Thé Kinks

[Geoff738]

It is no secret here that I think Ray Davies is the best songwriter in the history of rock. Or, to put it another way he is my favourite. So I’d like to first share a few from the 60s that were big in the UK but did squat across the pond.



This one has a video that was banned by the BBC.


Rock critic Robert Christgau called this one the most beautiful song in the English language


Rock critic, me, calls the next one the most magnanimous song in the English language.


And, possibly my favourite Kinks song. It has the most chords!


Cheers,
Geoff

 

[Geoff738]

Cheers,
Geoff

 

[Geoff738]

Ok, none of that rocks like the early hits. And I skipped over a bit where their commercial success nosedived, but they put out what is often thought to be their best record. We’ll get there. But first some other stuff.

 

[Geoff738]

A bossa nova? Sure, why not.










Cheers,
Geoff

 

[Geoff738]

Ok, that’s a bunch from the first 8 or so years of their career. More later.

Cheers,
Geoff

 

[Rick330man]

I'm quite a fan of the KinKs. Days happens to be my favorite tune of theirs.

To add to the thread, I rate Sleepwalker as one of my top five favorite albums in the history of rock. Here's Juke Box Music from that album performed live.



Mr. Big Man and Full Moon



are two other great tunes off of Sleepwalker.

And of all of the bands that have covered Milk Cow Blues, I love their live versions from the 60's best.



It is on their Live at Kelvin Hall album, which is another of their horribly underappreciated works.

 

[Powdog]

Always enjoyed The Kinks although I wouldn’t consider myself a huge fan. But I must be living under a rock cause I heard this for the first time the other day and can’t get it out of my head.

 

[AlbertaGriff]

The Kinks are the Village Green Preservation Society is one of my favourite albums by anyone ever.

 

[Alex W]

I heard this one on satellite radio last year and was surprised to learn it was an outtake from the Sleepwalker LP.

 

[Geoff738]

Ok, let’s do some that Dave sang. The version of Strangers above is post stroke and a bit rough. Here’s the studio version






And a late period gem


Cheers,
Geoff

 

[Ex-riverman]

What a great bunch of songs! I was turned on to this latter day Kinks by the Sopranos.

 

[Ex-riverman]

What a great bunch of songs! I was turned on to this latter day Kinks by the Sopranos.

A great scene where strippers are dancing at the Bing.

 

[drlucky]

This one from their later years is one of my favorites...

 

[CalebAaron666]

Life stinks, listen to the Kinks!

When people ask “who’s better, Beatles or Stones?” the answer is always THE KINKS.

 

[drlucky]

Another fave...

 

[Geoff738]

Ok, skipping ahead to the arena years. In the late ish 70s the Kinks changed record companies, but were given an ultimatum from Clive Davis their new record company boss. No more rock operas. And their sound evolved into a more straightforward rock things. Here’s the title tracks from their first five studio albums for the label.











Cheers,
Geoff

 

[beyer160]

I travel for work a lot, so this one's my favorite:

 

[Knows3Chords]

 

[SnidelyWhiplash]

The reason they didn't make as big a splash on this side of the pond during the British Invasion was because they were banned from performing in the USA for years. RD turned inward with his songwriting & became very British. By the time they could tour the USA, the times had changed. That's the beauty of the Kinks, they could metamorphize.

 

[SPUDCASTER]

The reason they didn't make as big a splash on this side of the pond during the British Invasion was because they were banned from performing in the USA for years. RD turned inward with his songwriting & became very British. By the time they could tour the USA, the times had changed. That's the beauty of the Kinks, they could metamorphize.

This and there wasn't anymore room in the airwaves after the Beatles and the Stones.

If the Beatles and the Stones had not came to the US. They probably wouldn't have made the world wide impact that they did.

Too bad the Kinks didn't get in on it. They had a lot to offer.