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Along with the Who, the Animals and, of
course, the Beatles, the Kinks were a cornerstone of the original
British Invasion of rock and roll. Led by brothers Ray and Dave
Davies, and a raucous, nasty guitar tone as epitomized by the
song "You Really Got Me," the Kinks never quite hit
as big in the United States as in Europe. Unlike the other bands
mentioned above, they have remained (more or less) intact throughout
the past thirty years, and Dave Davies has released a sizable
solo catalog over the years. The two sides of Dave's musical
output come together in "Unfinished Business," a 2-disc
set featuring the best of the Kinks on one CD, and a second disc
showcasing the best moments of his own solo career.
Dave's always been the “other”
brother, secondary to band leader and older sibling, Ray. While
the Kink Kronikles show off their combined talents, the Dave
Davies Kronikles shows what younger brother contributed to the
band. As lead guitarist for the Kinks, Dave was responsible for
such legendary riffs as those found in "All Day and All
of the Night" and "You Really Got Me," which was
later covered by Van Halen (among other acts). As the liner notes
tell it, the distortion was achieved by slicing open a cheap
amp with a razor blade. Although he got a
huge electric shock for his troubles, the experiment has led
to a 35 years (and counting!) career.
Aside from those really huge hits, the
Kink Kronikles also contains such gems as “Long, Tall Shorty”
and the more recent “Perfect Strangers.” As Dave seems
to have ordered the songs chronologically, the listener can hear
the progression in the Kinks’ sound through their career.
The biggest highlights of the first disc come in the form of
three unreleased demos, including the album opener, “I Believed
You,” from the band’s pre-Kinks era, when they were
known as the Ravens. As an unpolished demo, the sound suffers
from (unplanned) distortions, but those defects can’t hide
the energy present in the band.
Unfortunately, Dave’s solo material
doesn’t quite live up to his work with the Kinks. It’s
not bad, but there’s a certain flair that is missing. Half
of the second disc’s tracks are taken from Dave’s three
solo albums, all released in the early 80s. His spiritual/mystical
tendencies are on display in “Eastern Eyes,” the best
of the previously released tracks.
Five of the remaining tracks are new, the
best of these being the acoustically presented “Death Of
A Clown.” The set ends on a high note with a trio of live
performances, showing that correctly presented, Dave Davies’
solo material can reach some pretty decent heights. |
