Let’s get this out of the way now because there’s no hiding from it. Yes, The Williams Brothers do sound incredibly like The Everly Brothers and with good reason. They aren’t just brothers, they’re twins, and Andrew and David Williams been singing and playing together for decades. And here’s a little bit of additional information; they’re also nephews of easy-listening megastar Andy Williams. With that musical heritage and the twin thing going on it shouldn’t be a surprise that the Williams Brothers’ two-part harmonies are absolutely stunning.

Before you even get into the detail of the individual songs, ‘Memories to Burn’ is an interesting concept; it was arranged in a small studio and recorded live to two-track. Everyone was happy with the results and then the tapes were stashed away for twenty-seven years before resurfacing this year. It’s an interesting package of ten songs, split equally between well-chosen covers and songs written by band members; the country stylings of the covers create a nice unity for the album, blending with the originals perfectly. It’s also noticeable that most of the songs clock in at about two minutes with two at around the 2:30 mark and the album’s closer, the Buffy Sainte-Marie song, ‘Piney Wood Hills’ scrapes in under 1:30. There’s absolutely no fat to trim away on any of these songs; if you can deliver your song in around two minutes, why would you add anything that makes the message less concise. It’s an album of short stories rather than novellas.

There are two constants across the entire album; the stunning two-part harmonies of the twins and the steel guitar licks that create the melancholy, retro mood of the album. There are moments on the album that are pure Everly Brothers; the title track could be Phil and Don vocally, although some of Marvin Etzioni’s chord changes are unusual and the falling upright bass run owes something to Nancy Sinatra’s ‘These Boots Were Made for Walking’. It all fits together perfectly. Another Marvin Etzioni composition, ‘Unanswered Prayers’, hints at Phil and Don’s ‘Let It Be Me’ with the Williams Brothers’ two-part harmonies featured throughout the song.

There’s an interesting transposition of styles across the album’s second and third songs. ‘Cryin’ and Lyin’’, another Etzioni composition has a Sixties pop song sound, while the following song, a genuine Sixties pop song is given a country makeover. Dave Davies’ Kinks hit ‘Death of a Clown’ might be an unlikely choice but the country treatment seems to highlight the strangeness of the lyrics; and they are pretty strange.

If you’re a fan of The Everly Brothers, then ‘Memories to Burn’ should make you smile. It’s out now on Regional Records (RR222).

You’re probably asking the very same question that I asked; what’s the point of another Kinks Kompilation? There are hundreds (of varying quality) out there already, so why would we need another one? The inner cynic says that it’s the run-up to Christmas and it’s a handy present for older relatives (the ones who still own CD players), but that’s a bit unfair because there is at least a rationale behind this release, and that’s a tie-in with the incredibly successful musical “Sunny Afternoon”, which is still running in the West End (go and see it  if you get the chance; it’s great fun).

This track listing of the compilation imitates the running order of the stage show until partway through the second disc, where things start to get a little unfocussed. There’s a section of ten songs which have been chosen by Ray Davies to add to the selection, followed by some interview snippets and the obligatory BBC sessions; it’s a bit of a mixed bag really.

The idea of following the show’s running order demonstrates the development of The Kinks and Ray Davies’ songwriting. The first three songs are completely forgettable sub-Merseybeat, and it’s not until the music hall-influenced “Denmark Street” that the Kinks truly original and particularly English character emerges, starting a run of twenty-five truly great songs any real music fan should have in their collection.

The ten songs chosen by Ray Davies come from a variety of sources including the albums “Arthur”, “Kinda Kinks”, “Are the Village Green Preservation Society” and even the soundtrack for the film “Percy”; they cover the period 1965 to 1972 and give an indication of the breadth of Ray Davies’ songwriting and the fact that there’s a lot of very good Kinks material out there that most people haven’t heard. The interview clips are fairly standard innocuous stuff used to introduce BBC recordings of “You Really Got Me”, “Tired of Waiting for You” and the Dave Davies classic, “Death of a Clown”.

The overall impression of this package is that someone saw an opportunity to tie in with the stage show but wanted to make it a double CD package without having enough material for two discs. If you don’t own any Kinks albums, this isn’t a bad introduction but it’s a little haphazard once you get past “Lola” on side two.

 

Out now on Sanctuary Records (KINKSTVCD001).