Give the People What They Want

Don’t you wish we had a rock composer who had the band-led empathy, first rate excellence, full fledge zeitgeist, charismatic style, wit, melodic virtuosity and flawless talent that Ray Davies had? Well the answer may lie within the timeless merit and sheer excellence of this high pitched classic from 1981, even decades after it’s release, the question becomes an even brighter direct response some- where well in the future to how great The Kinks were and how Ray’s songwriting talent still maintains it’s lyrical influence. Fresh off the multidimensional success of their world tour that was also well-captured on the live album One More From The Road—Live a year earlier, Give The People What They Want presents us a high voltage rock and roll fever pitch which demonstrates how far the band have come and how much progressed they have made as the album harkens back to the band’s wild beginnings that took root in the mid-1960’s for which the back to basics success made this one a bonafide hit. Officially aimed to be a statement on the media, the track set begin with an artistic band on the open track Around The Dial as it concludes with a series of rock-steady energetic power rock com- positions, like the exhilarating title track, Killer’s Eyes, Predictable (described as a monotony of the average person’s life played with a self-fulfilling background), the opulent Destroyer and the ‘cheer-up’ Top Ten classic Better Things. With a special guest appearance by Chrissie Hynde (of The Pretenders fame) on three tracks, what also gave Give The People What They Want it’s high-rocking focal point is how The Kinks fire up the boisterous solos as Mick Avory delivered yet another set of thundering drum solos to utmost effect while Dave Davies’ guitar brims with dynamic excellence, which gave this supercharged hit the intelligent interplay and slam bang soaring rapport that it definitely deserves.

Originally released in August of 1981, "Give The People What They Want" is simply a solid Kinks album, with all of the songs written and produced by the at-the-time trusty Ray Davies.A bunch of these songs really rock out. "Around The Dial" is a great, catchy tribute to a DJ that seems to no longer be on the air. The highly sarcastic title track, with lyrics about how people crave witnessing sex and violence, starts off with power chords and rapid-fire drumming that really get the blood flowing, and the chorus riff is simply infectious. "Destroyer", left over from the "Low Budget" era, deliberately reuses the "All Day And All Of The Night" riff as the basis for a really fun, amusingly paranoid rocker, and it's got great punchy choruses. The stampeding "Back To Front" is another ultra-exciting blast, with amusing lyrics and great riffs--Dave Davies really shines on this one.The rocked-up pop-rocker "Add It Up" is catchy too, if a bit rote--it's another one of those Ray songs about how people become blindsided by wealth. The ballad-rocker "A Little Bit Of Abuse" is also strong--its lyrics, about staying with a boyfriend despite his physically abusive behavior, are really on the money and peppered with some dark humor.Of the more ballad-ish tracks, the best is the gentle "Art Lover", a touching song about a man who yearns for the daughter he is unable to see. The weakest is "Better Things" which is yet another in a string of optimistic album-closers--the song is just too slight and sloppily performed to make much of an impact. But the rest of the tracks are all quite strong--there's the moody "Killer's Eyes"; the pensive 'power ballad' "Yo-Yo"; and the musically upbeat, yet lyrically dour "Predictable" which is one of Ray's trademark examinations of a man stuck in a dreadful day-to-day rut.So, overall, this is a high quality Kinks record--if you're a fan of the band, I can't see not liking it unless you have a problem with the hard rocking side of the band.

I really like this era of the Kinks though it may not be as critically regarded as their '66-'71 period. Each record from `Sleepwalker' through `Word of Mouth' has much to recommend and is consistently entertaining. Case in point is 1981's `Give the People What They Want' which as some cynical reviewers have said may directly pander to discriminating American tastes but since I'm an American I think it's great. "Around the Dial" may be the most overlooked song in the entire Ray Davies canon. This LP also came out when I was just entering adolescence and I distinctly remember "Around the Dial" on the radio, so it will always be special to me. "Destroyer" and "Better Things" are the two hit singles and both songs represent a sort of nostalgic view of past Kinks' triumphs with the former being more obvious as it rips the riff from "All Day and All of the Night" while the latter brings back memories of such Davies masterpieces as "Waterloo Sunset" in its gentle reminiscence. The Kinks were riding a popularity high that they had never enjoyed before or since in the late seventies early eighties, especially as an arena concert draw in the States. Much like its predecessor `Low Budget', `GTPWTW' is a very hard rocking affair with production values to match. "Art Lover" may be about pedophilia but the narrator goes to great lengths to tell his audience that he isn't perverted and "Killer's Eyes" humanizes a psychopath; both examples of Ray Davies still not afraid of taking on controversial subjects to create memorable music. `Give the People' is pretty much an enjoyable listen from start to finish or in other words - from `back to front'. Certainly not `predictable' either...

It's worth pointing out that this record is pressed on "Translucent Clear Vinyl". I don't think Friday Music, who tend to produce good quality coloured vinyl LPs, have ever pressed this on Black Vinyl. At one time coloured vinyl was considered sonically inferior to Black Vinyl when you played the discs, but I don't think that applies so much now. As with all Friday Music LPs this also has a Gatefold Sleeve. The price of these imports here is quite high, but if you buy straight from Friday Music their postal costs to the UK are very steep, plus you may also be clobbered by the UK customs. So bearing that in mind, the price here is not too excessive!

Love The Kinks but the album is mediocre. Don't get me wrong, there are a few great tracks, the title track, predictable, destroyer and my personal favorite, better things. But the rest of the album feels like they ran out of steam writing new songs so they went through a folder of rejected songs that never made it onto previous albums and stuck a few on this to pad it it out. I have been a fan for as long as I can remember, this is not their best work but it's by no means their worst. However I am just one voice with a personal opinion, you may feel different.

Good album From The Kinksdon't miss the last song in the albums, they are the best"Art Lover" 3:22"A Little Bit of Abuse" 3:45"Better Things"

Great album

Love the kinks and this is why