Face To Face – The Kinks – What’s On The Table
Time to put on some music …
If you’ve been an MLT Club for a while now, you know about this series we’re doing here on a roughly bi-monthly basis called What’s On The Table.
We put the kettle on, get our favourite vinyl out and crank up the music 🙂 In each episode we listen to a vinyl that is important to us for some reason, and we chat about it. Today we chose The Kinks’ 4th studio album “Face To Face”.
It’s one of our favourites by them and showcases their masterfully observational song-writing so well.
We filmed this a while ago which is why Mona still has her old haircut in this video. We finally got around to editing it and finished the cut last night.
We’ve done our fair share of Kinks covers this year, including our most recent one, a rendition of “Lola” to celebrate #LolaDay after Ray Davies and his girlfriend very kindly invited us to join. “Lola” isn’t part of the “Face To Face” album but we love the tune and want to include it in today’s challenge:
Please go on YouTube and leave a comment on our “Lola” cover on YouTube!
If you’ve spent any time on YouTube you will probably have seen many YouTubers asking their viewers to like, comment and share their videos. Some even ask for that to an obnoxious extent! Of course, most creators are surely very interested in hearing from their audience in the comment section but another reason they might do it for is to boost the YouTube algorithm.
Every time you watch a video on YouTube and interact with it by leaving a comment or hitting “like” YouTube knows that that particular video is interesting to those that watch it so they are more likely to suggest it to others.
We thought it would be an interesting experiment to see if a short influx in comments on one particular video would change YouTube’s behaviour towards it, getting the algorithm to recommend it to more people. It might not change a thing but it’s a fun experiment and an easy way you can earn points today 😉
We say a big thank you & send much ♥ !
Stay kinksy,
Mona & Lisa
I think Waterloo Sunset is one of the greatest singles ever! Another underrated song writer similar to Ray Davies in many ways, but northern English rather than southern English in feel, is the late Alan Hull of Lindisfarne. Probably not so well known outside the UK. Some of Alan Hulls more ballady type songs would make great Duo session.
Hard to argue on Waterloo Sunset. I’ll check out Alan Hull. Thx
A Ray Davies single from Working Man’s Cafe which I also consider as good as the Kinks earlier music. Ray’s a brilliant and quirky songwriter who isn’t appreciated enough in my book.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iQdGaZqn8vM
Got around to this “WOTT” segment last night. It’s a great selection and it’s so much fun listening to the ladies talk about the album/group.
The Kinks were known more as a singles band in the states at the time, “Face to Face” sorta changed that. The only hit was “Sunny Afternoon”, but it’s loaded with many fine deep album cuts. Not only is “Rosie” about Ray’s sister, but “Dandy” (as noted in a comment below, a hit for the Hermits in the USA) is supposedly about brother Dave.
Luv that line in “Session Man” – “he’s not paid to think just play”.
Except for “Lola” (another great cover/vid from the MLT), hit singles afterwards ran dry in America. This partly because of the group being banned from touring the country due to running afoul with the American Musician’s Union. But the string of albums that followed “FTF” firmly established the prolific Ray as one of the finest songwriters of his generation. I’m sure M&L will be delving further into the catalogue in the future.
For those unaware, might wanna check out Ray’s “Americana”, released about a half dozen years ago. Perhaps not up there with the best Kinks albums from the mid/late 60s thru early 70s, but a fine addition to his discography. “The Invaders” a fun look back at the mid 60s British Invasion of the USA.
“Snarky”!! Love the way you’ve picked up on English slang!
You Tube comment:
“This is, without a doubt, the best cover of “Lola” I have ever heard! Such fun, such joy, such vocal perfection. Well worth coming here to hear. This is perfection! Sharing everywhere!”
I guess I posted two comments six months ago, and I posted combined version just now under my regular name.
(This is one of my MLT favorites.)
Brilliant version of an old 60’s classic with female voices a very different take indeed,loved it
What a great video of you ladies playing Lola, you did such a wonderful job, love the guitar. Always been fond of the Kinks my first band that I had back in the mid to late 60’s played a lot of Kinks, they were big in those days at least in my little world. I love how you blend you voices plus you put so much joy into your music that you play. Thanks great job, now is that you Dad playing keyboards and bass if it is that is so cool.
Amazing! Mona and Lisa do a spectacular job with every song they cover. Professional, fun, creative. They have such a perfect knack for keeping true to the originals but adding to it. To tackle a classic song and freshen it up and make it better. I love the original songs they choose to cover and they bring them to life again. Seasoned professionals in the industry and even the originators of the hits recognize the talent of these two. With over a hundred videos of their covers and originals on YouTube, I listen for hours on end. I first stumbled across their cover of The Beatles “Drive My Car” and like a good book that you can’t put down I went from one to the next. There literally is no one I would rather listen to. That incredible talent flows right into their originals and their writing and music is wonderful. Check out “I Don’t Know Birds That Well”, “June”, or “The Wide Wide Land” for a taste. Don’t miss their original “Once Upon a Time” that is a tribute to all that was good about 60’s era music and Woodstock.
Their two latest releases highlight their talent and their range. The “Duo Sessions” where primarily just the two of them on their guitars show some incredible skills. Their latest release of their last “Cavern Club” performance is an amazing display of skills and charisma. In the studio or on the stage, these two rock like few others now or in the past. Thoroughly enjoyable. Groovy and cool is back to stay.
I really love this superbly performed cover and fun video. Attaching my YouTube comments as a photo.
Just another Great MLT Studio Cover (G MLT SC) – True to the original recipe but with their own special sauce that makes a classic rock hit even hittier . But Wait There’s More – Family secret great production and sound presentation all without additional shipping and handling. This video is a treasure as is Lisa’s outfit – just makes you smile before you realize that your doing it.
How I love “What’s on the table” I’m getting into music that I had only lightly scratched the surface. I’m getting to understand Ray Davis’ writing much more now, thank you!
I always associated that image on the cover with Edgar Allan Poe, but no idea whom it might be.
Here’s my new comment on Lola, hope the experiment delivers some results!
Tomás
Oh I commented on it when it went live on youtube 6 months ago! It reads ( youtube name is Tommyr ):
Man that was SO awesome! I had a feeling papa Rudi would be on bass! Ray & Dave just HAVE to love this version! We heard this a few days ago at the MLT club but of course watching the girls do it is a lot more fun! Also, HAPPY EARLY BIRTHDAY ladies! The big 26 is coming!
Review attached. Love the energy in this video!
My promised review, a copy of my original from sixth months ago, has just been added to YouTube comments.
https://test.monalisa-twins.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/12/133415BE-807F-4A3F-A5C8-D4E8404BE207-1608360919.936-150×150.jpeg
Shane Come Back
I think I already commented when this came out but I added another. – Flyingarmadillo423
Hi Mona and Lisa. Thanks for another wonderful WOTT It’s always so great to experience some of the music you like.
It’s interesting about the sibling conflicts you mentioned in some of the bands and duos. I can relate to how the both of you might fight but then forget about it very soon after which is really great. Me and my little sister are like that I think compared with our other older siblings, as we grew up together, sometimes fought like cats and dogs, fighting one moment, and then getting along and laughing the next. We both lived at home together both well through our 30s and so when I got married and left, it was emotional the first little while being separated from each other for the first time.
I had a listen to the Face to Face album for the first time and really enjoyed it. It has that nice melodic guitar rhythm in songs through out that I like so much about their sound. In some songs I can also feel shades of Beatles, Dylan, Stones, and even Beach Boys. I guess it makes sense the album coming out in 66 at the height of all the bands I mentioned, lots of creative cross pollination going on.
I liked the following songs on the album the most: Too Much On My Mind, Rainy Day In June (reminds me of home), You’re Looking Fine and of course Sunny Afternoon. With He’s A Session Man, the harpsichord must be the Bach influence that Ray and Dave Davies are both into. Dead End Street is also an interesting song, those lyrics.
It was nice to see papa Rudi make an unexpected guest appearance! 🙂
Username is
innisfree55
Brilliant cover of this infamous song with a great story behind the inspiration for it. Is that an original Fender 4-string Mandocaster or have they made a re-issue of them?
I posted for the task on YouTube, but WOTT is my fave feature, and this one just washed over me. I am not much familiar with this album, (“Sunny Afternoon” notwithstanding), but in listening to these tunes I formed a theory regarding the times of its’ creation. I hear bits of the Rolling Stones, The Beatles, The Doors, The Hollies and even a little Bowie. I think it plausible that many of the artists of that time period listened to each other’s records and took this and that for their own efforts. That in itself isn’t unusual, but the 60’s were a time when things were being tried in ways they had never been before, partly I think because there was a major shift in the creation of music, from being written on a piano and given to a singer to being written on a guitar and being performed by the songwriter. Buddy Holly was a pioneer, as were several of his contemporaries, but the middle sixties launched it farther and wider.
I usually try to recommend an album, but this time I’ll suggest anything from this time period recorded by the Yardbirds, and you will not be disappointed.
And yes, What’s On The Table is still the best!
My secret user name is Dale Harris, my comment:
It is so difficult to find a MonaLisa cover that does not rival the original!
Funny how coincidences happen. In the car I listen to all the music on my phone through the stereo, randomly shuffled. And right after posting here today, I went out to go somewhere and the first thing that came on was the Kinks (my favorite of all: Celluloid Heroes). Of course, this time of year I also hear Father Christmas a lot because it’s on all my playlists.
Hi MonaLisaTwins team, wrote a comment on YoutTube, my username is Kenneth Plasa.
Thanks for sharing, always great to hear your reflections and comments about the those artists/groups that have had a impact on your own musical journey and development as artists. Brought back memories of the halcyon days of the 60’s.
I left my heart in San Francisco, wait a minute. I left my comment on YouTube as Johnnypee “This is my wife’s favorite MonaLisa Twins cover. I can not choose a favorite. If you like this, listen to any of their original songs. This band sounds like they just jumped out of the past, and luckily landed right here for us to enjoy. Bravo!”
Hello. Here is the text of the comment that I have just put on your YOUTUBE upload;
As is always the case if the MonaLisa Twins cover a great they do so with the feeling of the original but add their own style and personality in a subtle way. If you enjoyed this then search out their many other YouTube uploads, there is something for everyone such is their range. Their own compositions could easily be mistaken for the work of past masters like the Beatles and the Kinks amongst others.
There is one thing that I would like to comment upon that came up briefly in this What’s on the Table. Whether you realise it or not I suspect that you are both very competitive with your music. When used positively and constructively competition drives you on to better things. You’ll try to sing
something better then the other or play your part better. I saw somewhere, in one of your Q and As I think, that you don’t have egos as to who takes the lead vocal as you want what sounds best. That again is competition, but to make your music the best it can be.
That is what me and my two brothers were like when we were growing up but ours was in sport, any sport. At the start there may have been the odd fisticuffs and tears but our mother stepped in to explain about doing things with the right spirit, fair play and sportsmanship (something she was very hot about). From then on when playing in the garden we still tried to beat seven shades of crap out of each other (not physically) but in the right way, with a smile and to enjoy it. We wanted to drive ourselves and each other to be better plus doing your best against someone is a sign of your respect for them.
When we started playing for club teams, often in different matches, we revelled in and celebrated each other’s successes and consolled each other in times of failure. If one of us needed help or advice it was freely asked for and freely given but we each still wanted to be the best. We still do over 40 years later.
So many people see competition and being competitive as something evil. In fact it is one of the basics in life, without it the world would not advance as quickly as it does. Like anything there are people that take things too far but they are very much in the minority.
I’ve tried to upload a sreenshot but it failed.
Success this time! Perseverance pays off plus taking 5 screenshots.
Hard to do a cover to much better than the girls do. They seem to always put a twist on a cover song and make it more like there own song. Soooooooo coooool
Love the twins and there music
REPLY
My name on YouTube is Ivan Strelets. I posted “Lola” to my telegram channel yet June, 18. So today I just translated and reposted my own old commentary from Telegram to YouTube 🙂
Sasha also likes this video very much. We both always happy to rewatch it again.
Please, share the results of your research on the YouTube algorithm. Quite interesting.
I just have to add this about the recording, that when Mona comes in with the line “that’s the way that I want it to stay” it just sends chills up and down my spine ties my stomach in knots. The vocal on that transition is so perfect I just can’t get over it.
I could have sworn I commented on it back when it first came out, but apparently I didn’t. The real question, for those that did, is how YouTube’s algorithm counts multiple comments by the same person. At any rate, thanks for making me listen to this today, it really started my day off on the right foot! I commented there as Roger Penn but I’ll paste it here for good measure:
“I’ve listened to this song literally several hundred times between the original and live versions and it’s so ingrained in my head that hearing this version is like getting slapped in the face. But in a good and necessary way, like when someone is delirious or comatose and that slap wakes them up or saves their lives, this really woke me up and got my attention! Weird Al did a brilliant take, but that of course was parody. This is a true tribute. So refreshing and so different! And, like many others, I just get a big smile from the bottom of my soul when Mona makes that happy face with the tambourine.”
I really enjoyed this WOTT. You are both so relaxed and exuberant, the fun is absolutely contagious. Thank You!!!
https://yt3.ggpht.com/ytc/AAUvwnhzrOROJuPOR4y_TtxfJcb33nFkWXDGy8CCBaaukQ=s48-c-k-c0xffffffff-no-rj-mo Stephen Krogh 5 minutes ago
A robust and compelling cover of this great Kinks tune by MLT! So well done and so much fun. Whether it’s their own fantastic original creations or the wonderful covers they do, you can’t help but love the way Mona and Lisa weave magic into their music.
My user name is Tom Watson. I left a comment on YouTube. The Kinks were one of my favorite bands back in the day. Listening with you makes me wish I had bought more of their music. Thank you both so much!
Micktz28
This one is a no brainier. I watch this video at lest once a day but most day’s 3-4 times. I love this video and think you all did an awesome job !! ❤️ ❤️
Hi Mona, Hi Lisa.. I loved when this cover was released and I still loved it.. my username is Antonio Lima and that was my comment on YouTube.
Another great cover!!! Besides being attractive young ladies, your ability to entertain people, make us laugh and smile, at least to me is equally as valuable as your immeasurable talents. Its why I look forward to the next thing coming from MLT. You just keep getting better and better in every way. So, here is my Youtube comment:
Needle Needle
1 second ago
I get so excited everytime you release something and this song/video did not disappoint. Everything technically seemed to be spot on and as usual, your girls provide entertainment well beyond the music itself. Not to mention Im even enjoying your fashion statements!!!! Also, I always smile when I see Rudi appear in any of your videos. Thanks for another great cover. Im sure the Kinks give a huge thumbs up to this one as I did.
Username Roy christiansen
Another excellent “What’s OnThe Table” from Mona and Lisa and another great album from the Kinks. You have covered many of the tracks on the album but not “Dandy”. Herman’s Hermits took their version of “Dandy” top ten in several countries (including No. 5 in the US and No. 1 in Canada). There is also my favourite, after “Sunny Afternoon”, “Most Exclusive Residence for Sale”, a cover of which was an American hit.
And I am one of those members who was hoping you’d cover “Waterloo Sunset”, but was also pleased you covered “Tired Of Waiting”. Well done. I will have my “Lola” review on YouTube soon.
Here’s my post (typos corrected):
I love these girls! They are so talented and have so much fun in their videos! You have to join the MLT club to see more of this and other exclusive content! It is worth it!
Agree completely. I’ve viewed a lot of “first listenings” and “album commentaries” out there on YouTube. MLT’s What’s on the Table is more fun and erudite than 95% of everything out there.
Commented as “Richard Holmes”
I posted a comment!!
“Wow!! Must have been quite an honor to have Ray Davies get ahold of you!
This is an awesome cover! (my favorite)
50 year anniversary??
WTF?? am I that old? (guess so)”
Here’s my YouTube comment:
It is a great cover, there will be those who think that it is original of Mona and Lisa.
User name for Youtube Refugio Arellano
My YouTube comment: In honesty, prior to learning about the MonaLisa Twins, I had a somewhat disdainful attitude towards “covers” of songs that I like. In my youthful rigidity, I insisted that the “only” version of a song worth listening to was the original. Part of that worldview came from listening to poorly done renditions of some of my favorite songs. Another portion of it came from groups trying (unsuccessfully) to sound like the original. MLT has shown me a third option: the artists successfully “cover” the original in style and sound while at the same time adding some of their own talent and personality to the song. This is an excellent example of how they’ve done this with a Kinks’ classic. My username on YouTube is “Greg Delaney”
That was very entertaining, Very nice review of an all Time Klassic Kinks Album.
Its true. The Twins get along so well. Could easily get tired of each other after being together 24/7 but thankfully for us not the case.
As for Lola:
Well unfortunately, it won’t let me copy and paste. However I took a screen shot and posted it below. I hope that will qualify for the points.????
Love the Whats on the Table today. Such delectable delicacies. Will. Have to go back for seconds and thirds????
Now I have a question for you.
Do you have any pictures of yourselves and Saint Nicholas? Here in the US its a tradition to have your picture taken with Santa when you are little.
As is always Ladies First. You show me your picture and then I will show you mine????
Could be a challenge too.????
Here is the screenshot of my comment on YouTube…!! That was once more, a fab WOTT segment, I learned more about unfamiliar Kinks songs, ( for/to me , unfamiliar, having really only knowing their big hits primarily), and with your help, I’m slowly becoming more familiar with Kinks discography and that’s a good thing , opens up my music mind even further, Thankyou for today’s task on the Advent Calendar 2020, it’s always good to share/input some music to end a week with as well as to welcome a weekend with. With the added comedic timing, courtesy of Papa Rudi…!!
one of my Favorite Albums! The last time I saw Ray in concert , he played Too Much on My Mind. User name for Youtube Vincent Karschnia
Ok. Watched the video again. Loved it again. Can’t wait for more again!
On as mcmp59 and the comment is
“Mona and Lisa write their own songs and are brilliant, They also cover a huge range of other peoples classics and deliver with great reverence to the originals. Lola is another of these great covers by them.”
As an aside, whilst at University, I saw The Kinks at Bradford St Georges Hall in 1978 or 1979 and, as it was a University arranged gig, I assisted in dismantling the equipment afterwards. I picked up a couple of guitar picks, that I believed were used and discarded by Dave Davies.
Made my youtube comment : ‘I loved the original by the Kinks, but I love the MLT version even more! I am certain that many young people will love this song too and think it is by the MLT themselves and not a cover as it feels so original to them in their own style. Yet the truth is, it retains all of the magic of the original song by the Kinks. One of my all time favourite covers by the MLT’s in amongst many more from the period of popular music that laid down the foundations for numerous present day bands.’
Well, I tried to set up my own Youtube account so that I didn’t have to use my daughter’s. I was successful but couldn’t figure out how to personalize it so that the thumbnail reflects my identity. I’m attaching a screenshot of the comment and will ask Meriel (when she gets up from her slumber!) to help me fix it.
Here it is with my name attached. Yay!
Tony Dunsbee’s book, “Gathered From Coincidence”, has this to say about the Face to Face album cover:
“Tired of the unimaginative staged photographs Pye had used on the sleeves of their earlier albums, Ray [Davies] had even had a hand in designing the LP cover this time, depicting ‘this kind of theatrical mask with the head lifted up and butterflies fluttering out from the inside. Huge butterflies all over the cover and just the word ‘Kinks’ on the front’. In its final realisation, the non-photographic cover, true to Ray’s wishes, is awash with bright primary colours, revolutionary in its day but now instantly recognisable as classic mid-Sixties’ graphic art.”
Ray Davies was said to be in conflict with their record label, Pye, over the final album cover art, whose psychedelic theme he later felt was inappropriate.
Davies would say of this mid-60s era later, much later, that he went away, slept, and came back with a fully-formed moustache. I suggest the character on the cover and reverse may therefore be a psychedelic self-portrait!
Ray Davies would say of this mid-60s era later, much later, that he went away, slept, and came back with a fully-formed moustache. I suggest the character on the cover and reverse may therefore be a psychedelic self-portrait!
Absolutely a wonderful version of this song I just can’t stop playing it
Wow! Best cover of “Lola” ever! Unrivaled harmonies from Mona and Lisa not to mention their instrumental prowess and versatility! And their dad ain’t half bad, either! Whether classic covers or fresh originals, this family always impresses!
I’ve never seen the Kinks live performance. But I did see Ray Davies twice in Finland. Lola put the band back to the top of the singles list worldwide.
There is a 1967 “live” album by The Kinks, recorded at Glasgow’s Kelvin Hall, which was never used much for concerts when I lived there.
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Live_at_Kelvin_Hall
A Glaswegian tradition at Christmas was to go to the fairground Carnival in the Kelvin Hall, and I did this both as a child and with other adults when we decided to take a break from office work one December in the late 1970s.
Club members first saw this excellent cover back in June. One of my muso friends who’s a big fan of Ray Davies said “It’s beautiful, an uncle plays the Mandolin well, I tried to once on Man on the Moon (REM). Lisa has managed to add something special to the original, which is quite a feat.”
My YouTube comment today is attached.