# Kinks fans: Any good post-1972 albums? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [April 1, 2011, 9:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/kinks-fans-any-good-post-1972-albums/576746 "2011-04-01T09:29:28Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![EinsteinsHund](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/einsteinshund/32/8400_2.png) [@EinsteinsHund](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/EinsteinsHund)\ **Post date:** [April 1, 2011, 9:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/kinks-fans-any-good-post-1972-albums/576746/1 "2011-04-01T09:29:28Z")
I’ve been listening to the Kinks for more than 20 years now and recently added some of their earlier records to my collection, so that now I have all their regular albums up to “Everybody’s in Show-Biz” (except the “Percy” soundtrack). Though not each of those albums is a masterpiece like “Village Green” or “Face to Face”, I think that it’s an impressing run for first ten albums by a band. I got into the Kinks’ music after reading an essay about them by musician/Kinks fan [Heinz Rudolf Kunze](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Heinz_Rudolf_Kunze), who was very critical with their post 1972 output, especially their rock opera phase from 73-76. I’m still biased against their later work because of this essay, and the reviews on [allmusic.com](http://allmusic.com) didn’t do much to change that. On the other hand, I admire the Kinks’ early music so much that I think there must be some value in their later output, and I really like the few songs of this phase that I know (“Father Christmas”, “Prince of the Punks”, “Come dancing”). So, which (if any) later Kinks albums can you recommend? ---
**Author:** ![Jinx](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/c6cbf5/32.png) [@Jinx](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jinx)\ **Post date:** [April 1, 2011, 9:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/kinks-fans-any-good-post-1972-albums/576746/2 "2011-04-01T09:59:29Z")
If you like “Come Dancin’”, then I think you’ll like the "State of Confusion " CD. It is a mix of material of which “Come Dancin’” almost doesn’t fit. It is one of maybe two softer songs. To me, the CD has a common thread where the songs examine life at various ages. The songs run the gamut from the sublime to the ridiculous…but it all works very nicely, I think. It’ll make you think about your life and the stages you’ve moved through, too! One caveat: You cannot expect their newer material to be anything like their older material. The essay you read was obviously written by an ivory-tower critic who fails to understand how a band like the Kinks put “progressive” into “progressive rock”. To me, their earliest sound was a trial and error period…when all those bands tried to emulate the Beatles. Bands like the Who, Moody Blues, etc. are guilty of this until they found their niche - their own unique sound. And, thank goodness bands like the Kinks dared to experiment to break out of that mold! Sure, the Beatles are fine, but I’m grateful for the variety! ---
**Author:** ![Biffy\_the\_Elephant\_Shrew](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/e47c2d/32.png) [@Biffy\_the\_Elephant\_Shrew](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Biffy_the_Elephant_Shrew)\ **Post date:** [April 1, 2011, 10:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/kinks-fans-any-good-post-1972-albums/576746/3 "2011-04-01T10:48:47Z")
I love the rock opera stuff, especially _Soap Opera_ and _Preservation Act 1_. From the Arista period, _Misfits_ stands with their best. ---
**Author:** ![Meurglys](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/258eb7/32.png) [@Meurglys](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Meurglys)\ **Post date:** [April 1, 2011, 10:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/kinks-fans-any-good-post-1972-albums/576746/4 "2011-04-01T10:55:20Z")
I quite like _Low Budget_ and _Sleepwalker_, both from the mid-70s. **Ms Boods** is the Kinks expert, though! ---
**Author:** ![EinsteinsHund](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/einsteinshund/32/8400_2.png) [@EinsteinsHund](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/EinsteinsHund)\ **Post date:** [April 1, 2011, 11:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/kinks-fans-any-good-post-1972-albums/576746/5 "2011-04-01T11:19:46Z")
> [@Jinx](#): > > The essay you read was obviously written by an ivory-tower critic who fails to understand how a band like the Kinks put “progressive” into “progressive rock”. Actually, the essay was written [Heinz Rudolf Kunze](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Heinz_Rudolf_Kunze), who’s a respected and successful musician (and writer) in Germany, so he’s far from the ivory tower as a performing/recording musician himself, but OTOH he’s somewhat infamous for being the most _intellectual_ German rock singer. > [@](#): > > To me, their earliest sound was a trial and error period…when all those bands tried to emulate the Beatles. Bands like the Who, Moody Blues, etc. are guilty of this until they found their niche - their own unique sound. And, thank goodness bands like the Kinks dared to experiment to break out of that mold! Sure, the Beatles are fine, but I’m grateful for the variety! I agree with you about the trial and error period, but IMO this period ended about 1966, when they expanded their repertoire with those typical songs about British customs, sometimes satirical, sometimes nostalgic, with lots of music hall influences. Of course, this was not an end point, and they continued to rock hard sometimes, but it’s their music from “Face to Face” to “Muswell Hillbillies” I like the most of them. As I remember correctly, Kunze’s main criticism about the later Kinks was that they drifted into generic stadium rock territory, thus leaving behind their poignant British pop appeal. ---
**Author:** ![EinsteinsHund](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/einsteinshund/32/8400_2.png) [@EinsteinsHund](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/EinsteinsHund)\ **Post date:** [April 1, 2011, 11:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/kinks-fans-any-good-post-1972-albums/576746/6 "2011-04-01T11:38:01Z")
Too late to edit: Just want to make clear: after rereading my previous post, I see that the impression may arise that I don’t like the hard-rocking side of the Kinks. This is \*\*not \*\*the case, actually it’s far from that. ---
**Author:** ![WordMan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/e8c25b/32.png) [@WordMan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WordMan)\ **Post date:** [April 1, 2011, 12:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/kinks-fans-any-good-post-1972-albums/576746/7 "2011-04-01T12:00:37Z")
> [@Meurglys](#): > > I quite like _Low Budget_ and _Sleepwalker_, both from the mid-70s. > > **Ms Boods** is the Kinks expert, though! Yep - just wait for her to come along; she’ll lay it all out. ---
**Author:** ![Southern\_Yankee](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/southern_yankee/32/2800_2.png) [@Southern\_Yankee](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Southern_Yankee)\ **Post date:** [April 1, 2011, 12:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/kinks-fans-any-good-post-1972-albums/576746/8 "2011-04-01T12:09:28Z")
**Give the People What They Want** is an awesome record, IMO. _Destroyer_ is a great song and a pseudo-sequel to _Lola_. Ray really wrote some fantastic songs on that one. _Art Lover; A Little Bit of Abuse_… these are songs only he could write. Great mix of that hard Kinks sound and wonderful snarky lyrics. ---
**Author:** ![Thudlow\_Boink](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/thudlow_boink/32/320_2.png) [@Thudlow\_Boink](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Thudlow_Boink)\ **Post date:** [April 1, 2011, 12:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/kinks-fans-any-good-post-1972-albums/576746/9 "2011-04-01T12:21:49Z")
Answer to the title question: Hell yeah! **All** their post-1972 albums are at least good, in the the sense that I, personally, enjoy listening to them and am glad I own them. (Especially since I came to Kinks fandom late enough that I could look at some of their less successful periods with some perspective, as just a phase they were going through.) It’s true their greatest albums were pre-1972 (_Face to Face_ through _Lola_…), but the whole rest of their career is well worth exploring, and even the more uneven albums contain gems. I _think_ my favorite post-1972 Kinks albums are _Schoolboys in Disgrace_, _Sleepwalker_, _State of Confusion_, and _Word of Mouth_ (with honorable mention to _Live—the Road_ for its retrospective title track and its kickass live version of “Destroyer”), but give me a chance to re-listen and I might change my list. See also this old thread: [Kinks albums–which should I get?](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=297938) ---
**Author:** ![RealityChuck](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/realitychuck/32/195_2.png) [@RealityChuck](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RealityChuck)\ **Post date:** [April 1, 2011, 12:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/kinks-fans-any-good-post-1972-albums/576746/10 "2011-04-01T12:42:27Z")
**Low Budget** is one of their best. **One for the Road** is a great live album, covering not only the early stuff, but also **Low Budget**. **Preservation Act I** is not a great album, but it’s definitely a worthy one. ---
**Author:** ![Nom\_de\_Plume](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/85f322/32.png) [@Nom\_de\_Plume](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nom_de_Plume)\ **Post date:** [April 1, 2011, 12:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/kinks-fans-any-good-post-1972-albums/576746/11 "2011-04-01T12:49:13Z")
I think, with the exceptions of **Low Budget** , **One for the Road** , and \*\*Destroyer, \*\*none of their post 1972 albums, as a whole, are as good as the previous ones. However, they did have some very good songs from the post '72 era, including _Low Budget, Destroyer, A Rock & Roll Fantasy, Juke box music, Misfits, Hay Fever, Catch Me Now I’m Falling, Better Things, Livin’ on a Thin Line_ and _Ducks on the Wall._ ---
**Author:** ![Duke\_Wilbury](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/6de8d8/32.png) [@Duke\_Wilbury](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Duke_Wilbury)\ **Post date:** [April 1, 2011, 1:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/kinks-fans-any-good-post-1972-albums/576746/12 "2011-04-01T13:13:42Z")
Gotta be Misfits from 1978. Not that classic Kinks songwriting, but more in the arena stomper vein. Davies finally figured out how to write within the rock and roll structure, and on Misfits he elevates his own form. Granted, it’s not as lyrically interesting as Village or Powerman, but it still excites. ---
**Author:** ![blondebear](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/blondebear/32/1022_2.png) [@blondebear](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/blondebear)\ **Post date:** [April 1, 2011, 2:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/kinks-fans-any-good-post-1972-albums/576746/13 "2011-04-01T14:51:42Z")
[To The Bone](http://www.amazon.com/Bone-Kinks/dp/B000002U40) ---
**Author:** ![bup](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/6bbea6/32.png) [@bup](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bup)\ **Post date:** [April 1, 2011, 3:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/kinks-fans-any-good-post-1972-albums/576746/14 "2011-04-01T15:01:39Z")
I’ll vote - **State of Confusion** and **Give the People What They Want**. Still, I’d be more likely to put on **Arthur** or **Village Green** or **Something Else** , or make a playlist of stuff from **Golden Hour** albums (remember those?) than either of those. ---
**Author:** ![cjepson](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/a9adbd/32.png) [@cjepson](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/cjepson)\ **Post date:** [April 1, 2011, 4:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/kinks-fans-any-good-post-1972-albums/576746/15 "2011-04-01T16:43:48Z")
> [@RealityChuck](#): > > **Low Budget** is one of their best. **One for the Road** is a great live album, covering not only the early stuff, but also **Low Budget**. **Preservation Act I** is not a great album, but it’s definitely a worthy one. Preservation Act 1 is a keeper if only for the excellent “Sitting in the Midday Sun” and the absolutely sublime “Sweet Lady Genevieve”. Those tracks would have stood out on any Kinks album, bar none. ---
**Author:** ![EinsteinsHund](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/einsteinshund/32/8400_2.png) [@EinsteinsHund](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/EinsteinsHund)\ **Post date:** [April 1, 2011, 5:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/kinks-fans-any-good-post-1972-albums/576746/16 "2011-04-01T17:10:57Z")
_Sigh_, I think I have to stretch my _low budget_ to get me some more Kinks records :). Anyway, thanks to all for contributing, seems like the appropriate question would have been: “Any \*bad \*post-1972 Kinks albums?” But that doesn’t surprise me, since they are such a high-caliber band (with a genius songwriter) that it would’ve been improbable for them to having stopped producing brilliant music after 1972. Actually, I’ve often been the victim of my own prejudices about certain albums or bands, even whole genres, which I developed a long time ago reading some critics’ opinions without having the opportunity to check for myself then. Fortunately, nowadays the resources to evaluate such prejudices are easy to access. And I can always ask you knowledgeable dopers. ---
**Author:** ![Ms\_Boods](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/5e9695/32.png) [@Ms\_Boods](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ms_Boods)\ **Post date:** [April 2, 2011, 10:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/kinks-fans-any-good-post-1972-albums/576746/17 "2011-04-02T10:46:30Z")
Golly, thanks, **Wordman** and **Meurglys**! Also, many thanks, **Wordman** for the link to the thread. A lot of good suggestions here already, plus **Thudlow’s** link, so rather than repeat them, I’d also suggest you might be interested in some of Ray and Dave’s recent solo stuff – it’s not the Kinks, of course, but they’ve done some rather nice things of late. Dave’s CD _Bug_ is probably most accessible to Kinks’ fans; if you’re more into trance and house, there is his Aschere Project that he’s been working on with his son Russell. He’s got a song called ‘Fortis Green’ on _Bug_ that is in his own way a companion piece to ‘Come Dancing.’ (And if I can pimp myself, I have an article coming out which discusses the song, in December 2011 – mmm, academia, where I can make even the Kinks dry as dust!) Ray’s recent solo albums including _Other People’s Lives_ and especially _Working Man’s Cafe_ are really strong as well. For the completists I should add that the Kinks’ UK Cds are being re-released with load of bonus tracks; I just picked up the first three on Monday here in London, but am not sure when they’re coming out in the US. Also, you might look for _Veritas, Vol 1_ which is a fictional story (and cracking good so far!) by the late Peter Quaife, the Kinks’ original bassist. Gotta dash, but have fun! ---
**Author:** ![Johnny\_L.A](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johnny_l.a/32/1084_2.png) [@Johnny\_L.A](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johnny_L.A)\ **Post date:** [April 2, 2011, 2:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/kinks-fans-any-good-post-1972-albums/576746/18 "2011-04-02T14:24:16Z")
I like _Word Of Mouth_. I like _Do It Again_, _Good Day_, _Living On A Thin Line_, and _Missing Persons_. _Good Day_ is the first thing I thought of when Princess Diana died: _News of the world, tea and biscuits in bed The headline said that Diana was dead She didn’t talk much, but she put on a show She always smiled even when she was low I used to fancy her a long time ago…_ I think I have another Kinks album on vinyl, but I don’t know which one it is. It has _Lola_ on it. But my first Kinks album was _Word Of Mouth_. It’s from ‘my’ era. ---
**Author:** ![Horatio\_Hellpop](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/e5b9ba/32.png) [@Horatio\_Hellpop](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Horatio_Hellpop)\ **Post date:** [April 2, 2011, 2:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/kinks-fans-any-good-post-1972-albums/576746/19 "2011-04-02T14:27:06Z")
I’ll third **Give the People What They Want** ; there’s not a wasted cut on the album. ---
**Author:** ![ChockFullOfHeadyGoodness](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chockfullofheadygoodness/32/511_2.png) [@ChockFullOfHeadyGoodness](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ChockFullOfHeadyGoodness)\ **Post date:** [April 3, 2011, 6:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/kinks-fans-any-good-post-1972-albums/576746/20 "2011-04-03T06:33:31Z")
Demonstrating the scientifically proven fact that the best music of all time was released when you were in high school, I’m quite fond of the Arista albums, especially the run of Low Budget-One For The Road-Give The People What They Want-State of Confusion. Throw in the Father Christmas single (not originally on any album, although it has since appeared on compilation albums and as a bonus track on the CD rerelease of Misfits) and you can’t go wrong. **Low Budget** was where Ray looked at the late 70s punk scene and mod revival and said “Hey, we helped invent this sound back in 1964, and we still got it.” There are rave-ups like “Pressure” and “Attitude”, crunchy arena-rock like the title cut, “A Gallon of Gas”, and “Catch Me Now I’m Falling”, and a nod to the waning days of disco with “Moving Pictures” and the disco version of “(Wish I Could Fly Like) Superman”. **One For The Road** is one of my favorite live albums by anybody. The rock version of “Superman” is infinitely better than the disco version. **Give The People What They Want** has a lot of the snotty, snarky Davies wit. I still randomly quote “Hey Mom, there goes a piece of the President’s brain” and “Excuse me, is this your tooth?” at inappropriate times. But it’s not all sarcasm. “Better Things” is the wonderful closer, a song that you can’t be unhappy after hearing. When I was 17, **State of Confusion** was just a collection of great rockers and nostalgic numbers like “Come Dancing”. When I listen to it in my 40s, which is when Ray wrote it, I hear a completely different album. Before the lyrics were cutting but seemed funny. Now I can picture the pain of the divorcees separating their “Property” and the weariness of the faded cougar in “Don’t Forget To Dance”. Dave gets to shriek his way through the balls-to-the-wall rocker “Bernadette” bitching about alimony, palimony, whatever it is [she] gets. Plus the album gets bonus points for being the first cassette tape I ever bought. And the tour was the first time I saw them live, and the last tour with Mick Avory. **Word of Mouth** made tons of trips through my Walkman my sophomore year of college. Dave got his shining moment on “Living on A Thin Line”. I’d say “Too Hot” was the only subpar song on the album. The MCA albums are a bit more hit-and-miss, and the **Lost & Found** compilation has most of the highlights. I would have thrown in “Aggravation” and “War Is Over” from UK Jive and tossed out “How Do I Get Close?” the obvious bid for late 80s rock-radio airplay. It’s not a good sign when the initial reaction to a new Kinks song is “What the hell? Are they \*trying \* to sound like Bon Jovi?” **Phobia** …um…any album with the absolutely beautiful “Scattered” can’t be considered a _bad_ album, but the rest of it is pretty forgettable. I don’t think I’ve listened to it all the way though more than once or twice. **To The Bone** is a very good overview of their career done in the mid-90s “unplugged” style. The US version is a double CD, which was a big improvement over the single disk UK version, with one enormous glaring exception. For some inexplicable reason, the US version omits “Waterloo Sunset”. Why?? Who knows? It wasn’t for time reasons, as the first disk runs a mere 40 minutes or so. I find the RCA-era (1972-77) to be pretty uneven. For me, the high point was **Schoolboys In Disgrace**. It is pretty solid with songs that work both as great stand alone songs as well as within the album’s concept - “The Hard Way”, “Jack the Idiot Dunce”, “I’m In Disgrace” [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/kinks-fans-any-good-post-1972-albums/576746.md?page=2)