Preservation Act. 1

The KinksPreservation: Act 1 (Reissue)If you’re a label or band planning to reissue an album in this era of dirty, rotten music pirates (arrr, you know who you arrr), you’d better offer something far beyond stellar in way of extras. Maybe a “making of” DVD or a bonus disc of unreleased b-sides. Maybe even just a top-shelf mastering job, a Greg Kot-penned essay and some nice packaging. Naked photos of the singer. Something. If you’re The Kinks, you reissue a few of your classic-era records each year. The band’s latest bundle intrigued me greatly - this only because I read that: 1) some past mastering problems would be fixed, and 2) the reissues would be presented in the audiophile loved CD-as-mini-LP format.

Rather than going through and rebuying each of the 10 or so discs (none of which are from the band’s pre-Muswell run of classics), I chose just one reissue: Preservation: Act 1. I chose this album because, well, it’s the first time I’ve seen a copy of it in a store since becoming a Kinks fanatic. Knowing that this rock opera/concept album has always received mixed reviews, I put the disc in my player with much excitement. (What can I say, I love mixed reviews!)

For starters, there’s just not much here by way of extras. You get the original tracklist and one “single” version of an album song. Fine with me - most bonus tracks are unnecessary. The packaging - thick cardboard made to look exactly like a smaller version of the original LP design - offers nothing in terms of archival information or production notes. Again, fine with me, we get the Internet at my house. The remastering job on this disc (and from what I’ve heard, all the discs in this batch) is no good. In fact, you could easily hunt down a copy of the record on LP and do your own transfer. The sound quality would be similar - maybe even better, depending on your table. What we get here is a muddy mix that does little-to-no justice to the LP recording from 1973. So, no, if you already have any of these reissues, you don’t need to buy them again, they still sound lousy when compared to the vinyl issues.

If you don’t yet have these records, well, that’s a different story. The Kinks were, in my opinion, when on their game were second to no one (not even the Beatles or Stones) in their heyday. And while most of these reissues aren’t from their stretch of major classics (Kink Kontroversy, Something Else, Lola, etc.), most of them offer much to love. Preservation: Act 1 is no exception. Sure, the “rock opera” thing never worked for these guys like it did for, say, The Who, but these are still Ray Davies songs. Somewhat dusty, never too artsy or obscure and made to please, the 12 original tracks here tell the story of … well, who cares. It’s not a good story. Not at all. But the playing and singing - especially on tunes like “Here Comes Flash,” “Sweet Lady Genevieve” and “Daylight” - will feel familiar enough to Kinks fans that the album should satisfy those who enjoy Muswell, Something Else and Everybody’s in Show-Biz. Kinda rootsy, sometimes poppy, always warm and wholly British.

If you insist on getting at least one of these reissues, make it Muswell. Already have that one? Then try Everybody’s in Show-Biz, the bands overlooked half-live, half-studio classic. Other than that, your best bet would be to ignore this new batch of overpriced reissues and hunt down the LPs or previous editions.   3/10

Written by G. William Locke