The Kinks Album: “The Kinks (1st LP) (Sanctuary) [Remaster]”

After a couple of failed singles in the U.K. (included as bonus tracks on this Castle reissue), the Kinks unleashed their trademark sound on the classic "You Really Got Me" and helped launch thousands of garage bands across the country in the mid-sixties. [Let's face it, there was nothing terribly complex about their music, but it rocked!]

With the success of "You Really Got Me," the Kinks were rushed into the studio to record this, their first full length album. As such, fewer than half of the songs are Ray Davies originals. But among those are the classic "Stop Your Sobbin'" (from the original album release) and from among the generous 12 bonus tracks on this reissue are "All Day and All of the Night" and the should-have-been-hits "I Gotta Go Now" and "Things Are Getting Better."

The covers are typical of other R&B-influenced groups of the period like the Rolling Stones. The Kinks work through respectable versions of Chuck Berry's "Too Much Monkey Business" and "Beautiful Delilah," as well as bluesman Slim Harpo's "Got Love If You Want It."

The Castle reissues of the Kinks' first ten albums illustrate that the Beatles weren't the only British group to have their U.K. releases doctored before they reached these shores. Essentially what this Castle reissue amounts to is the Kinks' first two U.S. albums [You Really Got Me and Kinks-Size (minus "Tired of Waiting for You" and "Come on Now"--both on the Castle reissue Kina Kinks)] plus five bonus tracks.

Bonus tracks include the first two singles: a Little Richard cover of "Long Tall Sally" and Ray's "You Still Want Me" and the B-side "You Do Something to Me." Both singles failed to chart. Also included are "It's Alright" (the B-side of "You Really Got Me"), the previously unreleased "I Don't Need You Any More," and "I Took My Baby Home" (the B-side of "Long Tall Sally," which was included as one of the tracks on the original Kinks debut album in the U.K., but not released stateside prior to this reissue).

All of these songs were recorded in 1964. As such they reflect the freshness and exuberance of a band that would go on to become one of the most important bands of the rock 'n' roll era. RECOMMENDED

How you feel about the Kinks debut LP depends on how you feel about 60's-white-kids attempting to play R 'n' B. I generally view this positively so I rate this record as one of the `60s finest. It's tough, punchy and delinquent. At times it's somewhat derivative and unoriginal but who cares? Like the early Stones and Link Wray, "Kinks" inspires feelings of unsociability and juvenile delinquency even though most of us are way past that stage of life. This ain't nostalgia - it really makes you want to go out and steal hubcabs.

The mono version of the first album would have been enough for me but it doesn't stop there. There's also the stereo version which, though not that interesting itself, does include a somewhat unexpected reverb-tinged version of "You Really Got Me". It's a curious artefact but lacks the power of the better known version. Still, at least we get a chance to hear it. And then there are the demos and mono singles that appear on the 2nd ½ of disc 1. Regardless of your views of the first album you cannot deny that as a singles outfit, The Kinks were always exceptional. All the evidence is here in bucket-loads. Dig the proto-punk power of "All Day And All Of The Night" and "Louie Louie"! Definitely one for '60s garage-rock aficionados and hoodlum aspirants.

Beyond the music, though, is outstanding sound quality. I don't mean in an "audiophile" sense since that was never what this music was about but in the sense of preserving the musical integrity and capturing the essence of the Muswell Hill boys' artistry. The sound on these discs is strong, bold and exciting in a way that the other CD reissues of their material simply isn't. Heck, it's even better than the original 45s. I have a couple of them and unless you have a cheap, junk record player made in 1966, they are harsh, shrill and tinny. This reissue addresses that problem by retaining what made the records exciting in the first place but giving them the care required to enhance the musicality that was always lurking. The bass on these are potent! And it's a totally unexpected and real nice surprise.

Finally, the packaging is real class. The front covers replicate the original LP artwork/sleeve notes while the booklet contains a plethora of groovy memorabilia - photos, tour posters, record sleeves and contemporary record reviews. I really enjoyed the liner notes. They are informative and educational even if you know a lot about the Kinks. Even though I'm far more of a vinyl person than a CD person, I have to say that THIS is exactly how CD reissues should be done. Really makes me wonder why people bother with downloading.

I have absolutely zero complaints about this or "Kinda Kinks". A milestone in CD reissue history, I think.

There are at least 3 versions of this album on Amazon. This is the one to get, because it has 12 bonus tracks. This is, in fact, the "UK Import". The one listed as the "UK Import" seems to be the US release which has only 2 bonus tracks. There's also a version available with no bonus tracks.

It is certainly not as essential as the later Kinks records ("Kontroversy", "Face to Face", "Something Else", "Village Green", and probably "Arthur" are musts)--but there's a lot of good stuff here. The 2 hits, plus "Louie Louie", "So Mystifying", "Revenge", "Stop Your Sobbing", and the unreleased version of "Monkey Business" come particularly to mind.

In 1964, probably the key year of the British Invasion, dozens of English bands dropped product on both sides of the Atlantic. Some of it was revolutionary but like any major movement in music, the mediocre was swept in with the exemplary. In October of this landmark year, a North London fourpiece led by a pair of brothers, Ray and Dave Davies, released their debut lp. The Kinks were unique in several ways from many of their contemporarties in that they were led by brothers and that elder brother, Ray, would prove to be one of rock greatest tunesmiths. What was ordinary about the band at the time was their rehash of R&B that everyone was doing. The Kinks were not as good at this as the Stones or the Yardbirds, masters of the form, so their legacy would live or die with their originals. It wasn't until their 3rd single "You Really Got Me", a true revolutionary piece of music, that the band would be formally recognized as not just another run of the mill "beat group". On 'The Kinks', "You Really Got Me" stood alongside such strong originals as "So Mystifying", "Just Can't Go to Sleep" and the classic early ballad "Stop Your Sobbin'". Both brothers handle the lead vocals on this record, with 17 year old Dave, screeching his way through "Beautiful Delilah" and three others. Again the blues and R&B covers are not that good, case in point, the Kinks' first single "Long Tall Sally" (included on this extended version)is pointless and would later be demolished by the Beatles' runthrough. 'The Kinks' is an interesting grab bag with subtle hints of future greatness but not the greatest debut for a rock legend. Four star rating for the expanded Castle version which includes "All Day and All of the Night" (another alltime classic originally released as a non-lp single), the b-sides to both "Night" ("I Gotta Move")and "Got Me"("It's Alright") and the first Kinks ep. Otherwise you may be unsatisfied with debut on its own with only "You Really Got Me" and "Stop Your Sobbin'" as truly memorable. Better days lay ahead for the brothers from Muswell Hill.

It always seemed of all the British Invasion bands The Kinks got the least amount of respect. Maybe it was because they were banned for a number of years from touring the U.S. or perhaps it was the fact that they just didn't "seem" like trend setters like The Beatles and the Stones. Either way, it took them awhile after their initial singles to regain lost ground.

Andrew Sandoval and Dan Hersch did the remastering honors here and they've done a good job with the material. If you're a wave form kind of person, these are louder and slightly more compressed than the original PRT CD's BUT they also sound better to me despite this due to better source tapes, A/D conversion, etc. Keep in mind that your mileage may vary depending on your ears but they still have decent dynamics and sound better than the much maligned previous masters (less harsh to me). These aren't what I would consider audiophile type of presentations but they are still good and sound pretty darn good as well despite the issues with compression.

This deluxe edition presents the debut album including their Top 10 hit singles "You Really Got Me" and "All of the Day and All of the Night" in stellar form; we get the original album in both mono and stereo versions. Also included are demos they recorded as the Bo-Weevils ("I Believed You" and the amusingly titled "I'm A Hog for You Baby")along with all their singles and b-sides from the time period. We also get eight previously unreleased tracks/demos for this edition.

Disc one features the original stereo album along with previously released demos/singles that were on the 1998 reissue. New to this disc is the demo version of "Everybody's Gonna Be Happy". There is not true stereo mix for "You Really Got Me" and the one that was on the original stereo album had added reverb. That version is included here.

Disc two features the mono edition of the album plus alternate takes of "Too Much Monkey Business", "Got Love If You Want It" (neither of which has been previously released)plus five previously unreleased BBC sessions of songs from the album as well as two brief interviews with Ray discussing "You Really Got Me" and touring America.

We also get a deluxe booklet with recording details, an essay on the making of the album and photos.

The Kinks would continue to improve with each album but this original album with the one-two punch of "You Really Got Me" will remind fans just how innovative the band could be at the time.