The Kinks are a somewhat forgotten band of the original British Invasion behind The Bootles and The Strolling Bones – when in reality they were one of the most influential. In Ray Davies, they had one of the best lyricists of his generation.
With this collection being a 25th anniversary, it starts from ’64 and You Really Got Me and goes until Come Dancing in ’83. I won’t go rambling on about each tune on this set as I’m sure you have heard most of them countless times. Even though they had early success, it wasn’t until the period from’ 67to ’70 when Davies was heralded as a genius. This was a golden period for the band with iconic tunes like Sunny Afternoon, Waterloo Sunset, and Lola were set free to inspire a whole generation. I adore Waterloo Sunset it’s such a great tune and something I never tire of hearing.
Bands from Van Halen through to The Fall have covered the Kinks, and that shows what a diverse band they were. Everyone should own at least one Kinks album, and if you don’t, you should be able to pick this double album up quite cheaply.
8/10 from The Grooveman.
