For Kinks Kompletists, you can find Part I of this series here
20. “Where Have All The Good Times Gone,” 1965. At the ripe old age of 21, poor rock star Ray is already wondering what’s happened to the worry free lifestyle of his youth. This sounds like a major hit, but was a B-side in 1965, then bombed as a single in 1973 (released after Bowie did his cover on Pin Ups). Is it just me or does the mother figure sound like a cougar?
19. “Better Things,” 1981. An empathetic “get over it, get on with it” expression of hope, most tunefully constructed. Optimism, you can never have too much of it.
18. “A Well Respected Man,” 1965. This was at turning point in Ray’s songwriting, when he expanded his subject matter beyond basic rock ‘n’ roll subjects for a more character driven, socially conscious worldview. The target of his withering criticism is a well to do son who knows, by his social status, that his perspiration has a more pleasant aroma than the sweat of his lesser countrymen. Interestingly, “Well Respected Man” was not a hit in the U.K., but went to #13 on the U.S. charts.
17. “Death of a Clown,” 1967. This was a major solo hit for Dave Davies, going to #3 on the U.K. charts, then was included on the 1968 Kinks album Something Else. Showing his brotherly love, Ray once introduced this Dave hit in concert by saying, ”Let’s let the little twerp express himself as best as he can.”
16. “Dead End Street,” 1966. Truly odd how Ray uses the lighthearted British Music Hall tradition (could that be a session man on trombone?) as a vehicle to express complete existential despair. Opposite of “Well Respected Man,” this was a major hit in the U.K. and didn’t touch the U.S. charts. In the mid-70s, Britain’s New Musical Express included “Dead End Street” in their Top 100 singles of all time.
15. “Days,” 1968. On “Days,” Ray copes with the loss of a lover or loved one not by focusing on his own pain, but by acknowledging how much positive impact the person had on Ray’s life. So beautiful – “And though you’re gone, you’re with me every single day, believe me.”
14. “Australia,” 1969. Within the context of the Arthur album, a family sales pitch to leave the U.K. for the land Down Under. A musical delight with a Beach Boys reference, Ray’s snide cajoling that “everyone walks around with a perpetual smile on their face,” and an atypical dreamy extended jam to seduce the undecided.
13. “Yes Sir, No Sir,” 1969. One of the most damning commentaries of the military system ever recorded as Ray covers the subjugation of intellect for control, the use of the working class to fight on behalf of the wealthy, and trading human life for military “honors.”
12. “I Need You,” 1965. Released as the B-side of “See My Friends” we’ll let John Mendelssohn do the heavy lifting here. Per John, “’I Need You’ might be the best track The Kinks recorded in their original style – better, that is, than either ‘All Day and All of the Night’ or ‘You Really Got Me,’ of which it sounds like a streamlined, harder hitting update. The guitars are positively murderous, Ray’s vocal just hysterically snide.” Thank you, Mr. Mendelssohn!
11. David Watts, “1968.” At one level, “David Watts” is a simple appreciation for a well to do big man on campus. Below the surface, a story about sexual identity and longing. In the words of Jon Savage, this is one of Davies’ “sharpest homoerotic songs.” A U.K. pop hit for The Jam in 1978. Fa fa fa fa fa fa fa fa.
10. “Come Dancing,” 1982. Released in ’82 in the U.K. and in ’83 in the U.S., this was the band’s first top ten hit in America since “Lola” in 1970. On “Come Dancing,” Ray looks back at the U.K. big band dance hall culture of the 1950s and reflects on his sister Rene, who loved the dances. (Unlike the lyrics, Rene passed away at a young age, reportedly on the same day that she gave Ray a Spanish guitar in 1957). I love the way Dave’s power chords slam into the bridge, taking the listener from the nostalgic theme into present.
9. “Sunny Afternoon,” 1966. According to Rock NYC Grand Poobah Iman Lababedi, this U.K. #1 hit should be in the Top Five on this list, so maybe I’m underrating this income tax lamentation/rich man’s burden plaint. Of course, many listeners also enjoy this song as a tale of simply relaxing on a carefree summer day. That Ray’s a tricky guy.
8. “Shangri-La,” 1969. An amazing piece of work about confusing material contentment with happiness and accepting the limitations/mediocrity of middle class life because no other options exist. The music is suitably claustrophobic. “You need not worry, you need not care/You can’t go anywhere.”
7. “The Village Green Preservation Society,” 1968. Perhaps no other song describes Ray’s outlook on life as succinctly as this one, where he bemoans “progress” such as office blocks and skyscrapers and reflects on the need to maintain “little shops, china cups, and virginity.” On your next visit to Dundee, Scotland, go to the city square and take a picture of the Desperate Dan statue.
6. “Till the End of the Day,” 1965. It’s a crazy world. Released as the follow-up single to “A Well Respected Man,” “Till the End of the Day” bombed in the States (it must have sounded so 1964), but went Top Ten in the U.K. Hard to imagine why this wasn’t a major hit, as the band is displaying the raw power of their early sound with a brimming sense of confidence and tunefulness.
5. “Victoria,” 1969. After the comparatively subdued tone of Village Green Preservation Society, Dave Davies was whooping with glee on the hard charging “Victoria.” Meanwhile, Ray comments on the U.K.’s fascination with their 19th century monarchy and notes that the noblest possible death is one that occurs in service to the Queen.
4. “All Day and All of the Night,” 1964. The Kinks replicate the proto-punk power chords of “You Really Got Me,” while Ray croons about a romantic obsession that borders on stalking. The Doors took the main riff of this song for their 1968 #1 hit “Hello, I Love You.”
3. “Lola,” 1970. While The Kinks were busy recording some of the most innovative albums in the history of rock music in the late 1960s, the U.S. paid little to no attention. However, a humorous tale about a tryst with a transvestite was not to be ignored. Proving that is indeed a mixed up, muddled up, shook all world, “Lola” went top ten in England, the U.S., Canada, Australia, Belgium, Germany, the Netherlands, New Zealand, and Sweden.
2. “You Really Got Me,” 1964. The Kinks breakthrough hit was a reworking of “Louie, Louie” with a rhythmic stop and start power chord structure that would later have a major influence on punk and heavy metal music. (Fourteen years later it would be the first Top 40 hit for Van Halen). The song’s simple guitar riff is one of the most memorable in the history of rock music.
1. “Waterloo Sunset,” 1967. The most beautiful song I will ever hear.
