Kinks, Face to Face (side A)

The Kinks' creative evolution in the mid-to-late 60s was linear and easy to trace.  1965's Kinda Kinks brought a lot more focus on subtlety in songwriting, with songs like "Something Better Beginning" and "Nothing in this World can Stop Me Worryin' 'Bout that Girl".  By 1967, with Something Else by the Kinks, the group's songwriting and arranging maturity was in full display with "Waterloo Sunset".  1966's Face to Face continues the gradual transition and maturity between the two.  Hints of the arrangement magic turn up — they'd be fully realized a year later.  Some of the earlier, simpler charms are here too, like "Sunny Afternoon".  The recording sound seems surprisingly primitive, but I think that's because I have a weird Spanish copy that must have been mastered poorly.  The crazy cartoon cover is iconic — it looks more like a movie poster from this era than an album cover, and the album is certainly more conventional than the cover would indicate.