 The Kinks A peculiar album by anyone's standards, Muswell Hillbillies is the type of record I'd like to enjoy much more than I do, but I settle into a "medium enjoyment" mode with each listen. It may well be the sort of record that would become an all-time favorite after a hundred listens … check back with me in a few years. Released in 1971, following the huge success of "Lola," Muswell seems intentionally designed to kill any potential momentum the Kinks had gained from that success. For one thing, unlike the huge rock theatrics of "Lola," this album sounds like it was recorded in a cramped public restroom with musical direction provided by the Bonzo Dog Band. That's not a bad thing, mind you. It comes off as a very British take on The Band. The songs comprise a pastiche of Kinks leader Ray Davies' memories of urban renewal in postwar England and its various depressing manifestations. Davies presents a variety of characters in various states of emotional crisis: the technophobic narrator of "20th Century Man," the anorexic of "Skin and Bone," the title character suffering the "Acute Schizophrenia Paranoia Blues," the depressed drop-out of "Complicated Life," the alcoholic of "Alcohol" … quite a lively bunch. Davies's much-discussed narrative gift is in full effect throughout the album, and his melodic gift is present, though buried within a whole lot of that acoustic Brit country-rock that Rod Stewart and the Rolling Stones were so infatuated with in the early 70s. There isn't a single to be found on the album, although I think "20th Century Man" became a concert staple for the group in a much more arena-rockin' type of version. It's not an immediately accessible album like a lot of the Kinks other material is (though don't ask me to get into those weird mid-70s albums. What? They're newly remastered with bonus tracks and restored packaging? Sign me up!!!!), but definitely rewards those that stick with it. My main problem with the album is probably my own capacity for enjoying music that blurs the line between American country or blues and British rock, which tends to be limited to one song on a mix tape. But there are plenty of fun moments here and the album is paced very well so I don't get too bored. The songs are humorous in a very dark way, yet also have a lot of sincerity – it's not a Coen Brothers production, in other words. Some of it foreshadows Nebraska-era Bruce Springsteen ("Holloway Jail," "Oklahoma U.S.A." – a better title, now that I think of it, than "Born in the U.S.A."), and the working-class themes that run through the whole album are very much the same thing Springsteen would be doing years later … though rarely with this kind of subtlety. The latter song is a very pretty piano ballad, quite a far cry from something like the rollicking "Have a Cuppa Tea" or the morbidly humorous "Skin & Bone." I respect the Kinks for being able to walk the line between humor and charm ("Come Dancing" is probably the perfect example of what I mean by that), without becoming either tasteless or cloying (on either extreme of humor or charm). The album demands consideration as an Album, not presenting any clear stand-outs, and some of the tracks would seem tiny and insubstantial outside the context of the album. As an Album it's a fine achievement, but it does feel like a sidetrack for the band. I'm certainly not arguing that they should have continued along with the testosterone-fueled rock posturing of their 60s hits and "Lola" – in fact, maybe this album was in fact the sidetrack they should have pursued further. Maybe the later stuff got too glib and lost that elusive balance between charm and cynical humor. I don't know, I haven't heard enough to say one way or another. Muswell Hillbillies captures the Kinks at an odd crossroads, and is enjoyable on many levels. As to its relevance to anything nowadays, it's tough to say. I'm sure there are plenty of musicians who revere the album, but it doesn't seem like the sort of thing that will ever inspire anything fresh, only imitation. Which, of course, is to the album's credit. It's decidedly original, even though it doesn't pull together as well as it might have. I'd score four under "great" ("Skin & Bone," "Have a Cuppa Tea," "Oklahoma, USA," "Complicated Life"), three under "almost great" ("Here Come the People in Grey," "20th Century Blues," "Alcohol") and five under "eh" (the rest). The CD reissue adds two bonus tracks ("Mountain Woman" and "Kentucky Moon"), which don't change my opinion of the album but are fine additions to the program. The Velvel reissue series of the Kinks' 70s albums has been impeccable in terms of presentation and execution. I suppose it will be another few years before I'd be able to really get into the Kinks, as I'm stuck on early-80s hip-hop and late-90s Top 40 right now. I'd take this any day over Every Picture Tells a Story, but I'd still rather "Jam On It" if given the choice.
Review by Art Flakey |