So why is The Kinks’ BBC Sessions: 1964-1977 on this best 1,000 albums ever thing?
There’s a really fun effect that happens to me when I throw this expansive collection of Kinks live recordings for the BBC over a decade-plus time period.
The BBC announcers that you hear at the beginning of some of the tracks are certainly part of the kick. And whether it’s relative deep cuts or The Kinks’ biggest hits, such as “All Day and All of the Night,” it’s a blast to hear these versions, that all feel lived in and fantastic.
“Till the End of the Day,” live at The Playhouse Theatre from 1965, sounds jubilant and smashing and alive and wonderful.
Then there’s the absolute gorgeousness of “The Village Green Preservation Society, also from The Playhouse Theatre in 1968.
And I’m pretty sure I could listen to this version of “Days,” live at Piccadilly Studios from 1968… like all day. Seriously.
It took me a little time to get around to the material on the second half of this 35 song set, but there’s a ton to deeply enjoy. I’m most drawn to The Kinks’ ‘60s material so I’ll go with the really fun version of, “Did You See His Name,” live at Pye Studios from 1968.
Pop culture stuff that has something to do with The Kinks’ BBC Sessions: 1964-1977
Something that I haven’t written a lot about (at least I think so? I’ve written a lot about a lot of stuff already all told, now that I’m 610+ full blown articles into this best 1,000 albums ever project/thing!) is my time living in England post-college in the late ‘90s.
I had a job that was eerily similar to the main characters of The IT Crowd, and lived with my college pals Adam and Nirav in the town of Rochester, noted for being halfway between London and Cantebury in Kent. The town also had like a 1,000 year old castle.
My pop culture intake at the time involved binge watching the BBC soap opera, EastEnders, and as many British sitcoms of the era (Keeping Up Appearances, for example) that I could get my eyes in front of. This was pre-Internet, so in addition to my small collection of CDs and cassettes that I had with me abroad, BBC radio was also much relied upon.
I recall enjoying Chris Evans (not the Captain America actor, the BBC radio host) during my morning commute*, and in the evenings I discovered the legendary John Peel, who hosted a show in which he would interview bands and then have them play live in studio. I particularly recall a great set from Elastica.
* I didn’t have a car (and lords knows I would have issues driving on the “wrong side” of the road anyway), so I had to take not one but TWO busses back and forth to work in nearby Gillingham daily. In between the two rides, the bus stop was located in an underground passageway of a suburban mall, where a wind tunnel effect was in… full E-F-F-E-C-T, as Rage Against the Machine might say. During the British winter, this was… let’s call it not fun.
Some stats & info about The Kinks – BBC Sessions: 1964-1977
- What kind of musical stylings does this album represent? Rock Music, British Bands, British Invasion, Garage Rock
- Rolling Stone’s greatest 500 albums ranking – not ranked!
- All Music’s rating – 4 out of 5 stars
- When was BBC Sessions: 1964-1977 released? 2001
- My ranking, the one you’re reading right now – #388 out of 1,000
The Kinks’ BBC Sessions: 1964-1977 on Spotify
A lyrical snippet from The Kinks’ BBC Sessions: 1964-1977 that’s evocative of the album in some way, maybe
Feel good from morning till the end of the day.
What does the “best 1,000 albums ever” mean and why are you doing this?
Yeah, I know it’s audacious, a little crazy (okay, maybe a lot cray cray), bordering on criminal nerdery.
But here’s what it’s NOT: a definitive list of the Greatest Albums of All-Time. This is 100% my own personal super biased, incredibly subjective review of what my top 1,000 albums are, ranked in painstaking order over the course of doing research for nearly a year, Rob from High Fidelity style. Find out more about why I embarked on a best 1,000 albums ever project.