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THE KINKS: THE MONO COLLECTION

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THE KINKS – THE MONO COLLECTION
Vinyl box set of classic mono recordings to be released
December 16, 2016
The Mono Collection contains 10 albums spanning 1964 to 1969,
all on 180g vinyl plus lavish hardcover 48-page book
Available For Pre-Order Now Through Amazon

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The Kinks –The Mono Collection packages the band’s first 8 albums in glorious mono, including the previously out of print in the U.S. mono mix of ‘Live At Kelvin Hall’. The set also includes the bonus double LP compilation ‘The Kinks’ (aka ‘The Black Album’) PLUS a lavish hardcover 48-page book including never-before-seen photos and new interviews with Ray Davies, Dave Davies and Mick Avory.

With the recent renewed interest in analog recordings in the vinyl format, these essential Kinks albums have been collected together, as their original vintage 1960s equivalents continue to command major sums on the collectors’ market. From the real-time invention of the punk and heavy metal riff on “You Really Got Me”, “All Day And All of The Night” and “I Need You”, the melodic mellotron swirls throughout “Autumn Almanac” and “Days” to the bold brass characterising “Victoria” and “Shangri-La”, the full spectrum of The Kinks In Mono is here to be appreciated and enjoyed anew.

Brash, loud, quirky, reflective – are just some of the opposing adjectives that have been applied to The Kinks. While hailed as one of the great British singles bands of the 1960s, the superlative run of albums they released during those years chart a fascinating career trajectory – from young, white London boys emulating black Chicago R&B on their debut through to ambitious thematic works like ‘The Village Green Preservation Society’ and ‘Arthur’ that anticipated Ray Davies’ ambitions in film and theatre.

In between, ‘Kinda Kinks’ and ‘The Kink Kontroversy’ testify to the relentless, white hot pace of creative output demanded by their record label Pye in the mid ’60s (both were released within the year 1965). ‘Face To Face’ and ‘Something Else By The Kinks’ illustrate Ray Davies’ vision expanding beyond the traditional ’60s pop format, containing such evocative character vignettes as “Rosie Won’t You Please Come Home”, “Two Sisters” and “David Watts” (later a hit in its own right for The Jam). There was even room in the catalog for a primitively recorded but excitingly executed audio vérité concert document (‘Live At Kelvin Hall’). The quality of the albums was further bolstered by the inclusion of such timeless Kinks hits as “You Really Got Me”, “Tired Of Waiting For You”, “Till The End Of The Day”, “Sunny Afternoon” and “Waterloo Sunset” as well as Dave Davies’ solo emergence with “Death Of A Clown” and “Susannah’s Still Alive”.

Throughout the 1970s and beyond these classic recordings were mainly available in stereo – sometimes rechannelled stereo which blunted their dynamism. This state of affairs overlooked a key thing – the albums were originally conceived with Mono in mind. Unlike America, until the late 1960s, stereo was considered something of a novelty in Britain. For the leading players in the British beat boom, all efforts were directed at perfecting recordings made to be heard on radiograms, Dansettes and tinny transistor speakers. “I wanted the tracks to sound how we would play them live,” Ray says of the Kinks’ early recordings. “I wrote lots of songs for a particular sound and production.”

The Kinks – The Mono Collection will be released December 16, 2016 by BMG and is available now for pre-order: http://smarturl.it/TheKinksMonoLP

THE KINKS
THE MONO COLLECTION

Cat. Number: 8898532328
Barcode: 889853232819

CONTENT LISTING

Disc One – ‘Kinks’ (1964)

Side A

  1. Beautiful Delilah
  2. So Mystifying
  3. Just Can’t Go to Sleep
  4. Long Tall Shorty
  5. I Took My Baby Home
  6. I’m a Lover Not a Fighter
  7. You Really Got Me

Side B

  1. Cadillac
  2. Bald Headed Woman
  3. Revenge
  4. Too Much Monkey Business
  5. I’ve Been Driving On Bald Mountain
  6. Stop Your Sobbing
  7. Got Love if You Want It

Disc Two – ‘Kinda Kinks’ (1965)

Side A

  1. Look for Me Baby
  2. Got My Feet On the Ground
  3. Nothin’ In the World Can Stop Me Worryin’ ‘Bout That Girl
  4. Naggin’ Woman
  5. Wonder Where My Baby Is Tonight
  6. Tired of Waiting for You

Side B

  1. Dancing in the Street
  2. Don’t Ever Change
  3. Come On Now
  4. So Long
  5. You Shouldn’t Be Sad
  6. Something Better Beginning

Disc Three – ‘The Kink Kontroversy’ (1965)

Side A

  1. Milk Cow Blues
  2. Ring the Bells
  3. Gotta Get the First Plane Home
  4. When I See That Girl of Mine
  5. I Am Free
  6. Till the End of the Day

Side B

  1. The World Keeps Going Round
  2. I’m On an Island
  3. Where Have All the Good Times Gone
  4. It’s Too Late
  5. What’s in Store for Me
  6. You Can’t Win

Disc Four – ‘Face To Face’ (1966)

Side A

  1. Party Line
  2. Rosy Won’t You Please Come Home
  3. Dandy
  4. Too Much On My Mind
  5. Session Man
  6. Rainy Day in June
  7. House in the Country

Side B

  1. Holiday in Waikiki
  2. Most Exclusive Residence for Sale
  3. Fancy
  4. Little Miss Queen of Darkness
  5. You’re Looking Fine
  6. Sunny Afternoon
  7. I’ll Remember

Disc Five – ‘Something Else By The Kinks’ (1967)

Side A

  1. David Watts
  2. Death of a Clown
  3. Two Sisters
  4. No Return
  5. Harry Rag
  6. Tin Soldier Man
  7. Situation Vacant

Side B

  1. Love Me Till the Sun Shines
  2. Lazy Old Sun
  3. Afternoon Tea
  4. Funny Face
  5. End of the Season
  6. Waterloo Sunset

Disc Six – ‘Live At Kelvin Hall’ (1967)

Side A

  1. Till the End of the Day (Live)
  2. A Well Respected Man (Live)
  3. You’re Looking Fine (Live)
  4. Sunny Afternoon (Live)
  5. Dandy (Live)

Side B

  1. I’m On an Island (Live)
  2. Come On Now (Live)
  3. You Really Got Me (Live)
  4. Medley: Milk Cow Blues/ Batman Theme/ Tired of Waiting for You/ Milk Cow Blues (Live)

Disc Seven – ‘The Kinks Are the Village Green Preservation Society’ (1968)

Side A

  1. The Village Green Preservation Society
  2. Do You Remember Walter?
  3. Picture Book
  4. Johnny Thunder
  5. Last of the Steam-Powered Trains
  6. Big Sky
  7. Sitting By the Riverside

Side B

  1. Animal Farm
  2. Village Green
  3. Starstruck
  4. Phenomenal Cat
  5. All of My Friends Were There
  6. Wicked Annabella
  7. Monica
  8. People Take Pictures of Each Other

Disc Eight – ‘Arthur or the Decline and Fall of the British Empire’ (1969)

Side A

  1. Victoria
  2. Yes Sir, No Sir
  3. Some Mother’s Son
  4. Drivin’
  5. Brainwashed
  6. Australia

Side B

  1. Shangri-La
  2. Mr. Churchill Says
  3. She’s Bought a Hat Like Princess Marina
  4. Young and Innocent Days
  5. Nothing to Say
  6. Arthur

Discs Nine and Ten – ‘The Kinks’ (a.k.a. “The Black Album”) (Compilation 1970)

Side A

  1. You Really Got Me
  2. Long Tall Shorty
  3. All Day and All of the Night
  4. Beautiful Delilah
  5. Tired of Waiting for You
  6. I’m a Lover Not a Fighter

Side B

  1. A Well Respected Man
  2. Till the End of the Day
  3. See My Friends
  4. Don’t You Fret
  5. Dedicated Follower of Fashion
  6. Sunny Afternoon

Side C

  1. Dead End Street
  2. Death of a Clown
  3. Two Sisters
  4. Big Black Smoke
  5. Susannah’s Still Alive
  6. Autumn Almanac

Side D

  1. Waterloo Sunset
  2. Last of the Steam-Powered Trains
  3. Wonderboy
  4. Do You Remember Walter?
  5. Dandy
  6. Animal Farm
  7. Days