The Who Vs. The Kinks

The Kinks are better

I do like the Kinks a lot but... OUT HERE IN THE FIELDS

the kinks are a warm hand towel, the who are a gatorade cooler dumped on your head

The Who up to the end of 1966, The Kinks after.

The Who up to the end of 1966, The Kinks after.

bingo

(but also possibly the who for a couple years in the early '70s, but then the kinks after that, too)

Have to push the Who's timeline to include '67, at least (Who Sell Out), and "Glow Girl"'s '68. So for what they did from '65 through to "Glow Girl," the Who.

I'm all for pushing it out, too, but not necessarily in favor of '67 Kinks. The early Who, though, is something I cannot vote against.

#modforlife

The Kinks up to 1970
The Who from 1971 to 1975
Then punk and synthpop happens!

Kinks by country mile

live at leeds vs. live at kelvin hall
quadrophenia vs. preservation

but on the other hand there's the great lost kinks album vs. odds and sods
"better things" vs. "eminence front"

went with the kinks, from the gut

i listen to the kinks way more and rate ray davies as a songwriter way more than i do townshend, but the who at their very best are something special. i wouldn't trade "anyway anyhow anywhere" for anything. plus they've got keith moon. went w/ kinks but it felt pretty close.

I listen to the Kinks all the time and the Who rarely, but:

Anyway, Anyhow, Anywhere vs. ?

For a good handful or two of songs, Who are a force of nature, which Kinks never really managed. I think I have to go with the band that pushed the envelope the most, and that would be The Who.

Jinx, buy me a coke.

would also take arthur or village green over tommy any day (quadrophenia's a bit closer).

I think the Kinks had better songs, but the Who had a better overall sound.

Sort of hate Ray Davies but respect Something Else by The Kinks a lot. Anyway, The Who Sell Out alone makes this a no-brainer.

Why do you hate Ray Davies?

The Kinks. The Who are okay, but it's not even close

Kinks. I like quite a few songs by the Who but overall they have this mixture of lyrical clumsiness and musical bombast that really puts me off.

i'm voting for the who on the grounds that i think they would probably prevail in a fistfight against the kinks

Yeah Ray always seems like such a cool, interesting guy

He mostly comes off as cynical and bitter to me. Like he's making fun of everybody but isn't really a genius so it gets obnoxious fast.

Lyrical clumsiness, NickB? Pete Townshend? Beg to differ

i'm voting for the who on the grounds that i think they would probably prevail in a fistfight against the kinks

― trump le monde (bizarro gazzara)

only because ray and dave would rather punch each other out than punch anybody else out

rhythm section shootout:
john entwistle and keith moon vs. pete quaife and mick avory. uh...

Well, as a band, the Kinks were always a joke, not that they didn't stumble into some mighty interesting arrangements and had those great bg vox courtesy of Ray's spouse. But making musical statements wasn't their thing, songs were and Davies was great. (Quit being great around 1970; I hate virtually all the Kinks stuff from the '70s and really hate the "punk" Kinks crap. But saw them live in the '80s and had a great time.) But the Who did Sell Out and those early singles and I guess I can still retain some feeling for their big Concept Statements and all. Overall, the Kinks mean more to me; "Autumn Almanac" and "Berkeley Mews" and "Wonderboy" and "End of the Season" and "Most Exclusive Residence for Sale" will be records I play in my Trump-sponsored assisted living cubicle in North Dakota, along with side one of Sell Out. So the Kinks got my vote.

pretty tough one for me...so different, like the ultimate "songwriter" band against one of the all time "band bands"

not saying that dave and the rest of the band weren't anything but ray could have done "waterloo sunset" or "picture book" with any group of musicians at that time and they would still be classic songs (who knows, maybe a lot of that stuff was done with studio dudes)

the who is such an ensemble like certains bands like them or led zep or sonic youth or black sabbath or can just have a certain *sound* and way they interact that is unique to them

Those tunes are played out by classic rock radio but Townshend in corporating Terry Riley style tape loops in rock and roll songs was really technically innovative for 1971.

I think getting to that point and not being able to pull off Lifehouse was the Who's peak. After that their music was mostly about looking back or in the mirror.

The Who was definitely a band that was greater than the sum of its parts. Those live recordings from 69-71 they were a machine.

yeah live at leeds is insane

The Who were basically the first band I was every really into/obsessed with when I was first dipping my toe into music when I was 12 or 13 so despite all their faults it is would be hard for me to vote for them over like any other band.

The Kinks...I like, in a kind of distant, intellectual way, they have some great songs & R Davies obv is a great songwriter but they don't move me viscerally in the same way the Who does.

And UMS is right the Who are like the first proper "band", where the interaction between the players is more important than the actual songs, which is why Moon's death is so heartbreaking & their subsequent career is so painful.

The Who, everyting up to and including "Quadrophenia" (which I always underrated and have recently rediscovered and maybe becuz now I'm 40 & not 15 I now think of being their masterpiece) is basically perfect to my ears.

The Kinks have more essential music than the Who. The Who were more mindblowing their first few years, because they were so insanely over the top, so bombastic, and in their way, so musically revolutionary.

The guy who said "The Who up to the end of 1966, The Kinks after," completely nailed it. I couldn't have said it better. As much as I love The Who Sell Out ('67), and it's my 2nd fave Who album (behind My Generation), I don't think it exceeds The Kinks' "Something Else", so I call 1967 a tie. But really, the Kinks. And it's not particularly close.

The albums The Kinks released from Face To Face up to Lola Vs. Powerman are all superior records to the first two Who albums, IMO.

A Quick One in particular is riddled with filler and has lousy production.

Why are you comparing the first two albums to those, though, and not to the first three Kinks albums?

Because I'm dwelling on the idea of "The Who up to the end of 1966, The Kinks after" ... then again, I find The Kink Kontroversy a stronger record than A Quick One, too.

Oh, I don't at all. I think the Kinks' lackluster instrumental performances are still very prevalent on that record.

That said, the Who had a later start and, chronologically, I think it's fair to compare A Quick One with Face to Face. I disagree with your characterization of AQO as "riddled with filler," but might go with Davies' songwriting spate giving Face to Face an edge there.

Early Kinks albums aren't much cop... and as for lousy production, just ask Ray Davies about them.

A Quick One has 'Boris The Spider', 'Heat Wave', 'So Sad About Us' and 'A Quick One, While He's Away' ... the rest can gtfo.

The Kink Kontroversy has 'Till The End of the Day' and 'Where Have All The Good Times Gone', plus gems like 'The World Keeps Going 'Round', 'When I See That Girl of Mine', 'Gotta Get The First Plane Home', 'Ring The Bells' ...

Shel Talmy produced the first three Kinks and the first Who album. A Quick One was "produced" by Kit Lambert who shouldn't have been anywhere near a studio, IMO.

He did a far better job on the first Who album tbh.

Though, I think he'd probably produced the first three Kinks' albums by that time!

A Quick One has 'Boris The Spider', 'Heat Wave', 'So Sad About Us' and 'A Quick One, While He's Away' ... the rest can gtfo.

― Working night & day, I tried to stay awake... (Turrican)

boy, the us pressings never got anything right, did they? the us press of "a quick one" omits "heat wave" in favor of "happy jack"! yeah because god knows we can't possibly do without "cobwebs and strange"...

A Quick One, live at the Rock n Roll Circus is one of the greatest things on earth. But if you want songs, wit, and charm, rather than dirty jokes turned into mini operas, then Kinks all the way.

Who could do without "Cobwebs and Strange" ?

Not me for a kick off.

A Quick One, live at the Rock n Roll Circus is one of the greatest things on earth. But if you want songs, wit, and charm, rather than dirty jokes turned into mini operas, then Kinks all the way.

Yeah, no wit, charm, or songs by The Who 🙄

A Quick One, live at the Rock n Roll Circus is one of the greatest things on earth. But if you want songs, wit, and charm, rather than dirty jokes turned into mini operas, then Kinks all the way.

A Quick One, live at the Rock n Roll Circus is one of the greatest things on earth. But if you want songs, wit, and charm, rather than dirty jokes turned into mini operas, then Kinks all the way.

A Quick One, live at the Rock n Roll Circus is one of the greatest things on earth. But if you want songs, wit, and charm, rather than dirty jokes turned into mini operas, then Kinks all the way.

I'm not a huge Tommy fan although I appreciate it a lot more now than when I was a teenager. Live, of course, not studio.

Shit, sorry for all the pentimenti in that post!

Shel Talmy produced the first three Kinks and the first Who album. A Quick One was "produced" by Kit Lambert who shouldn't have been anywhere near a studio, IMO.

― Working night & day, I tried to stay awake... (Turrican), Tuesday, November 22, 2016 3:19 PM (one hour ago) Bookmark Flag Post Permalink

He did a far better job on the first Who album tbh.

― The Doug Walters of Crime (Tom D.), Tuesday, November 22, 2016 3:27 PM (one hour ago) Bookmark Flag Post Permalink

Though, I think he'd probably produced the first three Kinks' albums by that time!

― The Doug Walters of Crime (Tom D.), Tuesday, November 22, 2016 3:28 PM (one hour ago) Bookmark Flag Post Permalink

I'm not sure there's a major qualitative difference between the production on those albums but would venture to say that a big part of why The Who Sings My Generation sounds so good is because the Who, as a band, sounded so good.

it seems a pity that none of the Kinks 70s concept albums got adapted into movies (though apparently Bobcat Goldthwait is still hoping to film Schoolboys In Disgrace)

The Kinks of any era by a huge margin for me.

Lol. In the end I am probably a little more of a Kinks fan, but feel like ultimately these bands kind of complement each somehow and therefore for me the "Vs." doesn't make me want to take a side.

I like Dave's singing a lot too though, but again, he's just not going to sing every song in that band.

Wondering if Grant Hart should be dragged into this discussion.

I had "Susannah's Still Alive" as one of my first batch of singles when I was little.

I genuinely thought the first line sung was "Oh soz I soz soz chuck a budgie"

Automatic thread bump. This poll is closing tomorrow.

Prediction time:

Kinks 28
Who 19

KINKS: 38
WHO: 11

I think more ppl will have voted than that, more like

Kinks 51
Who 38

xp

we're all agreed that the wrong band will win

I think more ppl will have voted than that, more like

Kinks 51
Who 38

xp

Probably right. Is that your bet or were you extrapolating mine to a higher vote count?

we're all agreed that the wrong band will win

there is no wrong answer here, but the who are the slightly more wrong answer imo

i know the Kinks is the correct answer but voting for the Who. ultimately going for the roar or Keith Moon ect.

If the Who don't win, commence throwing tvs out of hotel windows on my command

If the Kinks don't win this I'm quitting ILX

(ok not really but I'll be really, really upset and mad at you guys for a while)

Kinks vs. Who live vs. Kinks vs. Who studio mostly tells the story.

I honestly have a hard time deciding, though I think the Kinks have meant more to me overall. On the other hand the evaporation of nuance and lightness from Ray's songwriting and the band's production (starting around Arthur, great as much of it is) is a real bummer.

In general I find The Who's best work awesome in a way that the kinks don't achieve but I'm just so glad that something like Village Green exists.

Automatic thread bump. This poll's results are now in.

About what I thought--except a shit ton of votes! Thanks, all

the only non-disappointing election results all year

Impressive turnout, liberal democracy is not in retreat on ILX at least.

Downliner Sect innit?

^^^ classic ilx challops

i voted for The Who but this is one of those rare elections where whoever wins, we win!

https://i.ytimg.com/vi/Cyh__QQD2js/hqdefault.jpg

one of my life goals is to find a jacket just like this.

https://media.giphy.com/media/1vogIoe1P9Pkk/giphy.gif

http://stream1.gifsoup.com/view3/20140506/5031681/tv-out-the-window-o.gif

Recount, starting in Wisconsin...

ilx in loving polite rock music shocker

*doffs chapeau, saunters off with a wink*

OH SNAP

https://media.giphy.com/media/3MtvJgvrxknEA/giphy.gif

https://media.giphy.com/media/89V7Wn6ztXokM/giphy.gif

https://media.giphy.com/media/he9wnsMitEUwg/giphy.gif

https://media.giphy.com/media/he9wnsMitEUwg/giphy.gif ">=https://media.giphy.com/media/he9wnsMitEUwg/giphy.gif

Fuck it, I give up. Kink's (whom I love) have no gif to compare...

Coming up: The Who live vs Kinks live. Results predictable.

Anyone read Richie Unterberger's Lifehouse/Who's Next/Quadrophenia era Who book?

https://media.giphy.com/media/1fPPuBH0FcM3m/giphy.gif

http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-_lkjGlNFxqU/UhCyh7EC_3I/AAAAAAAAJus/deCh-z6UkFI/s1600/KAA+gun.bmp

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http://33.media.tumblr.com/tumblr_m4744zkr0l1qkmh81o2_250.gif

https://66.media.tumblr.com/d34019958fffc3ae64185d184044b691/tumblr_n5bz2yXrwz1sfv5bbo1_400.gif

https://67.media.tumblr.com/ba7d317263efc9be7b89aaef87c9b6d5/tumblr_naixtlHT8F1s43l46o1_500.gif

Hahaha awesome gifs

Moony eating the flower!

too bad The Kinks don't have their own doc a la "The Kids Are Alright". best music doc ever.

We should do a rock docs poll

Who is singing harmony on "The Seeker"?

Are you talking about the harmony on the last verse?

My guess on that is Townshend.

Yes