The Kooks - "Tick of Time"

Typically, the acoustic song on the album is not my favorite. Sure, I can appreciate the raw, intimate quality of it, but I tend to be wooed by the grandeur of the finished, produced track. And I certainly am not impressed by coughs (especially not phlegmy ones) and laughing, simply because they make the track feel "real." Except for on "Tick of Time," the last song on the Kook's sophomore album "Konk."
Unlike many acoustic versions found on albums, "Tick of Time" is not a version. It is the actual song, consciously recorded to be a simple and pared down track, which, yes, does allow for intimacy, and in this case, rightly so. I happen to find all the Kooks song intimate and pulling off a charmingly unfinished quality that I find best listened to in the privacy of my car.
What really does it for me with this song is that its form follows it's function - the yearning characteristic of the lyrics are mirrored in ever so slightly raspy voices straining to harmonize with each other. The overall effect is more one of an inner monologue sung out loud than a song meant to be performed, and I that's fine with me.