I still need a new title for the blog. I replaced the subheading and the picture. The new photo is one I took in the 1970s of 10 Market Place in Baltimore. The building has been renovated and is now part of Rams Head Live.
See the About page to search old posts on the blog.
Imani Perry has written an outstanding essay on author Gayl Jones that appeared in the New York Times. Jones wrote three fine books of fiction in the 1970s – Corregidora (1975), Eva’s Man (1976) and White Rat (1977). I have read them but not her later works. Eva’s Man is my favorite of the three. They are tough, uncompromising works. If you read about her, you’ll see she has had an eventful life. She is getting attention now because she has written a new book.
Elizabeth Nelson, who posts on Twitter as The Paranoid Style, linked to the list prepared by Timothy Bracy and her ranking all of the Kinks albums. I don’t agree with every ranking but it’s an excellent list.
I don’t know them all. Prior to 1969, I was only familiar with the singles. After 1975, I heard some of the albums but don’t know them nearly as well. Their list does not include the fine compilations The Kink Kronicles (covering 1966-70) and The Great Lost Kinks Album (late 1960s/early 1970s outtakes). I saw the Kinks live in 1972, 1974 and 1993.
This is how I rank the albums I know
Muswell Hillbillies (1971)
The best Kinks album I know. It took guts to do something this English and understated after the hard rock success of Lola. Davies has a lot of affection for his characters.
Lola versus Powerman and the Moneygoround, Part One (1970)
“Lola” may be the best Kinks song. The album is louder than its predecessors and successors. There are many fine songs – “Apeman”, “This Time Tomorrow”, “Powerman”, “Strangers” and “Denmark Street” among them.
Arthur (1969)
Would any other band have single about Queen Victoria?
Everybody’s in Show Biz (1972)
“Celluloid Heroes” is one of the best Kinks songs. I like the live disc of the 2 LP set which accurately reflects their sloppy but very entertaining concerts of that era.
Preservation: Act One (1973)
The beginning of the decline. “Sitting in the Midday Sun” reminds me of their 1960s classics. I am also partial to “Cricket”. I can’t imagine that they thought anyone in the US would care.
The Kinks Present a Soap Opera (1975)
“Everybody’s a Star” is good but some songs are so slight, they could just blow away. I’m thinking of “Ducks on the Wall”, an inferior cousin of “Supersonic Rocket Ship” from Show Biz.
Preservation: Act 2 (1974)
Very small percentage of memorable songs here. I like “Scum of the Earth” and “Mirror of Love”.
I had forgotten about “Disco Duck” until I read this. Ton Nichols critiques American Top 40 as part of his Twitter feed. For those of you who haven’t heard this 1970s trash, here goes:
For those of you who haven’t heard this 1970s trash, here goes:
Terrible
Bonnie Raitt’s “Nick of Time” was released as a single in 1990. She just posted about a new cover by Lake Street Dive. More about the Raitt recording is here.
What a life story
“Ripple”, a 1970 Grateful Dead song, was covered by Playing for Change in 2015.
Great tweet (as always) from The Paranoid Style:
