Customer Reviews

Sleepwalker

5 star:		(16)
4 star:		(7)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

The remastered Kinks classic Sleepwalker, reissued by Velvel, is an extremely satisfying CD. The band has a tight, stripped-down sound that really emphasizes the talents of the individual musicians. Dave demonstrates a more contained style on his solo's, to effectively complement the mood and feel of Ray's lyrics without sacrificing the "sound" he has made famous. The CD starts out with a great one-two combination of "Life On The Road" and "Mr. Big Man". Dave the rave is in great form on "Mr. Big Man", with his guitar providing the perfect punctuation to Ray's biting condemnation of a former friend who made it big and forgot where he came from. The title song, "Sleepwalker", is a Kinks rocker that again features great guitar work. This time a nice give and take between Dave and Ray. "Brother" foreshadows some of the darker themes on the CD, and finds the band in excellent harmony while singing about changing relationships. "Juke Box Music" is another all out rocker that every Kinks fan can relate to, as Ray teases his fans about the importance of Kinks music in their lives. "Sleepless Night", "Stormy Sky" and "Full Moon" are pleasant sounding songs, with pleasing melodies that belie their darker subject matter of broken relationships, loss of identity and madness. As usual, Ray ties up all the loose ends in unique Kinks fashion with the philosophical "Life Goes On", a rock assertion that no matter what happens, life goes on. This CD may be the best musically that the Kinks have put out. The vocals, music and lyrics have never sounded better. The 4 bonus tracks that appear on this CD offer the Kinks fan a chance to hear songs that were previously unreleased in the US. Interesting to note that "The Poseur" was considered for the title song (according to liner notes). I know it's only juke box music, but I like it!

When the tour to support "Sleepwalker" hit Detroit's Cobo Hall back in 1977, the mighty Kinks were given the middle slot on a three-band bill, just above Ray Manzarek's Nite City and just below (believe it or not) Heart. Par for the course since The Kinks never seemed to get the respect they so richly deserved stateside, at least not until the arena rock trappings exhibited on "Low Budget." "Sleepwalker," like "Muswell Hillbillies," is perfect, with not a duff track to found within its grooves. "Life On The Road," "Juke Box Music," and the title track are all mandatory listening and validate Ray Davies' reputation as a pop music visionary and genius. Golden...

Whether or not it is "only juke box music," "Sleepwalker" also happens to be the most consistent album in the string of releases that comprised The Kinks second wind. The sound is juicy as an over-ripe melon, the music is fantastic, and the songs are some of the best in the band's catalog: the anthemic "Juke Box Music," the hit single, "Sleepwalker," and "Sleepless Night," one of those ocassional gems penned by younger brother Dave. "Life on the Road" is a rock 'n roll theme song in its own right: a characteristically charming take on the lifestyle of the rock star. "So I searched night and day/to catch a kissable lady/But all I caught was a cold," Ray quips as the song trundles delightfully onward. History may have robbed these guys of their richly deserved immortality, but compared to the garbage other baby boomer bands put out at this time (all that reggae and disco trash from the Stones, or those pitiful late-70s CSN albums), the songs on "Sleepwalker" speak for themselves.

I wish this faze of the Kinks topsy turvy career could have lasted much longer. Sleepwalker is better than Misfits and Low Budget and this is their best trio of Kinks albums. Sleepwalker at various turns is very funny, rocks, broods, laments and soars. In fact the song Life On The Road alone contains these elements and more! This is close to my favorite album ever released. I would like to know who had been keeping Dave Davies from playing his guitar? Live he has always shined but it is a pleasure to hear him really break out on this album.Terrific playing, singing and song composition make this a tremendous album. And no Muswell Hillbillie gag songs!

This is a transitional album, between the ornate, folkish, very English late-'60s recordings of the Kinks and the more driving, American-style rock sound they developed in the '70s and '80s. One also detects a bit of a punk influence in this particular recording, but perhaps a greater debt is owed to the Rolling Stones, whose "Sticky Fingers" sound is echoed in the down-and-dirty lyrics of "Life on the Road" and in the more expansive guitar interplay throughout the album. "Mr. Big Man" features a great Ray Davies vocal, filled with rage and indignation.

Many of the cuts are lighter and more playful--"Jukebox Music," which was a radio hit, and the sexy "Stormy Sky" are two highlights. The album (at least in its original version, without the bonus tracks) culminates with "Life Goes On," where Ray is at his most cynically engaging, offering a view on the meaning of life that is both dark and uplifting: in other words, the Kinks at their kontradictory best. Overall this is a worthwhile, if somewhat atypical, addition to the Kinks body of work. I personally enjoyed it more than some of their later albums, such as "Give the People Want They Want," and I'd also give it a slight edge over "Misfits"--the album that followed--though if you liked one you'll probably like the other.

An interesting side note: in his autobiography, lead guitarist Dave Davies writes that brother Ray was a sleepwalker as a child, and worried his parents half to death with his nocturnal wanderings.

Ray Davies must have tired of trying to be Noel Coward, or at least not making money at doing so. He had, since 1973, been making rock opera's, but with the rise of punk and disco and most mainstream art rock getting tacky, he made a decisive move.

What we have here is a rock and roll album. There is an over arching mood of being lost, needing comfort, engaging in rituals that have long outgrown their joy on Sleepwalker.


This is not a concept album in the sense of Preservation: Act 1 or two. Actually, Sleepwalker is a throwback to 1960s albums like The Village Green Preservation Society: not a story but songs tied together by theme and nuance--in Sleepwalkers case, compulsion and search. It works better: most rock operas have not dated well but albums with threads done well will always hold up.


Musically, this is the American, streamlined polished rock that people like Bob Segar and, to a further extreme, Boz Scaggs were doing so well. If progressive was past the boom, write really good songs, used 1970s improved production, and the best musicianship possible.

The title track, "Mr. Big Man," "Juke Box Music." All these characters with pathologies and longings center around the album the way Walter, Monica, and Annabella did the Village Green. And though Sleepwalker takes place after the world had lost the innocence of the Village, painfully beautiful "Stormy Sky," ties the album together when the lost and lonely find, for a few moments, the intimacy and refuge they seem to look for.

This is the Kinks at their most professional to date without being cold. 1970s rock when mainstream music still had some warmth.

The Kinks would do one more great album in this style, Misfits, before making a show of their sell out on Low Budget.

But if Ray was knowingly beginning flight to the rock and roll bank on Sleepwalker, he could not have done it better

Okay, maybe it's not fair to call the Kinks Sleepwalker album a classic seeing as how most people haven't listened to it (and also because the Kinks weren't as popular when they recorded this album as they were a couple years before) but I believe, judging by the quality of *every single moment* of the album, it truly deserves to be considered among those other Kinks classics such as the Village Green Preservation Society as a quality album.

I'm not even going to mention what song from the album is the best, because the Kinks are so good at writing consistently enjoyable music and going above and beyond most bands as far as honest emotion is concerned, that ALL the songs from the Sleepwalker album really hit me on a personal note. Maybe the Kinks had a dry spell in their career, but I can assure you, it didn't start with this album. Pick up Sleepwalker as soon as possible. You'll be surprised at the quality of the songwriting.

Just forget about the fact that it doesn't rock really hard, but just like with the Who, how much they rock isn't that important anyway- it's all about memorable songwriting. I LOVE the Sleepwalker album.

I remember liking this a lot back in the seventies. I got it on cd and it is just as good . Simple, energetic pieces that give you that goose bump hair raising feeling. Even though this is a bit far away from their early rock-ier best stuff , this is good too! A little bit more on the Pop side of things but great melodies and great playing. What more could you want to scape from this hip-hop-trip-metal world?

I lived with my aunt and uncle in high-school during the mid 80s and my uncle introduced me to the music of the Kinks. I listened to them a lot then and enjoyed their music (especially Sleepwalker), but then I stopped listening to them for some reason or another. I recently broke out my huge plastic tub of cassette tapes and relistened to a bunch of them, such as the Kinks and realized that they really connect to me in a very cerebral level. Their music and lyrics are witty and intelligent and so very British. The combination of these make me really happy to make Sleepwalker my first Kinks CD and certainly not my last!

This is the one that brought the Kinks back on the musical map. The "concept" years on RCA had left the Kinks a bit too far from their rock n roll roots. Sleepwalker, I think brought them back into focus. Its a very simple record, no concepts, no extended story lines. Looking back on it now, over 20 years after its initial release, it has retained its qualities; instant likeability, good songs, good singing, good guitar. You can even hum along and dance to it! Maybe its freshness results somewhat from it following on the heals of the numerous concept albums that preceded it. Nonetheless, the songs still sound great today. Maybe this isn't classic Kinks or even the most prolific collection of Ray Davies songs, but I do believe it captures the band's raw talent for the first time after the great early Kinks years. The fact that the re-release contains the extremely desireable Prince of the Punks, only makes the record more valuable. So, buy it, listen to it over and over again and enjoy! Though not my all time favorite Kinks record, this just might be the most fun record they ever did!