Thoroughly Kinky: A Kinks Podcast

This episode of Thoroughly Kinky covers the band's fifteenth studio album, Schoolboys in Disgrace, released on the 17th of November 1975 on RCA Records (and just six months after Soap Opera).

The album features school-themed songs and tracks the story of a scandal between a schoolboy (canonically the pubescent Mr Flash) and schoolgirl. Musically it recalls the doo wop and rock and roll sounds of the Davies' own school days. While the album failed to chart in the UK, it reached #45 on the US Billboard 200, marking a commercial turnaround in the States.

As usual, your hosts Adam (the scholar) and Liam (the pupil) go through the album track by track to see if this nostalgic schoolyard tale earns top marks or ends up in detention.

As the final album of The Kinks' RCA era, this episode also marks the finale of Season Two. We're going to take a break, but before long we'll be recording Season Three, diving headfirst into the Arista Records era!

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Episode twenty of Thoroughly Kinky covers the band's fourteenth studio album, the 1975 theatrical concept album Soap Opera. The project originally began as a televised musical theatre piece broadcast on Granada Television in 1974, before being adapted and expanded into a full-length record in May 1975. The plot follows an ordinary man named Norman who is possessed by a rock God named Starmaker. The lyrics explore themes of celebrity, domesticity, and the mundane nature of the daily routine.

While the record failed to chart in the UK, it reached a modest #51 on the US Billboard 200.

Watch the original Granada TV broadcast of Starmaker: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=A8laVs0aMWw

As usual, your hosts Adam (the megafan) and Liam (the newbie) go through the album track by track to decide whether Soap Opera has them bubbling with excitement, or is just old bathwater.

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Preservation Act 2, released on May 8, 1974, expanded Ray Davies' deeping Village Green lore with a double album that describes the political conflict between capitalist developer Mr. Flash and the authoritarian moral crusader Mr. Black. Self-produced at the band's Konk Studios, the production integrated a full brass section, theatrical voice actors, and female backing vocalists alongside traditional rock instrumentation.

Adam and Liam conclude the double album in this episode. What will their verdict be? A overpickled prune of an album, or well worth preserving?

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Preservation Act 2, released on May 8, 1974, expanded Ray Davies' deeping Village Green lore with a double album that describes the political conflict between capitalist developer Mr. Flash and the authoritarian moral crusader Mr. Black. Self-produced at the band's Konk Studios, the production integrated a full brass section, theatrical voice actors, and female backing vocalists alongside traditional rock instrumentation.

Adam and Liam are taking their time and looking only at disc one this ep. Tune in next week where we conclude the epic Preservation series with disc two.

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Preservation Act 1, released on November 16, 1973, marked Ray Davies' pivot into full theatrical storytelling, introducing characters like Mr. Flash and The Tramp alongside brass-heavy rock-opera arrangements. The ambitious concept struggled commercially: the album failed to chart in the UK, reached only No. 177 on the US Billboard 200, and all 3 singles also failed to chart.

Adam (the Kinks expert) and Liam (the Kinks novice) track the storyline song-by-song and ask: a conceptual masterpiece, or did the band lose the plot?

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Everybody's in Showbiz was a double album by the Kinks released on the 1st of September 1972. It was the Kink's first double album, and consisted of both studio tracks and live recordings from a performance at Carnegie Hall, New York. It was the second record on the RCA label and the eleventh Kinks album overall. There were two singles: Supersonic Rocket Ship and Celluloid Heroes. Whereas Supersonic Rocket Ship was a modest hit in the UK, Celluloid Heroes failed to chart.

Liam and Adam listen to the first disc of the double album (the second disc to be covered at a later date) and give their honest appraisal of the band's flamboyant new direction. Will it be five stars, or a non-star-ter?

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Muswell Hillbillies was the first Kinks record to be released on their new label, RCA, after parting with their original label, Pye Records. It was released on November 24, 1971, and introduced elements of country music to The Kinks' sound. The single "20th Century Man" was released in the US (not the UK) and reached number 106 on the charts. Although it was not commercially successful upon release, the album was critically well-received and has maintained a cult status within their discography. Adam (the Kinks expert) and Liam (the Kinks novice) go through the track listing and ask themselves: King of the Hill, or Over the Hill?

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In this final episode of Season One of Thoroughly Kinky, Liam (host) and Adam (guest) take a look at the Kinks' soundtrack album, Percy, and ask: is it a popcorn classic?

Percy (album) was released on the 26th of March 1971, following the film's release. The film's plot concerns Edwin Anthony (Hywell Bennett), a man who is the beneficiary of the world's first penis transplant.

The album was The Kinks' final release under the label Pye Records. Season Two of Thoroughly Kinky will follow their work under their next label, RCA records.

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In this episode, your hosts Adam (expert) and Liam (newbie) cover rare Kinks songs from 1969-70 which never appeared on any full album release. These tracks include the singles Plastic Man and Hold My Hand, the latter being Dave Davies' fourth solo single. We discuss the merits of the available Dave material from this period and why his planned solo LP failed to materialize. In addition, we look at other Kinks songs from this era and ask whether it matches the quality that made it onto the 1969-70 albums.

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The Kinks' concept album Lola Versus Powerman and the Moneygoround Part One was released on the 27th of November, 1970. The LP featured two hit singles: the titular track, Lola (a top 10 song in the UK and the US) and Apeman (which made it to No. 5 in the UK). The single Lola marked the start of the band's second wave of success in the USA, after having been banned from there for four years (1965-9). Your hosts Adam (Kinks expert) and Liam (Kinks beginner) go through each track of the album, and ask themselves how the songs complement the concept of the concept album.

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The Kinks' seventh studio album, Arthur, was released on the 10th of October, 1969. It was intended to be the soundtrack for a TV drama of the same name. The full title of the album is Arthur Or the Decline and Fall of the British Empire, which indicates the way that the series intended to catalogue British history in the story of its protagonist, Arthur Morgan, and his family. Due to budgetary issues, this series never made it past the script phase. The album features the singles Victoria, Drivin' and Shangri-La. The album and its singles failed to chart. Your hosts Adam (expert) and Liam (newbie) go through the album track by track, and ask themselves what the experience of watching Arthur might have been like.

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This episode revisits the year of 1968, covering the bonus tracks which were included on the 2018 "Super Deluxe" edition of The Kinks are the Village Green Preservation Society.

Some tracks were recorded by the Kinks in this year which never made it onto an LP release, including their classic single Days (which reached No. 12 in the UK chart in June) and Wonder Boy (which only reached No. 36, in April).

This collection of bonus tracks also includes rare recordings made by the Kinks for TV and film: namely Where Did My Spring Go, Til Death Us Do Part and When I Turn Off The Living Room Light.

Join your hosts Adam (the expert) and Liam (the neophyte) as they browse the bonus tracks on the VGPS Super Deluxe edition and decide whether they achieve the status of "lost classics".

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Episode nine of Thoroughly Kinky covers the band's 1968 magnum opus, The Kinks are the Village Green Preservation Society. The album was released on the 22nd of November 1968 and it was their sixth studio album. The LP includes such popular songs as Do You Remember Walter, Picture Book and Animal Farm. No single was released from this album with the exceptions of Starstruck in Europe and the title track in the US The album received a lukewarm reception in 1968 but has since grown to become a standard choice for "favourite Kinks album" among fans. As usual, your hosts Adam (the megafan) and Liam (the newbie) go through the album track by track. Does it live up to its reputation?

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This episode runs through the classic Kinks A-sides and B-sides of the years 1966 and 1967. These appeared as singles only and never found a home on any contemporary LP, but were collected on the 1998 CD releases of Face to Face and Something Else.

Among this pile of tracks are the masterpieces I'm Not Like Everybody Else, Dead End Street and Autumn Almanac. Join Adam (the Kinks guru) and Liam (the Kinks shishya) as they go through the bonus tracks and give their unvarnished opinions.

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Something Else was the Kinks' fifth studio album, released by Pye Records on the 15th September 1967. It marked a move towards baroque pop and music hall that would become their beloved late-sixties sound. Much of this was influenced by the addition of Nicky Hopkins to the studio band.

Something Else was released on the back of Waterloo Sunset and Death of a Clown, which were successful single releases. The album sold poorly, however, and the band suffered from interpersonal conflict.

Adam (the expert) and Liam (the rookie) go through it track by track and offer their honest opinions. Along the way they talk about the Davies' childhood, Dave Davies' daughter Tracy, Ray Davies' 1966 mental breakdown and more.

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Face to Face was the Kinks' fourth studio album, released by Pye Records on the 28th October 1966. It features the UK number one hit Sunny Afternoon, and its release marks the start of a fruitful collaboration with "session man", Nicky Hopkins. It is Adam's favourite album ever, but Liam has never heard it before. Listen to them as they go through it track by track.

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The Kink Kontroversy was the Kinks' third studio album, released on the 26th November 1965. That's just two months after their '65 EP, Kwyet Kinks, which was the subject of episode four. It features the UK top-ten hit Till the End of the Day, which was paired with Where Have All the Good Times Gone on the B-side. The latter was made famous by David Bowie on his 1973 album Pinups.

The Kink Kontroversy is regarded as a transitional album in the band's discography. In this episode, Adam (the expert) and Liam (the newbie) go through it track by track and ask themselves: was this the start of the golden age of the Kinks? After that, they cover the bonus tracks which were bundled with the 1998 CD re-release of the LP, including their UK top-five hit, Dedicated Follower of Fashion.

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Kwyet Kinks was the group's second EP, originally released on the 17th of September 1965 - their second major release of 1965 - six months after their '65 LP, Kinda Kinks, which was covered in the episode three.

Adam (the expert) and Liam (the newbie) start off by covering the bonus tracks on the CD rerelease of Kinda Kinks. These tracks comprise of a string of lesser-known singles that followed in the wake of their number one hit, Tired of Waiting for You. In the second half they look at four-track EP, Kwyet Kinks, which features a quieter, folksier sound, and their satirical classic, A Well Respected Man.

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Kinda Kinks was the group's second LP, originally released on the 5th of March 1965. It featured their number one hit, Tired of Waiting for You and contains a number of soul-tinged songs. Adam (the expert) and Liam (the newbie) go through each track of the album and ask themselves whether it represents an improvement over their first LP, Kinks (1964).

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Kinksize Session was the Kinks' first EP and was released on the 27th of November 1964. That's just two months after their debut LP, Kinks (which we covered last week). In this episode, Adam (the expert) and Liam (the newbie) go through the bonus tracks of the 1998 release of Kinks and follow it up with a track-by-track discussion of the Kinksize Session EP. Is it a miniature classic? Listen and find out.

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