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Product Description
Product Description
Utwory: 1. Victoria 2. Yes Sir, No Sir 3. Some Mother's Son 4. Drivin' 5. Brainwashed 6. Australia 7. Shangri La 8. Mr. Churchill Says 9. She's Bought A Hat Like Princess Marina 10. Y Young And Innocent Days 11. Nothing To Say 12. Arthur 13. Plastic Man (Mono) (Bonus Track) 14. King Kong (Mono) (Bonus Track) 15. Drivin' (Mono) (Bonus Track) 16. Mindless Child Of Motherhood (Mono & Stereo) (Bonus Track) 17. This Man He Weeps Tonight (Mono & Stereo) (Bonus Track) 18. Plastic Man (Stereo) (Bonus Track) 19. Mindless Child Of Motherhood (Stereo) (Bonus Track) 20. This Man He Weeps Tonight (Stereo) (Bonus Track) 21. She's Bought A Hat Like Princess Marina (Mono) (Bonus Track) 22. Mr. Shoemakers Daughter (Unreleased) (Bonus Track)
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews
23 of 23 people found the following review helpful
By AGC2070
Format:Audio CD
In a quiet period for Kinks' singles compared to 64-67, this album is something of a surprise. The Kinks compound their concept album 'The Kinks are the Village Green Preservation Society' with this summary of what it means to be English.
The album has a distinctive sound with drums to the fore and most songs comprise of several distinct parts with shifting rhythms. For example, there's 'Australia' which begins up-tempo and part tongue-in-cheek and ends as a slower paced jam with superb guitar soloing and a full brass section, with the final burst of wobble board seeming to indicate the completion of this journey.
Then there's 'She's bought a hat like Princess Marina'. This one begins slow and shifts gear twice, ending as a fast paced skit that sounds like Chas and Dave doing skiffle.
Behind all the fun though, this album makes some serious points, from the anti-war sentiment of 'Some Mother's Son' to 'Brainwashed', which is as true today of the British public as it was in the 60s - people may have a little more money these days but the same disatisfaction still festers. All in all, this album blows apart the ethos of materialism and leaves us with an old man assessing the worth of his life, via the happy youthful exuberance of 'Driving' to the melacholic 'Young and Innocent Days'.
The final song is 'Arthur', where the band repeatedly concludes "Arthur, we love you, and want to help you, somebody loves you, don't you know it". All in all, 'life is what it is and there's nothing we can do to change it'.
This is a truly great album for Kinks fans wanting to look a bit deeper and I would imagine that the glut of bonus tracks adds little to this already perfect symphony.
The album has a distinctive sound with drums to the fore and most songs comprise of several distinct parts with shifting rhythms. For example, there's 'Australia' which begins up-tempo and part tongue-in-cheek and ends as a slower paced jam with superb guitar soloing and a full brass section, with the final burst of wobble board seeming to indicate the completion of this journey.
Then there's 'She's bought a hat like Princess Marina'. This one begins slow and shifts gear twice, ending as a fast paced skit that sounds like Chas and Dave doing skiffle.
Behind all the fun though, this album makes some serious points, from the anti-war sentiment of 'Some Mother's Son' to 'Brainwashed', which is as true today of the British public as it was in the 60s - people may have a little more money these days but the same disatisfaction still festers. All in all, this album blows apart the ethos of materialism and leaves us with an old man assessing the worth of his life, via the happy youthful exuberance of 'Driving' to the melacholic 'Young and Innocent Days'.
The final song is 'Arthur', where the band repeatedly concludes "Arthur, we love you, and want to help you, somebody loves you, don't you know it". All in all, 'life is what it is and there's nothing we can do to change it'.
This is a truly great album for Kinks fans wanting to look a bit deeper and I would imagine that the glut of bonus tracks adds little to this already perfect symphony.
12 of 12 people found the following review helpful
By Jervis
VINE™ VOICE
Format:Audio CD
'Arthur' was originally conceived as a musical television drama, but when the drama never materialised, Ray Davies went ahead and released the music in the form of a concept album. The basic story relates to Ray's brother-in-law Arthur who emigrated to Australia some years previously.
Generally, the music here has a much more 'modern' feel than previous Kinks albums, mainly due to its very rich production and the typical Kinks sound augumented by horns. In many ways 'Arthur' is much more suited to the ideals normally associated with concept albums than 'The Village Green Preservation Society' because it does seem to be much grander in scope.
The songs are generally strong despite the fact that 'Victoria', 'Shangrila' and 'Australia' tend to stand head and shoulders above the rest. Many of the other songs such as 'Yes Sir, No Sir','Some Mothers Son' and 'Mr Churchill Says' relate lyrically to the war years.
There are aspects to 'Arthur' which shows the Kinks moving forward from their previous work. There seems much more sophistication in terms of musicianship, production and general song structure (particuarly in the way a number of the songs have different sections) yet there are times when the sheer scope of the album makes some of the songs sound a little forced as though Ray was thinking of the overall concept well above the merits of the individual songs. This certainly doesn't make 'Arthur' a bad album and it's certainly not overblown anywhere near the degree of The Who's contemporary concept album 'Tommy', yet it doesn't sit quite as comfortably as 'The Village Green Preservation Society'.
There are a number of extras to 'Arthur' (including 'Plastic Man') which are quite pleasant without really being essential.
Overall, 'Arthur' is still one of the Kinks best, however.
Generally, the music here has a much more 'modern' feel than previous Kinks albums, mainly due to its very rich production and the typical Kinks sound augumented by horns. In many ways 'Arthur' is much more suited to the ideals normally associated with concept albums than 'The Village Green Preservation Society' because it does seem to be much grander in scope.
The songs are generally strong despite the fact that 'Victoria', 'Shangrila' and 'Australia' tend to stand head and shoulders above the rest. Many of the other songs such as 'Yes Sir, No Sir','Some Mothers Son' and 'Mr Churchill Says' relate lyrically to the war years.
There are aspects to 'Arthur' which shows the Kinks moving forward from their previous work. There seems much more sophistication in terms of musicianship, production and general song structure (particuarly in the way a number of the songs have different sections) yet there are times when the sheer scope of the album makes some of the songs sound a little forced as though Ray was thinking of the overall concept well above the merits of the individual songs. This certainly doesn't make 'Arthur' a bad album and it's certainly not overblown anywhere near the degree of The Who's contemporary concept album 'Tommy', yet it doesn't sit quite as comfortably as 'The Village Green Preservation Society'.
There are a number of extras to 'Arthur' (including 'Plastic Man') which are quite pleasant without really being essential.
Overall, 'Arthur' is still one of the Kinks best, however.
18 of 19 people found the following review helpful
Format:Audio CD
Ray and Dave Davies and band put together this catchy bunch of tunes for a late 60's BBC TV special on the state of Old Blighty. Though the show was never aired, BBC's loss was our gain. As either a 'concept' or just plain rock album, 'Arthur Or The Decline and Fall of The British Empire' is not as innovative and varied as 'Something Else' or 'Face to Face', or that 'other one', but it's still darn good and would still make a great soundtrack now, if anyone at the Beeb wants to try their hand at some creative programming. It flows better I think, since it uses or re-cycles song forms and rock guitar licks more intentionally. The best songs are classic Kinks- 'Arthur', 'Shangri-La' and 'Victoria' ( later brilliantly updated by the Fall) and the lesser ones are a lot of fun to listen to in their all their sunset melancholy. I have the previous Castle re-issue with pretty much the same bonus cuts and would trust that the Sanctuary edition matches or excels that one in re-mastered sound.
17 of 18 people found the following review helpful
Format:Audio CD
Like many fans of this great British band, I've watched the release of 6 Kinks 'Deluxe Editions' since the beginning of 2011 with a certain amount of scepticism. Haven't these albums been done to death already and isn't this just more monetary milking of it? But then several of our customers began to rave about the great new remastered sound on these doubles - so I took the plunge on "Face To Face" (see review), "Something Else" (see review) and "Arthur..." - and they were right. They're better than previous 2004 single issues - and how. But along with the gains (there's 5 'previously unreleased' tracks), there are some minor omissions too...
Here are the details first - "Arthur Or The Decline And Fall Of The British Empire DELUXE EDITION" was released 20 June 2011 in the UK on Universal/Sanctuary 273 227-4 and breaks down as follows:
Disc 1 (78:24 minutes):
Tracks 1 to 12 are the MONO version of the LP "Arthur Or The Decline And Fall Of The British Empire" released 10 October 1969 in the UK on Pye Records NPL 18317 (no Mono version was released in the USA - only Stereo - see Disc 2)
Track 13 is "Plastic Man" - the non-album Mono A-side of a UK 7" single released 29 March 1969 on Pye Records 7N.17724 ("King Kong" from "Village Green..." is its B-side)
Track 14 is "This Man He Weeps Tonight" - the Mono non-album B-side of a UK 7" single released 12 September 1969 on Pye Records 7N.17812 (the mono A-side is "Shangri La" from the album)
Track 15 is "Mindless Child Of Motherhood" - the Mono non-album B-side of a UK 7" single released 20 June 1969 on Pye Records 7N.17776.... Read more ›
Here are the details first - "Arthur Or The Decline And Fall Of The British Empire DELUXE EDITION" was released 20 June 2011 in the UK on Universal/Sanctuary 273 227-4 and breaks down as follows:
Disc 1 (78:24 minutes):
Tracks 1 to 12 are the MONO version of the LP "Arthur Or The Decline And Fall Of The British Empire" released 10 October 1969 in the UK on Pye Records NPL 18317 (no Mono version was released in the USA - only Stereo - see Disc 2)
Track 13 is "Plastic Man" - the non-album Mono A-side of a UK 7" single released 29 March 1969 on Pye Records 7N.17724 ("King Kong" from "Village Green..." is its B-side)
Track 14 is "This Man He Weeps Tonight" - the Mono non-album B-side of a UK 7" single released 12 September 1969 on Pye Records 7N.17812 (the mono A-side is "Shangri La" from the album)
Track 15 is "Mindless Child Of Motherhood" - the Mono non-album B-side of a UK 7" single released 20 June 1969 on Pye Records 7N.17776.... Read more ›
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Most Recent Customer Reviews
5.0 out of 5 stars
The best sound in remastered cd
These individual deluxe The Kinks cd collections are far better then on any prior issue including "Picture Book" box set.
Published 4 months ago by Richard R. DiPuma
5.0 out of 5 stars
One of the Greatest or Greatest Rock Album
Kinks music is many things. THey are provincial but taken on the world and great nations. But this is a lesson in rock. Read more
Published 9 months ago by Allen Rosenberg
4.0 out of 5 stars
Arthur, the great lost treasure
Arthur, is the 1969 great album by the Kinks. They made the album to complement a TV programme that never happened, and as with so many Kinks projects, it was incomplete. Read more
Published 21 months ago by Mr Bernard Kennedy
4.0 out of 5 stars
Great album, great edition of classic album except for flaw on one...
The Kinks didn't get much respect for a long period of time. In the U.K. they were always seen as being in the shadow of most of their contemporaries but history does a nice job of... Read more
Published 22 months ago by Wayne Klein
2.0 out of 5 stars
bad disc?
Has anyone else had a problem with a skip on disc 2 track 2?
I returned on copy and then had the exact same thing on the replacement copy.
I returned on copy and then had the exact same thing on the replacement copy.
Published 22 months ago by Takicat
5.0 out of 5 stars
Arthur Revisited
As other reviews have suggested, the improvements to 'Arthur' are somewhat less startling than those for 'Face to Face' or 'Something Else'. Read more
Published 23 months ago by Mr. J. A. Smith
4.0 out of 5 stars
Fantastic music - but I'm being milked here.
I suppose I should be happy to shell out again (vinyl first time, CD reissue with bonus tracks a dozen years ago) but I do feel a bit, well, a bit milked. Read more
Published 24 months ago by OldGit
3.0 out of 5 stars
What's next ? the super deluxe edition ?
Like the other reviewer said : there's one "b" side missing ; but don't worry .... In a year or two, there almost certainly will be yet another reissue, this time maybe the "super... Read more
Published 24 months ago by Le Roge
5.0 out of 5 stars
Missing B side
Great release but where's the Dave Davies B side "There's No Life Without Love"? Also, what idiot thought it would be a good idea to put a totally unecessary, sticky wraparound... Read more
Published 24 months ago by P. Davies
5.0 out of 5 stars
Not just a singles band
By the late sixties albums had overtaken singles as THE format. The big groups of the day; the Beatles, the Who, the Rolling Stones, had all helped initiate (or at least graduated... Read more
Published on 24 Mar 2011 by Jay
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