Fretplay.com The Kinks CD reviews The Kinks guitar tabs The Kinks CD reviews The Kinks tabs Low Budget


The Kinks - Low Budget Audio CD

A fair review of the The Kinks "Low Budget" Audio CD. Please note that the below review is the views of the authors, and authors only. You can get a complete list of all The Kinks reviews here, or go back to the The Kinks tabs.

The Kinks Band: The Kinks
Title: Low Budget
Rating:
Release Date: 1999-04-27
Media: Audio CD

Tracks: 1: Attitude 2: Catch Me Now I'm Falling 3: Pressure 4: National Health 5: (Wish I Could Fly Like) Superman 6: Low Budget 7: In a Space 8: Little Bit of Emotion 9: Gallon of Gas 10: Misery 11: Moving Pictures 12: Gallon of Gas [US Single Extended Edit][*] 13: Catch Me Now I'm Falling [Original Extended Edit][#][*] 14: (Wish I Could Fly Like) Superman [Disco Mix Extended Edit][Edit][*]

Fresh From The Time Capsule
And perhaps, given Ray Davies penchant for playing with our heads, it might be an interesting sleight of hand to see Low Budget re-emerge as a brand new work on iTunes and enjoy the reaction to it's still fresh and troubling perspective on the decline of empire, tenuous alliances and pervasive economic insecurity. If you were knocked unconscious at a 1978 Kinks show and found yourself suddenly waking up in the time of Rip Van Obama, the sound of Low Budget in heavy rotation would not seem out of place in the least.

Whether the political scorecard has morphed to Bush and Brown from Carter and Thatcher and your Pinto has given way to a Prius, every track on the Kinks remarkable (but dimly remembered) 1978-comeback release is still uncomfortably prescient in 2008.

Hate slumming at Wal-Mart for the finest in Chinese fashion - try the title-track on for size (if it fits. ) Got four dollar petrol still ringing in your ears - fill-up with A Gallon of Gas. Think America's stature has taken a worldwide beating - there's the disc's best song, Catch Me Now I'm Falling. Spending more time cocooning with your mortgaged Plasma television - I'm sure you'll be fond of Moving Pictures. Distempering your offspring with scripts of Ritalin - just pop a few tabs of Attitude. The entire record is a mirror held up to our collective faces that still punches with the ferocity of a much newer work.

I know there are many Kinks fans who were depressed at the latter-day arena rock incarnation of the band and much preferred their Kinks Kinkdom or Preservation Society, British Invasion sound. Frankly, I never understood why we had to choose as the muscled-up version of the band represented here is every bit the musical and lyrical equal of the "mod" Kinks who arrived in the early sixties. In any era, Low Budget is a timeless collection deserving of some newfound respect.
.


Low Budget as meaningful as ever
Typically wry Kinks humor. Typically great Kinks music. Eerily prescient lyrics. I've had this CD since it came out and bought this one for our 33-year old son who, with a career and a family and a mortgage, is now aware of the importance of budgeting.


more Kinks treats
It's a super soft tender ballad with vocals that are so beautiful and powerful that words won't do it any justice. One of the prettiest songs the Kinks ever created is featured on this album- "Little Bit of Emotion". You HAVE to hear this great song. You will be moved by it, that's a fact. Oh sure, we've all heard hard rock bands attempt sincere ballads. Trust me, this one REALLY works!

Also, the title song is alright (though nothing really worth looking forward to). It reminds me of Rod Stewart's "Hot Legs". Oh, and another highlight is the disco-influenced "(Wish I Could Fly Like) Superman". Trust me, this is one catchy little song. Not many rock bands back in the day that attempted disco were able to create a song as catchy as that one. Worth picking up for a lot of hidden goodies you will surely admire if you're a Kinks fan.


Excellent album
Brings back lots of memories. Great music from a relatively little-known album. I love it. I think it's some of the Kinks best.


Not one of their Best!
A few years earlier I had been fortunate to meet Mick Avory and John Gosling in the Marquee club, and I had a very interesting talk with John Gosling about "Schoolboys in Disgrace", which he thought was their best album so far. In 1979, when this album was originally released, The Kinks were my unquestioned number one favourite band.

The musical trends had changed quite dramatically during the last two years, so I was very pleased with the Kinks being able to follows these new punk/new-wave trends and adapt to them. In the beginning I loved this new album, "Low Budget"; especially the cool rocker"Attitude" and the lovely ballad "A Little Bit of Emotion".

Now, seen in retrospect, my feelings towards this album have changed, and I regard it as one of the weakest Kinks albums. For a Kinks album the number of real good songs is small, and the overall sound is monotonous and pretty dull.

Of course there are positive moments, and new favourites have come up. There is a lot of charm and humour in the single "Superman" and "Moving Pictures" flows pleasantly, sounding like an outtake from an earlier album.

The title track was a live-favourite for many years, but on a studio album it doesn't really work, and it's more or less a drag.

Conclusion: One of the few Kinks albums that has not aged very well.


You can see a complete list of all The Kinks discography, or go back to the The Kinks tabs. There is also a good guide on how to read guitar tabs here.

Search guitar tabs

#ABCDEFGHIJKLMNOPQRSTUVWXYZ
[ Search tabs | Guitar tabs | Bass tabs |
Easy guitar tabs | Guitar solo tabs |
Acoustic guitar tabs | Guitar chords |
How to read guitar tabs ]
Forum topics
Music forums
- Bands and artists - Songwriting and lyrics - Tablature talk - Promote your band
Instrument forums
- Guitar basics - Gear & accessories - Bass guitar
Community
- The pit - Site Feedback - Reviews
[ User survey | About us | Privacy statement ]