God Save Strawberry Jam And All The Different Varieties

Last night I managed to download all of the Kinks albums-this is great news for me. I have recently got back into the Kinks after listening to a copy of Lola vs The Powerman. I have been a fan for a long time but this has only been based on the greatest hits that my dad possessed in his record collection. I remember very well when I first heard it. In fact I see it now, sitting in the CD rack-its yellow and red (slightly cracked) cover with the kinks on the cover in their early years smiling away at the camera. It had all of their hits as well the years they were released and strangely their chart position in both UK and US. I played it over and over and over again, but somehow I managed to get into the Beatles before the Kinks which now leaves me over 10 albums to catch up on.

I cant exactly say what it is about this band that makes them so special. Of course all the music gurus out there will say 'its because they never made it in America, and stuck to English patriotic lyrics'. For me its much more than that. They are so cynical and witty, they write about the good and bad things in the UK as well as the everyday observations. With that there is the darker side to it-although the sixties were in full swing, Ray Davies was quite depressed and saw that period as a superficial time and so decided to write about what was really happening on this Island. He also had an understanding of England's past and future (Victoria, Apeman) which was way ahead of anything that was being written at the time. On top of all of this negativity was this cheeky smile and woderful melodies which somehow managed to balance the Kinks presence. And this is how it works... http://youtube.com/watch?v=J6ROIbhD4Ls

Apart from the (free) Kinks download I have been quite busy at University. This term is in full flow now, with the essay titles being released so now i have to start to write them. On top of this i am completely skint. This isnt anyhting new but its an added problem that i could do without. Being poor does however have its upsides: I know that i wont always be hopelessly poor, and I know that this will pass and I will work and have money. But the thing is that I wont forget this skintness and I will stick to the same budget and tricks that poverty has taught me. Theres too many people out there who are just wasting money on useless or excessive things. Outside HMV today i saw a sign that read '8 Days 'til PS3 (or some other computer)..reserve yours NOW!' I also saw overweight people eating hotdogs, bimbos with 10 seperate clothes bags, men with hands-free kits in their ears...etc etc.

Anyway I have to do some work tonight otherwise I'll have more to do when I do get a job.