Preservation: Act 1 [HYBRID SACD]

The Kinks

Product Details

• Audio CD (September 21, 2004)
• Original Release Date: 1973
• Number of Discs: 1
• Format: Hybrid SACD
• Label: Velvel Records
• ASIN: B0002PUH9C
• In-Print Editions: Audio CD  |  Vinyl
• Average Customer Review: 4.1 out of 5 stars See all reviews (18 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #60,287 in Music (See Bestsellers in Music)

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com
The late '60s through the mid '70s represented the era of plot rock. From the Who's Tommy onward, plot-driven and suite-length character meditations were everywhere. The Kinks' approach to the rock musical was more conceptually measured than was the norm. The plot and drama behind Preservation, Act 1 and Act 2 are far more subtle investigations of class, culture, and commerce--even if they're couched in characters like rocker Johnny Thunder. The tussle of the Preservation drama is common enough--a citizenry pursuing goals in an increasingly competitive, even ruthless manner, while on the periphery is Mr. Black, who'll save the day and restore balance, and his antagonist, Flash, who seeks to pilfer the Village Green. Both emblematic of community and a direct link to the band's 1969 Village Green Preservation Society, the drama and characters make it far better to tune in for an entire CD rather than for just one song. But "Sweet Lady Genevieve" is a gentle, lovely tune, and so many other selections are, even for passive Kinks fans, important pieces. --Andrew Bartlett

Product Description
Limited Edition Japanese pressing of this album comes housed in a miniature LP sleeve. 2008. --This text refers to the Audio CD edition.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

12 of 12 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars The Versatility of the Kinks!, October 18, 2002

By	James Choma - See all my reviews

This review is from: Preservation: Act 1 (Audio CD)

When this album first came out, I recall there being a lot of negative critical press surrounding it. Most of the confusion probably came from the fact that this was part one of a two part concept Ray Davies had based around the group's landmark "Village Green Preservation Society" album. I believe many of the comments were that the album didn't accomplish anything in particular and as a concept, went absolutely nowhere. Now that 30 (!!!) years have passed, Part 1 and 2 can be viewed as a whole and for the wonderful music contained therein.

"Preservation Part 1" is one of my all time favorite albums. I love everything about it: the storyline, the cover art, the music, the lyrics... they all work together to make a wonderful album.

"Daylight over the Village Green early in the morning.
Daylight over the hills and valleys heralding the morning.
Daylight over the mountains, daylight on the Village Green"

This albums works on so many levels for me, but what I like best is the "small country town" feel one gets hearing songs from all the locals' perspectives. With the brass and woodwind accompanyment, it almost sounds as if it was recorded at a local county fair. Nostalgia plays a big part in my appreciation of the album; I recall hearing the album as a child and growing up with it. In a way, that's one of the themes Ray was trying to get across: growing older, feeling nostalgic and appreciating life; something that probably didn't play too well at the time to young Kinks fans. Now, we're all older, wiser, and can identify with the music!

Highlights from the album are "Sweet Lady Genevieve," "There's a Change in the Weather," "Where are They Now?," "Cricket" and "Sitting in the Mid Day Sun". Just listening to the album from beginning to end is a pleasure.

If you're a fan of the Kinks and want to see how diverse they got musically and lyrically, look no further than this album and it's sequel, "Prevervation Act 2".

8 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars And you should have seen them perform it live!, December 30, 1999

By	Dan Lauber "Dan" (USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Preservation: Act 1 (Audio CD)

Preservation Acts I and II combine to create one of the most sprawling and lyrical concept albums in rock history. While Tommy and its ilk easily appealed to the mother-my-dog lowest common demoninator in the rock audience, the Preservation CDs offer rock opera at its zenith with tuneful tunes, insightful lyrics, and a rousing storyline. Critics compared this favorably to the classic "Three Penny Opera." I had the pleasure of seeing the Kinks perform "Preservation Acts I and II" live at the Auditorium Theater in Chicago. Their multimedia show (performed before the term "multimedia" had been coined) was an amazing performance. You'll find a handful of clunkers in the two CDs, but overall, you'll be amazed at the power of this work. And as a past president of the American Planning Association and the American Institute of Certified Planners, I'll unilaterally declare the song "Demolition" the ultimate urban renewal tune. Get them both!

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Preservation lives on, August 16, 2005

By	Jim (Dickinson, TX United States) - See all my reviews

As a big Kinks fan, "Preservation" has always been one of my favorite albums, maybe because it is so complete and almost perfect, telling the story of this British town through song. "Preservation" is clearly in the same league as the few true concept albums out there, like The Who's classic "Tommy." For me though, this is a better record because it's a better collection of songs. "Preservation" was kind of the pinnacle of a Kinks discography of concept albums from the late 60s through the 70s including such great records as "Village Green Preservation Society" (a great record full of very fun songs, and really the precursor to Preservation), "Arthur" (love this one), and "Schoolboys in Disgrace." If you like "Preservation," I'd suggest checking these out and others from this era. The Kinks became less conceptual, less folksy, more rock, and more commercial in the mid to late 70s, but still created some fantastic music through and into the 80s. But there is just something about this record that gets to you, or rather, it gets to me.

Some of the individual songs are just great. The reviewer above notes "Sweet Lady Genevieve" as a great song, and he's right, but he misses the true gems. For me, "Sitting in the Midday Sun" is an almost perfect, funny, peach of a song, and at the same time pokes fun at our Western tendency towards materialism, one of main songwriter Ray Davies' constant themes. I also really like the songs "Where Are They Now?," "One of the Survivors," which is basically, a tribute to guys like my father, who still (even now) yearn for the simple days of rock and roll in the 50s when guys like Jerry Lee Lewis and Dion and the Belmonts ruled radio. I also love the song, "Demolition," which perfectly closes the story.

I first heard "Preservation" on a cassette tape someone gave me as a gift. As the tape wore out, I had to buy the CD. My only regret regarding the CD is that they added the first track "Preservation," which was never on the original album, and definitely should not be the first track. It was later added to CDs as a kind of explanatory song, for some reason. The first track of this record should be the first tracks "Morning Song" and "Daylight." The album wakes up with these songs, and was originally intended to. When I play my CD, I skip over that first ugly track. Readers should know that the original record had "Morning Song" as the first track and "Demolition" as the last track. That was the album as it originally was released. All the other stuff (including an additional version of "One of the Survivors" on this listing, is just added filler for your CDs. I'm afraid the people who add these things just don't understand that they are ruining a piece of art when they do it. It would be like releasing a poster of a famous painting, but adding another painting by the same artist and sticking it on the bottom of the poster because there is extra blank space there. Or it would be like releasing a Hemingway novel like "For Whom The Bell Tolls," but adding a short story to the end of it that has nothing to do with the novel and telling readers that this is the novel. (I'll have to look, but I'm pretty sure my "Tommy" CD does not have any extra tracks on it.)

I won't discuss "Preservation Act II," except to say that it is not good and only has a few songs worth anything on it. I think Mr. Davies got a bit carried away with the concept on this sequel, and forgot about the music. And as a result, sadly, he will be overlooked. I used to wonder why "Tommy" was made into a musical but "Preservation" was not, since "Preservation" always seemed to me to be more theatrical, with more characters, and more social commentary. I think I know why it will never happen, and why Ray Davies will never be as recognized as Townsend has been. It's because, although Davies is probably a better songwriter, his music is more British and because his concept album with all the potential, "Preservation," self-destructed in Act II.