what a fitting battle. two giants of the british invasion at the height of their powers. the rolling stones, exile on main street, possibly their finest album, against the kinks underground masterpiece, the kinks are...the village green preservation society. i've loved both these bands for years now, so this was bound to be a tough choice. at least i'd get to enjoy two great albums. if only it was that simple.
first up...the rolling stones. what an epic mess this album is. i'm not making this up. the greatest band in the world go to france to record in an old nazi mansion. an exercise in excess, with a side of heroin. the stones decided to forget about their progress over the past 8 years and return to copying the music of poor americans. the original faux hicks, they are. at least back in '64 they were tight. i guess it's just easier to play sloppy when you're on a 3 day heroin bender, huh keith. i heard you were so effed up that you snorted your dad. also, what's up with the singing. mick jagger is all sass and no power. producer jimmy miller doesn't help by burying him in the mix. have any of these guys ever heard a black man sing? am i right?
on the song "village green" ray davies sings: "i miss the village green and all the simple people/i miss the village green the church the clock the steeple." who wrote that? glenn beck? after listening to this for the past couple days, i can't help but think the village green is a metaphor not just for a simpler time, but a place with no foreigners and homosexuals, a place (not unlike this blog :}) where women are defined by the man they married, not by their talents and contributions. (i'm talking about you daisy). a place full of intolerance and bigotry. is this what we want to preserve, kinks? the nostalgia seems cheap. on the title track, they run down a never ending list of things that they are and things they want god to save (virginity? strawberry jam?). i say, "rose colored glasses!!!!" there's no mention of any of the bad stuff. what about the 1918 flu pandemic, the boer war and shit like that? come on kinks, show some nuance.
aw hell...the winner: the rolling stones
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Still reeling from the upset! I don't know what to say. Glenn Beck has ruined everything. Love your reviews (especially your descriptions of keef and mick), although I still think there is more to TKATVGPS than just cheap nostalgia...I also love both albums, but will shed my own private tears for the loss of Village Green somewhere besides this blog.
ReplyDeleteP.S. "Dear Jesus, please save Grandmom's strawberry jam and her virginity, too. Amen."
ReplyDelete"No matter what that heathen Andy might have said about them..."
ReplyDeleteLovely work, Andy. Funny, funny, and also true.
ReplyDeleteWell, I love EOMS, so I'm happy, but to make Eric feel better, I promise to go out and buy a copy of TKATVGPS soon. Your reward for picking such a great album is that you get to listen to more Stones, you get a great match-up, and you get to close out Division 3. Here's your choice: (14) Stones - Between the Buttons vs. Palace Music - Lost Blues and Other Songs
ReplyDeletewhich version of between the buttons...us or uk? should it have ruby tuesday and let's spend the night together?
ReplyDeleteI guess you'll have to check with Eric since he is the one who picked it. Eric?
ReplyDelete