Kinks
Sleepwalker - Arista 1977 Tracks: 1. Life on the Road / 2. Mr. Big Man / 3. Sleepwalker / 4. Brother / 5. Juke Box Music / 6. Sleepless Night / 7. Stormy Sky / 8. Full Moon / 9. Life Goes On / 10. Artificial Light [*] / 11. Prince of the Punks [*] / 12. Poseur [*] / 13. On the Outside [*] / 14. On the Outside [*] Comments:Sleepwalker was the Kinks' first album for the Arista label. When released in 1977 it was also the first Kinks album for several years that did not have a strict concept. This was quite refreshing and probsably also a bit of a relief for the band.
At any rate it's a very inspired album and along with "State of Confusion" the strongest and most consistent Arista album. Davies' songwriting is varied and at his very best. Dave Davies? guitar-playing is terrific and it gives edge to the music. It's hard to bring out any specific tracks, because all are great. Personal favourites were always the classic Kinks-type of songs like "Full Moon" and "Stormy Sky", but Dave great guitar on "Mr Big Man" makes the song another favourite. A little Steve Miller inspiration on the title track??
Moreover the added bonus-tracks are also fine. Two decent B-sides "Artificial Light" ( sounds like a "Misfits" song ) and "Prince of the Punks" are fine for fans/completists, but the two outtakes are really great additions. "The Poseur" was originally thought to be the title-track, but it was eventually dropped with the change of the album title. Even more strange is it that they decided to leave out the outstanding "On the Outside", which would have been another highlight on the original album. Now it finally gets it's deserved release - classical Kinks!! A milestone in Kinks History!
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