Kinks

Although the best of the Kinks' early work is among the best British Invasion music, their initial pair of albums was far less consistent than those of the Beatles, the Rolling Stones, and the Who. Aside from the great "You Really Got Me," this was a scrabby, disappointing set with surprisingly thin production. As R&B cover artists, the Kinks weren't nearly as adept as the Stones and the Yardbirds; Ray Davies' original tunes were, "You Really Got Me" aside, perfunctory Merseybeat-ish pastiches; and a couple of tunes that producer Shel Talmy penned for the group, "Bald Headed Woman" and "I've Been Driving on Bald Mountain," were simply abominable. The rave-up treatments of the R&B standards "Got Love if You Want It" and "Cadillac" were good, and the simple "Stop Your Sobbing" would eventually be covered by the Pretenders, but overall The Kinks is really patchy. The CD reissue, however, is a great improvement, adding a wealth of bonus tracks from early singles and their first EP, some excellent additions. The ferocious "All Day and All of the Night" was a classic hit whose razor-riffing outdid even "You Really Got Me," and the B-sides "It's Alright" and "I Gotta Move" are tremendous frenetic lost gems. There are also a couple of previously unissued cuts: an alternative take of "Too Much Monkey Business" and an early, Beatlesque original, "I Don't Need You Any More." ~ Richie Unterberger|