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This Is Where I Belong: The Songs Of Ray Davies And The Kinks

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It seems to be a requirement for music snobs to have their favorite neglected genius, the one who wrote better songs than Lennon and/or McCartney and/or both but never got the credit he or she deserved. Typically most of said snobs tend to pick Lou Reed. Well, I say good choice, no harm in that one, but I am going to have to go with Ray Davies. Sorry Lou. Ray's songs seem a bit more universal, a bit more touching, a bit easier to connect to. As much as I love "Heroin" and "Sweet Jane," I more often find myself with "Big Sky" or "This is Where I Belong" on the player. I guess it's just a matter of taste.

When I discovered this compilation, the name tipped me off that it would be good. If Ryko had called it "All Day and All of the Night," for example, or "You Really Got Me," it would have conjured up images of Van Halen or some other inane, dated hard-rock group grinding out yet another cover of the earliest stuff. "This is Where I Belong" is not only a great song from the classic mid-period years but it is also an obscurity. Somebody knew what they were doing over at Ryko, so I had to invest the $14 it cost at the time to find out whether it was any good.

And it was. These artists show exactly why Ray's music is so special...it is completely timeless. The glory of "Big Sky," my favorite Kinks song, is captured magnificently here by Matthew Sweet. Jonathan Richman shows us exactly why "Stop Your Sobbing" hasn't lost any of its charm- its simplicity allows the message- one of coping with sorrow of any kind- to come through clearly. Fountains of Wayne take another obscurity, "Better Things," and maintain its feel as a powerpop gem while making sound like it was written yesterday. None of the wit or wisdom is lost in any of these translations. Yeah Cracker doesn't sound like Cracker here but so what, you want to hear Cracker in their purest form then put on "Kerosene Hat." Nothing on here disappoints.

A worthy complilation for one of the best songwriters ever. It may even be desert island stuff for me.

Remakes shouldn't be pointless carbon-copies of the originals, nor should they differ so much from the originals that they upset fans of the band or artist being saluted. For the most part, the 16-track CD This Is Where I Belong: The Songs Of Ray Davies And The Kinks avoids making those mistakes, as a who's who of indie and alternative rock figures pay tribute to the underrated British Invasion band and its gifted chief songwriter. Most of the bands and artists here infuse Ray's songs with their own unique styles: Hooky power-pop (Fountains of Wayne's "Better Things", "Big Sky" by Matthew Sweet); haunting balladry (Lambchop's "Art Lover", "Fancy" by Yo La Tengo); pure country (Tim O'Brien's "Muswell Hillbilly"); bossa-nova (Bebel Gilberto's "No Return"); mid-tempo folk-pop ("This is Where I Belong" by Ron Sexsmith), etc. Davies himself shows up on the closing track, a lovely live recording of "Waterloo Sunset" featuring Blur frontman Damon Albarn.

A few tracks do adhere a little too closely to the originals; Fastball and Cracker just don't sound like themselves on "'Til the End of the Day" and "Victoria," respectively. (As much as I love the originals, I just wish these guys could've brought something new to the table.) On the other hand, you'll either love or hate the radical changes made by singer-songwriters Josh Rouse ("A Well Respected Man") and Jonathan Richman ("Stop Your Sobbing"); personally, I think they improve greatly on the originals. With a few lyrical adjustments and a complete overhaul of the arrangement, Rouse turns the twee, silly "Well Respected Man" into a sober character study. And rather than copying the Pretenders' 1979 hit version of "Stop Your Sobbing," Richman gives the song a whole new meaning by altering and omitting a few key lyrics; his stripped-down folk-rock arrangement is a bit predictable, but I love how he has changed the song's message from get-over-your-ex-and-I'll-love-you to a more universal one about getting back to the business of living after suffering a major loss.

The wide-ranging styles of the bands and artists make for a mixed bag, but a very satisfying one. And I applaud all the bands and artists for picking more obscure Kinks tracks to cover, rather than tackling obvious hits like "You Really Got Me," "All Day and All of the Night," "Tired of Waiting for You," "Lola," or "Come Dancing." Fringe Benefit: Ray's droll liner notes ("Because tribute records are usually conceived after the composer has 'passed,' I can only assume that 'rumours of my demise have been greatly exaggerated'...").

I keep going back to this CD, again and again. A must-have for anyone who appreciates Ray Davies. A couple of duds (Josh Rouse, Jonathan Richman) are overwhelmed by awesome covers. Some performers opt for straight-rocking versions (Queens of the Stone Age on "Who'll be the Next in Line?," Fastball on "Till the End of the Day" and Cracker on "Victoria"). "Better Things" is a great opener, an upbeat way to start any day. Matthew Sweet turns in an epic "Big Sky." The haunting "Art Lover" as done by Lambchop is one of the most arrestingly disturbing yet poignant songs ever written. Ron Sexsmith captures the longing tone of Davies in the title track -- which says so much in so few words about Ray's romantic attachment to one's physical place in life. The arrangement (with producer Martin Terefe's looping bass) displays power in simplicity. And the closing live version of "Waterloo Sunset"...well, this one song earned Ray Davies a place in popular music's hall of fame.

An unabashed Kinks fan for a long time now, I wondered when an enterprising producer would mine the Kinks katalogue for one of these tribute compilations. Jim Pitt's This Is Where I Belong has arrived, and it's amazingly consistent. Thanks go to Pitt's unerring sense of singer to song. Artists I've had no feeling for come up aces here: Fastball's punky "'Till the End of the Day", Ron Sexsmith's jaunty and melancholy title tune, Jonathan Richman's customary take on "Stop Your Sobbing". Fountains of Wayne and Queens of the Stone Age rock up "Better Things" and "Who'll Be the Next in Line", respectively, while Matthew Sweet, God bless him, rescues the crowning "Big Sky" from the wonderful-though-badly-mastered Village Green Preservation Society. Of course, most kudos go to Mr. Ray Davies, a writer of compression and consistency, who appears here with Damon Albarn, his spiritual heir, on Davies' masterstroke "Waterloo Sunset".

If ever a songwriter deserved a tribute Cd, it is Ray Davies.The neatest thing about this Cd is the diversity of song selection and musical styles incorporated into a single tribute Cd. I can't think of another songwriter who has produced such range in composition over his career. Anyone expecting the typical list of higher profile Kinks material will be surprised, but not disappointed when they hear the results. The range of songs provides some nice insights into much more obscure Davies material. That is what makes this record such a treat for me. Some of the more daring choices provide some of the best highlights - Get Back In Line, Art Lover, Big Sky, No Return. Hard to choose favorites. But, I can't resist the high octane version of Who'll Be The Next In Line by Queens of Stone Age, the energetic rendition of Victoria by Cracker, the haunting take on Well Respected Man by Josh Rouse or the pure pop brilliance of Fountains of Wayne's take on Better Things. Finally, to close it out with a lovely live reading of Waterloo Sunset by the master himself with Blur's Damon Albam. What more could anyone ask for. I think Kinks fans will enjoy the sometimes unique readings of these songs. Others who might not be familiar with the entire Kinks's catalog, but are familiar with some of the artists on this Cd have a great opportunity to experience the brilliance of Ray Davies beyond You Really Got Me and Lola!

This CD of new recordings of Ray Davies songs is really a pleasure to listen to. Great variety in sounds and style but great songs all the way through - though it loses a little steam towards the end.

Some tracks are very true to the original whereas others are treated in new and different ways - in some cases in very exciting ways.

The opening track "Better Days" from "Give the People What They Want" is a great song, but it always sounded a little rough and demo-like to my ears. Very interesting to learn from Davies own well-written liner-notes that it really was only demo that was included on the album. A great opener here given a power-pop treatment by Fountains of Wayne.

Steve Forbert's version of "Starstruck" from Village Green P.S. is just as great. Musically more polished than the opener, but Forbert's raw vocals give this fine song a new edge.

"Stop Your Sobbing" is given an acoustic treatment by Jonathan Richman. Very nice, which is also Bebel Gilberto's version of "No Return", which is probably the only bossa-nova song Davies ever wrote. Ray reveals that the song was written with Bebel's mother Astrud ( the girl from Ipanema ) in mind.

"A Well Respected Man" originally was a raw half-acoustic recording. This new version by Josh Rouse has been given a completely different more polished feel - the satire may not be quite as obvious as on the original but great to hear the song interpreted so differently.

"Victoria" is probably too true to the original "Arthur" version to make it really interesting.

"Who'll Be the Next in Line" is good but no more.

Another stand-out is the overlooked gem "Big Sky" from Village G.P.S. Though this new recording has been given an almost identical arrangement, the vocals are more up front than on the original which is great. Though the original is great too, I always felt it deserved a better recording.

Lambchop's version of another "Give the People What They Want" song is very different from the original. Darker and slower. Maybe this version does quite capture the ambiguity of the the Kinks'version.

"Picture Book" is another gem from the Village G.P.S. - one the greatest albums of all time - check out the the deluxe version and enjoy the original along a lot equally great out-takes. This new version is charming and fine!

If you didn't know better you would have thought "Muswell Hillbilly" was an old Hank Williams song; at least that's what Tim O'Brian makes the song sound like.

From "Lola Versus Powerman" comes another overlooked song - I do remember the Kinks played the song in their 1974 Denmark tour alongside their Preservation songs. This new version comes close to the original; the singer even sounds like Davies at times - a fine track.

"Till the End of the Day" is a great rocker but Fastball really don't add anything to it; except maybe make you want to hear the original again.

The title track was originally only released as the B-side to an obscure 1967 European single. Ron Sexsmith new version almost sounds like a 1967 recording too. Solid, but no more.

From "Face to Face" comes the oriental inspired "Fancy" - one on Davies most personal early songs, but also one of the least catchy.

Ray Davies himself along with Damon Albarn closes the album with a live version of "Waterloo Sunset" - a song that has been called the greatest single of the late 1960's.

A worthy tribute to one of the finest songwriters of rock during 4 decades.

As Ray Davies notes in his self-penned liner notes, "tribute albums are usually conceived after the composer has 'passed.'" Of course the long-time Kinks frontman has not passed, but his legacy has certainly passed the test of time. As of this writing, these songs date back forty years--and even the most recent (""Better Things" and "Art Lover" from 1981's GIVE THE PEOPLE WHAT THEY WANT) are 25 years old. With the release of Ray's first new album in years (2006's OTHER PEOPLES' LIVES), I finally picked this album up last week (though it was initially released in 2002).

It's a somewhat eclectic collection of songs. There are a couple of U.S. hits ("A Well Respected Man" and "Who'll Be the Next in Line") and U.K hits ("Waterloo Sunset" and "Victoria"), but there are no covers of their early hits like "You Really Got Me" or "All Day and All of the Night." Instead, most of the artists tend to lean more toward the introspective side of Ray's songbook.

Most of the artists tend to remain fairly faithful to the original Kinks' arrangements. So when you listen to Steve Forbert do "Starstruck" or Matthew Sweet perform "Big Sky," they are certainly lovingly done, but they don't really bring anything new to the songs.

There are, however, a handful of artists who approach the songs from a new angle. For example, Josh Rouse (a native Nebraskan, by the way) gives his reading of "A Well Respected Man" a haunting quality with his delicate vocal delivery. Bluegrass veteran Tim O'Brien gives "Muswell Hillbilly" a honky-tonk treatment complete with steel guitar and fiddle.

And then there is the duet with Blur frontman Damon Albarn and Ray Davies himself on perhaps his most beautiful song, "Waterloo Sunset." This version was recorded live in 1995 for a British TV show.

Taken altogether, this is a wonderful collection of songs. It certainly offers much to enjoy for any Kinks fan, and it's encouraging to see these songs being embraced by another generation of musicians. RECOMMENDED [Running time - 50:33]

It's nice to finally see a tribute album that makes sense. Ray Davies is too often forgotten when discussing lyrical genius in Rock music over the past 50 years. This CD shows the prolific talents of this amazing writer. As an avid Kinkoid and Ray fanatic, I am reveling in it. All artists do a wonderful job interpreting the master's works. It put an endless smile on my face. BUY it, if you love the Kinks or never heard of them, There is enough here to enjoy. I specifically love TIm O'Brien's Muswell Hillbilly, Matthew Sweet's Big Sky and Bebel Gilberto's No Return...Actually it's all good......God Save The Kinks...

Tribute albums have become a bit of a nuisance lately. If one is a big fan of the artist who is the subject of the album, one feels compelled to listen to at least a few of the cover versions of songs that likely are sacred to you, and they almost always disappoint. Rarely do they equal the originals by the artist--if the recording is too close to the original, it disappoints as a mere sound-alike. If the arrangement is too different, it often brings unfavorable comparisons.

This album is one of the special tribute albums where the artists do justice to the original but bring a new perspective or sound to the song. "Muswell Hillbilly", covered by Tim OBrien, sounds like it is sung by an Appalachian, not an East Londoner. Lambchop's "Art Lover", underscoring the eerie lyrics, makes the protagonist of the song seem like a John Waybe Gacy pedophile serial killer and is a chilling masterpiece. I actually like this cover better than the original, as blasphamous as that might sound to my fellow Kinks fans. Steve Forbert brings a fresh vibrancy to "Starstruck" that is totally in keeping with the original, but creating a different tone.

This is a must for Ray Davies and Kinks fans, as the stength of Davies' songs shine through the sparkling arrangements on this wonderful compilation album.

Ray Davies is underappreciated and this fine album should correct this perception. This is much more than a slavish "cover" of these Kinks classics. Buy this album.