks in retrospect.
You see, shielded away from the American influence that contemporaries like the Animals were diving into; the whole San-Francisco scene for instance, this gave the band the incentive to look more into their native homeland for inspiration. The result is a series of highly original and wonderfully crafted albums from the mid 60's well into the early 70's that have stood the test of time, but did not actually fit the mold of their contemporaries.
The Village Green Society belongs firmly into this creative period, and it is one of their most consistent works. It is a Collection of pop songs, each filled with brilliant and memorable melodies and hooks. Played to the raunchy sound of the Kinks, and amid Ray Davies Storybook style Lyrical delivery. None of his lyrics are half-assed, as they not only convey a vignette or scene, but it conjures up emotions rather easily. And he does it with ease. Listen to 'Picture Book' and you'll immediately feel the sense of Nostalgia which he is trying to evoke.
This album transcends epoch. Infact, this album has resonated with me and others even more now than it once did. In 2006, nearly four years ago, The Kinks, Velvet Underground, Pink Floyd, and U2 were among my music staples. I was a Liberal back then, and I had very little grasp on the politics and world events. I listened to the Kinks in relation to their fine craftsmanship and the sense of Nostalgia they sought to convey, I listened to Village Green and I thought Ray was funny and thoughtful. I was beginning to Overplay alot of the Kinks, so I decided to put them away at the end of the year.
Fast forward to 2010. The Global Economic recession which was predicted years ago by analysts and ignored by the masses had reared its ugly little head. Furthermore my disillusionment with Liberal Naivety and 'Obamania' combined with my changing values brought upon by a 4 year age difference had greatly affected me. I couldn't believe I was reaching that point where I would mellow out and become more Conservative.
One day I was reading up on the results of the world wide recession. There were articles and analysts predicting that the key in living in the new world would require a reliance in age old "Survival". Simplicity was the name of the game, building a farm and growing your stock naturally and living in the countryside was apparently cool again. Wait, a Farm? Animal Farm. And from the get go, I decided to pull out Village Green and give it a listen.
The Catchy hooks were still in place, But I received a sense of musical orgasm which I didn't before. Yes, I am more surer now that the old kook Ray was indeed a prophet. He was years, no decades ahead of his time. Maybe even more. While his contemporaries - bands like Love, The Beatles, The Rolling Stones, were singing about the New Revolution, and aligning themselves with flower power - Ray was singing about the "Uncool" Topics. You know, Afternoon sunsets, Sipping Tea, family members taking pictures, old-school steam-trains. Alot of this material was initially branded as banal rock n roll wrapped up in blatant conservatism. When infact Ray was only Conservative in the most shallow terms of logic - the truth was that he was more liberal and progressive than anyone could ever have been in the 60's.
This album resonates stronger in our world than ever. Maybe people ought to buy this and give it a listen as it certainly relates to the changing world. Listen to the sincere lyrics, delivered with that oh so whimsical vocal style which has become Ray's trademark. Follow along, learn a thing or 2. Don't worry, it didn't fall trap to the faux-intellectualism which many others have been guilty of. "Picture book, pictures of your mama, taken by your papa a long time ago". "I want to be back there, among the cats and the dogs and pigs and the goats on Animal Farm". "I'm the last of the good old Fashioned Trains, I'm the Last of the Good Ol Renegades".
The riff-driven Steam Trains is among my favorite cuts in the album. I've always thought the songs concept had to do with the changing of the guard. The young and the old. The Welcoming of the new, and the trashing of the old. But Now maybe I think the Steam Train is Ray. He was simply the last of his kind. And my personal relation to this album isn't about petty political sides, it's about the power and the universality of The Kinks music. The Difference between back then and now for me was because I was a different person. But the music was as timeless and essential as ever.
Favorite Tracks: Village Green, Picture Book, Johnny Thunder, Last of the Steam Trains, Big Sky, Sitting by the Riverside, and Animal Farm. All Phenomenal songs, but I think the first half is much stronger.
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