Why hasn't there been a Kinks Box Set?

So OK, great idea.

though if you want to package the entirety of face to face, something else, village green, arthur and the great lost kinks album into a complete box set of late '60s kinks, with beautiful reproductions of the original artwork, and give it an ironic title like kinks over america, then i could go for that.

I just bought a Kinks box set of the Pye years, with "CD replicas of all ten classic Pye albums, including rare sleeves from around the world".

It's quite nicely done: the CD sleeves are cardboard like the original album covers and there are indeed German, Japanese, Italian, UK, Greek, French, and Dutch versions included.

what would be the point of a box right now? there's a 3-cd village green preservation society, and most (all? i haven't totally kept up with the reissues) of the latest reissues have tons of bonus tracks (and the rca reissues are available as a box). the bbc stuff has been released, so there really isn't anything left to put on a boxed set.

what we really need is a kinks dvd set. there's nothing (official) out except "one for the road," correct?

Make your bloody minds up then...jeez.

The Kinks are planning to follow in the footsteps of rockers Led Zeppelin with a highly anticipated reunion next year.

Lead singer and guitarist Ray Davies said the band's original members, which included Davies' brother Dave on guitar, Mick Avory on drums and Pete Quaife on bass plan to play together for the first time in nearly four decades in 2008.

Davies, 63, said a full reunion is on the cards next year for the first time in almost 40 years.

(snip)

Next year's reunion is likely to coincide with the release of a Kinks CD box set called Retrospective.

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/pages/live/articles/showbiz/showbiznews.html?in_article_id=504710&in_page_id=1773

there's nothing (official) out except "one for the road,"

My late brother was at that show. I recently rented the DVD and freeze-framed some of the audience shots (there's a lot of footage of fans finding their seats). But alas, I never saw him.

The box set will be more interesting than the reunion. The Kinks spent almost 20 years after "Arthur" releasing sub-par material.

Not entirely sure why after all the remasters of the late-90s/early-00s where every good Kinks record was stuffed with every non-album single and every "lost" track ever (the last 3CD Village Green reissue finally did away with the few Great Lost Kinks Album stragglers, I think) that a box set would be interesting or even necessary. I guess I'm not the market for box sets though.

"The Kinks spent almost 20 years after "Arthur" releasing sub-par material."

and releasing lots of great stuff too! give the people what they want is a great album. there is good stuff on sleepwalker, misfits, low budget, muswell hillbillies, lola versus powerman, etc, etc. more good stuff than most people have in one career.

i think the sleepwalker/misfits/low budget/give the people what they want stretch is such a good one. granted, the preservation stuff and soap opera stuff and schoolboys in disgrace stuff could be hard to take and was a dead end. which makes it even cooler that they abandoned that kinda thing for songs with more punch and power.

What is really needed is a re-release of the stereo version of "Something Else", plus letting the world hear stereo versions of their 1964-66 work.

these 60s bands really need to sort out their stereo/mono versions...I've just started getting interesting in collection Rolling Stones stereo versions, and it's ridiculously complicated.

*collecting

if there was a kinks box set i would totally buy it.

they are reuniting i guess. i might go see them.

i've almost bought all those albums scott mentioned then chickened out so many times.

i could have sworn there was a fairly comprehensive one at the cd store i worked at circa 1996. It was an import though, from where I couldn't say.

I've just started getting interesting in collection Rolling Stones stereo versions, and it's ridiculously complicated.

The problem about Stones is there is no logic in when they would use stereo or mono versions. You will find certain songs released in stereo on one issue and in mono on another. Even with the otherwise excellent remasters. And it is virtually impossible to know which versions were used where. Fans of mono Stones would mostly find what they are looking for in "The London Years" though.

There is a Kinks box set (called "Picture Book") on the way.

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Description
This is the first ever Kinks box set in the bands 40 year plus history. It has been compiled with the help of Ray Davies and contains over 100 tracks over 6 CD’s, around a third of which are unreleased or are new to CD.

Housed in a lift lid classic style box

Includes Six CDs, 60-Page Booklet With Ray Davies Intro
The Booklet: Contains interviews with all band members. Supplemented with rare photos / memorabilia / hand-written lyrics, Band etc.
Time Line / Diary Illustrated Discography by Doug Himen (rare album and singles covers)

Track Listing:
Disc 1 -
1. Brian Matthew Introduces The Kinks
2. You Really Got Me
3. I'm A Hog For You Baby
4. I Believed You
5. Long Tall Sally
6. I Don't Need You Anymore
7. Stop Your Sobbing
8. I Gotta Move
9. Don't Ever Let Me Go Demo
10. All Day And All Of The Night
11. Tired Of Waiting For You
12. Come On Now Outake with false start
13. There Is A New World Opening For Me Kassner Publishing Demo
14. Everybody's Gonna Be Happy
15. Who'll Be The Next In Line Demo
16. Time Will Tell
17. Set Me Free
18. I Need You
19. See My Friend
20. Wait Till The Summer Comes Along
21. I Go To Sleep
22. A Little Bit Of Sunlight Kassner Publishing Demo
23. This I Know Demo
24. A Well Respected Man
25. This Strange Effect
26. Milk Cow Blues
27. Ring The Bells
28. I'm On An Island
29. Till The End Of The Day
30. Where Have All The Good Times Gone
31. All Night Stand Demo
32. And I Will Love You
33. Sittin' On My Sofa

Disc 2
1. Dedicated Follower Of Fashion Alternate Stereo Take
2. She's Got Everything
3. Mr. Reporter Ray Vocal
4. Sunny Afternoon
5. I'm Not Like Everybody Else
6. This Is Where I Belong
7. Rosie Won't You Please Come Home
8. Too Much On My Mind
9. Session Man
10. End Of The Season
11. Dead End Street Alternate Version - early 1966
12. Village Green
13. Two Sisters
14. David Watts
15. Mr. Pleasant
16. Waterloo Sunset Mono Mix
17. Death Of A Clown
18. Lavender Hill
19. Good Luck Charm BBC Radio Recording
20. Autumn Almanac
21. Susannah's Still Alive
22. Animal Farm
23. Rosemary Rose
24. Berkeley Mews
25. Lincoln County
26. Picture Book
27. Days
28. Misty Water

Disc 3
1. Love Me Till The Sun Shines
2. The Village Green Preservation Society
3. Big Sky
4. King Kong
5. Drivin'
6. Some Mother's Son
7. Victoria
8. Shangri-La
9. Arthur
10. Got To Be Free
11. Lola Mono Single Version
12. Get Back In The Line
13. The Moneygoround
14. Strangers
15. Apeman
16. God's Children
17. The Way Love Used To Be
18. Moments
19. Muswell Hillbilly
20. Oklahoma USA
21. Twentieth Century Man
22. Here Come The People In Grey

Disc 4
1. Skin And Bone
2. Alcohol Live
3. Celluloid Heroes
4. Sitting in My Hotel
5. Supersonic Rocket Ship
6. You Don't Know My Name
7. One Of The Survivors
8. Sitting In The Midday Sun
9. Sweet Lady Genevieve
10. Daylight
11. Mirror Of Love
12. Artificial Man
13. Preservation US Single
14. Slum Kids Live
15. Holiday Romance
16. Face In The Crowd
17. No More Looking Back
18. Sleepwalker
19. The Poseur

Disc 5
1. Sleepless Night
2. Father Christmas
3. Misfits
4. A Rock 'N Roll Fantasy
5. Little Bit Of Emotion
6. Attitude
7. Hidden Quality
8. A Gallon of Gas
9. Catch Me Now I'm Falling
10. Nuclear Love
11. Duke
12. Maybe I Love You
13. Stolen Away Your Heart
14. Low Budget
15. Better Things
16. Destroyer
17. Yo-Yo
18. Art Lover
19. Long Distance

Disc 6
1. Heart of Gold
2. Come Dancing Demo Remix
3. State Of Confusion
4. Do It Again
5. Living On A Thin Line
6. Summer's Gone Extended Mix
7. How Are You
8. The Road
9. Million Pound Semi Detached
10. Down All The Days (To 1992)
11. The Informer
12. Phobia
13. Only A Dream
14. Drift Away
15. Scattered
16. Do You Remember Walter
17. To The Bone Demo

First Ever Kinks Box Set, Released December 1st on Universal

The Kinks return in December with ‘Picture Book’: the ultimate Kinks kollection. Compiled with the help of Ray Davies, ‘Picture Book’ is a six CD box set of rarities, live versions and classic originals celebrating one of one of Britain’s most successful and influential bands.
Featuring the songwriting genius of Ray Davies and the guitar virtuosity of brother Dave, hits like ‘You Really Got Me’, ‘Lola’, ‘Waterloo Sunset’, ‘All Day And All Of The Night’ and ‘Sunny Afternoon’ not only defined British cool in the sixties and seventies, but also cemented the band’s place in Rock ‘n’ Roll mythology. ‘Picture Book’ is the first ever Kinks box set, chronicling the band’s 40 year career over six chronologically-ordered CDs and one 60-page, full colour booklet. Each disc deals with a particular chapter in the band’s history, from their 1964 breakthrough onwards, while the booklet features a full retelling of the Kinks story penned by esteemed rock critic Peter Doggett.

The booklet also includes a personal introduction by Ray Davies, as well as a Kinks timeline and never before seen photos.

Beautifully packaged in a classic, lift-lid style box, ‘Picture Book’ features well over a hundred tracks - a third of which are previously unreleased or new to CD. These include: Rare Demos, Mono Versions and Alternate Mixes (inc. early demos recorded as The Ravens; mono single versions of ‘Waterloo Sunset’, ‘Lola’ & ‘Apeman’; and previously unreleased versions of ‘Dedicated Follower of Fashion’ and ‘Dead End Street’)

Archived BBC Television & Session Material (inc. a televised 1964 introduction by Brian Matthew, and session versions of ‘This Strange Effect’ and ‘Love Me Til The Sun Shines’) Live Renditions (inc. live versions of ‘Slum Kids’, ‘Alcohol’ & ‘Low Budget’)
All these feature alongside the classic originals, as ‘Picture Book’ revisits such classic albums as ‘The Kinks’, ‘Face To Face’, ‘The Kinks Are The Village Green Preservation Society’ and ‘Arthur’.
(Universal)
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I have been waiting for one for years, about damn time

This is the first ever Kinks box set in the bands 40 year plus history.

This is only true if you deny the existence of The EP Collection, The Arista Years, The Pye Album Collection, The Marble Arch Years, The 20th Anniversary Box Set, The Kinks Remastered, the Japanese Paper Sleeve Box, and The RCA Years. Isn't revisionism great?

i would very much like this.

Personally, what I would want is deluxe editions of "Face To Face" and "Something Else" like the one we've already gotten of "Village Green Preservation Society". The key element here, in particular, would be to get the stereo versions (obviousy including some new stereo mixes of "Face To Face" material as I don't think everything on that album was ever originally mixed in stereo)

The key element here, in particular, would be to get the stereo versions
This is wrong, as everything sounds better in mono.

It's much harder to mix in mono, that's why things sound better: The person doing the job has to be an expert.

In a stereo picture, you just go "Oh, bass over there, Guitar over there, Drums in the middle/left/right, and the singer central, job done.

In a mono one you have to make sure each noise can be heard.

.. which means you can't really just play a stereo album on mono equipment, it has to be an actual mono mix.

Fans of mono tend to prefer mono because it has more "punch". Sure enough, may be great if that's your kind of thing. In which case you should also prefer today's CDs with a lot of dynamic range compression as they have more "punch" too.

I prefer detail and dynamics over punch, though, and detail and dynamics always come out better in stereo.

In a stereo picture, you just go "Oh, bass over there, Guitar over there, Drums in the middle/left/right, and the singer central, job done.

Me thinks you over simplify.

I'm not a fan of making stereo mixes on reissues of things that were in mono though.
Unless both mixes are on it of course.

Those deluxe editions would obviously contain both. Like "Village Green Preservation Society" does.

^^
That's the record I was thinking of. I have no problem with that at all.

Me thinks you over simplify.

Yeah, of course I do. Still...

Oh, and Geir, true some prefer a stereo picture, and mono can tend to have more punch. But that's not the same as the compression 'scandal' that hits some of todays CD mixes. At the very least, it's "too much kick"

you can't really just play a stereo album on mono equipment

Are you referring to vintage equipment? It just occured

you can't really just play a stereo album on mono equipment
Are you referring to vintage equipment? I don't think I've seen any strictly mono before. Just stuff with a control knob. I'd like to hear something like that. Sounds interesting.

Sorry about the half post above. I hit the wrong key apparently.

Yeah, I was, actually.

I was more alluding to "combining two stereo tracks to make a mono is not the same as mixing for mono"...

Personally I wouldn't mind a Kinks boxing set; complete collection of all Ray/Dave punch-ups.

and why the hell DON'T bands today throw down like they used to?...why, time was Dave would stab Ray with a fork over a simple eggs-and-chips argument...the only recent thing that comes to mind is the dust-up between Jack White and the Von Bondies guy, and that just ain't gonna cut it...

You saw the Vondies guy afterwards? C'mon!

"I nailed Liam's head to the gas cooker but he was fookin' askin' for it like."

I think the Von Bondies guy's (what the hell is his name) wounds were largely self-inflicted (ala Scorpio form Dirty Harry) for publicity purposes...

did the Hartnolls ever mix it up onstage?...maybe one distracted the other with his miner's light?

combining two stereo tracks to make a mono is not the same as mixing for mono

sort of like turning off the color on a TV and saying its black and white. There is an art to filming in black and white which is why there is no need to colorize them.

Exactly that.

i'm asking for this for Christmas! :D
review of it here: http://entertainment.timesonline.co.uk/tol/arts_and_entertainment/music/cd_reviews/article5281259.ece

This is the part that is curious: "Despite sometimes bewildering sequencing, too many inglorious latter-day offerings presumably aimed at an American audience ..."
Is that really accurate? Is the American audience really looking for latter-day Kinks, rather than the classic 60s period. Maybe I don't know my Kinks history well enough ... I know they had some stadium success, but still, it seems like here, the Kinks are still mainly known for their 60s hits ... Whatevs, I am kind of looking forward to a well chosen overview of the post-Muswell Hillbillies era, since that's pretty much where my knowledge drops off ...

"Despite sometimes bewildering sequencing, too many inglorious latter-day offerings presumably aimed at an American audience ..."

I assume this refers to the fact that the Kinks were popular in the US at the very same time as they couldn't get arrested in the UK

... still relatively popular, I should have said

Yeah, I get that, but I just wonder if at this late date, the Kinks are famous in the US for the same reasons as they are in the UK, ie the 60s stuff.

I believe their sixties stuff went over in the US as a cult thing, then they hit big with the seventies/eighties stuff there.

you can or could till recently get kinks albums for £3 each in fopp.

so i'm thinking this box is inesential.

Yeah, I get that, but I just wonder if at this late date, the Kinks are famous in the US for the same reasons as they are in the UK, ie the 60s stuff.

Might be, but the the average US Kinks' fan might be a bit less inclined to say, "What is this horseshit?" when confronted with the final 2 CDs.

haha, yeah maybe. so no one's going to rep for the later stuff? it can't all be bad right? i think literally the only 80s Kinks song I know is "Come Dancing".

I don't know this, but I strongly suspect that the Kinks' stadium set in the early 80's would have included a fair few of their 60's classics.

Yeah, I'm sure! That's sort of what I mean -- did the latter-day Kinks' popularity in the States have to do with the records they were putting out then, or did have to do with them being 60s survivors, the dudes who do "You Really Got Me." I know, very important stuff I'm wrestling with here! :)

Fair few = "You really got me", "All day", 'Lola' and maybe one other.

That's sort of what I mean -- did the latter-day Kinks' popularity in the States have to do with the records they were putting out then, or did have to do with them being 60s survivors, the dudes who do "You Really Got Me." I know, very important stuff I'm wrestling with here! :)

The Sleepwalker album was their highest charting album up to that point, at #21 (previous highest was Lola at #35), and subsequent Arista albums did better. Low Budget was a pretty big FM-radio hit (charted at #11), as was "Destroyer" from Give The People What They Want (#15). After the peak of "Come Dancing"/State of Confusion, they dropped off a cliff, and they were as unarrestable in the US as they were in the UK (I don't think UK Jive or Phobia even charted). But as late as 1989 they could still do decent arena business in the US without hit records.

Their US appeal right at this moment seems mostly based on love for the '66-'71 era.

I might be the only person in America who looks at this tracklisting and says "I wish there were more Word of Mouth." What can I say -- I played that record about a thousand times (mostly while working on HS science fair projects if I remember correctly) and it seems a perfect example of the kind of record it is.

got "Picture Book" for christmas -- thanks mom! haven't gone through it all yet, but goddam, the Kinks! Great band, am I right?

they're alright.

they are great. first "rarity" type thing that is blowing my mind from this set: "I Go To Sleep," a demo from the Kinda Kinks era. Guess it was released on a late 90s reissue of that album, but it's new to me! Lovely.

So, who has shelled out for the mono box? I'm sorely tempted because I didn't shell out the big bucks for all those "deluxe editions" that have come out in the past year. I love my Beatles mono box so much and assume The Kinks discs would likewise gain in punch and immediacy in mono.

http://www.israbox.com/uploads/posts/2010-06/1276514589_500.jpg

This is the one I got.

I have that too, but it's a weird mix of stereo and mono releases. I was looking at the new one that pfork reviewed the other day: http://pitchfork.com/reviews/albums/16161-kinks-in-mono/

I guess these are taken from the mono remastering done for the double discs?

I have Picture Book too - I'm just a sucker for The Kinks, I guess.

yeah I had that phase where the Kinks were the only band I could listen to (just the 1966-1972 stuff though)

Yeah, I love them through Muswell Hillbillies. If that album ever gets a two-disc special edition (pairing it with a live show from the era would be great) I'll buy it on the day of release.

i think that was the point where the real Ray Davies was murdered and replaced with a Pod Person?

Pod person could still pull out some great tunes. Just not with the regularity of the preceding six years.

Hard to think of many songwriters with that level of consistency and sheer volume of work. He burned out (and based on some of those Muswell era interviews he burned out all the way to the core).

that picture book set cherrypicks some great stuff from the post-Muswell era, though.

totally! I'm happy I have it for that reason alone. Lots of hidden gems amidst the dross.

I have the "Come Dancing" set that's like the best of the post-"bad concept album" period but I've never heard any of those albums in full. I'm still surprised that the "old" Ray Davies never really came back. The stuff on VGPS never seemed that hard to write!

I have the "Come Dancing" set that's like the best of the post-"bad concept album" period

It doesn't cover that period at all!

it's 1977-1986. the 'bad concept album' period was 1972-1975 wasnt it?

'76?

I suspect that era's too painful for Ray to spend too much time on it

So...has anyone heard this mono box? I'm very tempted, even though I don't listen to those super early albums much...

I haven't heard the mono box, but Castle/Sanctuary reissued every album (and most of the bonus tracks) through Village Green... in mono back in the late 90s, and they sound excellent. I imagine this new set could sound slightly better, but I've got the old discs and if I want to hear mono Arthur... I'll just shell out for the deluxe edition. That box is expensive!

In related Kinks reissue news, I'm digging that Dave Hidden Treasures collection.

Which category do Misfits and Sleepwalker fall into? Both of those have some pretty good stuff on them.

I love Sleepwalker. "Full Moon" is up there with the best of the '66-'72 material.

I have some of the recent deluxe editions, and the mono versions sound a lot punchier than the stereo. Would definitely recommend. Except for Arthur, which sounds more suited to stereo, but the mono is still ok.

xp that's kind of more in the late 70's and beyond "trying hard for a hit single" period. now that I think of it I definitely have heard Sleepwalker and Low Budget, both of which I thought were quite good but nowhere near the classic stuff

Wish you woudn't mention those two in the same breath.

That mono box *is* expensive.

I was repping for that "Pye" box (see pic above) as being 'cheaper', but I then searched for it on ebay, and there ain't none. (not for less than £100 anyway)

It is on Amazon.co.uk for £33.

That's about what I paid on ebay, back..

the mono box is allegedly basically the same masters as the ones used on the double disc sets that came out over the past year or two, yes, with a few differences here and there mostly having to do with bonus tracks, from what I read. I guess if you like the mono versons of these albums it is worth buying, although, if you don't want all of these, you could just buy the double disc sets and get pretty much the same thing.

Any thoughts on the recent 5cd Pye-era Anthology?

it's good, though the packaging is a little bit less than deluxe. brief, not very interesting essay, some good memorabilia/press clippings.
music is totally wonderful, of course -- pretty well chosen. sounds about as good as I've ever heard it, remastering-wise.

Fucking hell, how prolific were this band from 1964-1971? The singles, album tracks and B-sides are one thing, but there must be a zillion outtakes from that period.