If you look at a discography of The Kinks, you will see that they have released a number of live recordings down the years. The first was ‘Live At Kelvin Hall’ in 1967 and the next being ‘One For The Road’ in 1980. However, there was another, released in-between these but it was included with the 1972 studio album ‘Everybody’s In Show-Biz – Everybody’s A Star’. This live album was not advertised as such. On the back cover, the tracks are listed as just being on sides 3 & 4 of the double album. All very confusing. However, what if these live tracks were not included on the ‘Everybody’s In Show-Biz’ but were released as their own album.
On the 2nd and 3rd of March, 1972, The Kinks played two shows at Carnegie Hall in New York. The band were augmented by The Mike Cotton Sound whose horns had first been heard on the 1971 Kinks album, ‘Mussel Hillbillies’. All of the songs on the original incarnation from ‘Everybody’s In Show-Biz’ were taken from the 3rd March, but when this album was given the deluxe treatment in 2016, songs from the 2nd March were also made available. What was most surprising was how few of the songs were same. The Kinks were known at the time for their unpredictability during their concert but it seems that they could pull out deep cuts from their earlier days. ‘You’re Looking Fine’ being the best example, as it was an album track dating back to 1966 and taken from the ‘Face To Face’ album.
With these additional recordings, it was almost possible to create a double live album. I say almost because without using the more than one version of a song, side 4 would be a little short. Luckily, the deluxe version of ‘Everybody’s In Show-Biz’ included the song ‘History’, a studio outtake which had remained unreleased until 2016. Putting a studio track onto a live album was not unheard of, even in the early 1970s. For example, ‘Live Cream’ by Cream included the song ‘Lady Mama’ which was a totally studio recording. Putting the song ‘History’ at the end of side 4 does mean that sides now match up roughly to each other.
Double live albums became popular in the 1970s, be it as a way of showcasing the band in a concert setting. However, most were released as a contractual obligation (especially if the band had spilt up and there wasn’t a possibility of any new studios recordings), during a period of writer’s block or as a stop gap between releases. It is for this last reason that I think this album could have come out. The Kinks, and in that regard, I mean main songwriter Ray Davies was a busy boy in the 1970’s. They release eleven studio albums during this period as well as being a major concert drawn, especially in America. However, 1976 is the odd year out as this was the only one where the band did not release a new studio album. This would be the year I would have putout this live double album out.
The first LP in this double album follows the original release from 1972, except that I have taken ‘Lola’ off and placed it on side 4 to end the concert performances. Doing this means that sides 1 & 2 match up a lot more closely in terms of playing time on each side and ‘Lola’ sounds as though it should be at the end of the album. It is also an edit so we do not get the full song. The unedited version of this song was not even on the deluxe version from 2016. One thing I would change if I had been in charge of producing this album was to make a mix that made it sound more like a live experience than what we got. There are some abrupt edits between songs and it really sounds a bit shoddy. I’ve heard live bootlegs with more care and attention put into them. I would also have liked to see what other songs were recorded on these nights so I could have taken out ‘Banana Boat Song’ and ‘Baby Face’. They sound a bit out of place to my ears, and they are not complete performances. It was like Ray Davies decided to have a quick sing song of an old tune to fill out the time. Interesting to see what was going through his head at the time, but not essential.
Side 1
- Top Of The Pops
- Brainwashed
- Mr. Wonderful
- Acute Schizophrenia Paranoia Blues
- Holiday
Side 2
- Muswell Hillbilly
- Alcohol
- Banana Boat Song
- Skin & Bone
- Baby Face
Side 3
- ’Til The End Of The Day
- You’re Looking `fine
- Get Back In Line
- Have A Cuppa tea
- Sunny Afternoon
Side 4
- Complicated Life
- Long Tall Shorty
- She’s Bought A Hat Like Princess Marina
- Lola
- History (Studio Outtake)
The cover is one of those rare occasions where I have created the back of the sleeve as well as the front. That is because the picture has pretty much the who band and the Mike Cotton Sound in view (apart from keyboard player John Gosling). As this is a double LP and would have had a gatefold sleeve (this was the 70s you know), having the whole image was the right thing to do.
