One for the Road

The second half of the '70s were a good time for The Kinks, as they had finally become a consistently successful draw in America. The live ONE FOR THE ROAD followed on the heels of LOW BUDGET, an album conceived by Ray Davies as a half-live and half-in-studio effort. If one song sums up the Davies brothers' contrasting personalities, it is ROAD's version of "All Day And All Of The Night." Dave Davies big-fisted chordal riffs give way to his brother Ray's brief trip into the light camp of a "Day-O"-style sing-along.
ONE FOR THE ROAD captures an era when The Kinks reclaimed their sleek muscularity, leaving behind the theatrics that had been a feature of their act in the first half of the decade. They easily mix newer numbers ("Attitude," "Superman," "Misfits") with vintage chestnuts ("David Watts," Victoria," "Stop your Sobbing"). The Kinks' live albums present a compelling portrait of the band across the decades, and ROAD stands up nicely alongside both LIVE KINKS and EVERYBODY'S IN SHOW-BIZ.