The Kinks-Word of Mouth (1984)

 

Artist: The Kinks

Title: Word of Mouth

Label: Arista

Format: LP

Cat #: AL 8-8264

Year of Release: 1984

Country and Year of Edition Issue: US 1984

Listed Condition: VG+/VG+

Sell Date:  1/11/22

Sell Price: $2.99

Discogs Last Sold: 1/4/22 $13.70 M/M

Low: $2.00

Median: $5.00

Average: $6.28

High: $13.99

Current low price: $2.74

Current Number on Sale at Discogs: 120

Have/Want: 3358/136

Where Sold: Los Anglees, CA

Time it took to sell: 7 years

Where and When Bought: Worcester Al Bums new upon release $7.49 

Gwiz-gau Letter Grade: B+

Sad To See It Go: No

Like a championship team at the end of their run but still can make the later rounds, Word of Mouth was a commercial disappointment in comparison to the top 15 Billboard run they had on Arista earlier in the '80's.  Still there were 4 stone cold radio hits, the opener "Do It Again," "Living On A Thin Line," "Good Day," and the one I forgot about, "Sold Me Out."  They are all on side one along with the title track which not only wasn't a hit, but the weakest track on the side.  The Kinks felt differently and played it on their tour that year, but other tracks on side 2 showed up more frequently as the 80's progressed.

Oddly enought my favorite track of that side, "Going Solo" was never played live.  Maybe Ray got over the empty nest syndrome the song was about on the road.  The live tracks played throughout the 80's were "Guilty" and "Massive Reductions."  "Massive Reductions" has a bit of eighties-itis in feel, although the subject matter of downsizing insured that it was not a hit on the radio.  It might've worked on a soundtrack if the movie was of the riches to rags variety.  "Guilty" was the other Dave Davies song on the record along with "Living On A Thin Line."  It's perky, but the inferior of the two even with the accurate chorus.

The end of an era even though there was a decade of music to go.