"the Kinks"

The Kink Kontroversy was a considerable leap forward in terms of quality, but it pales next to Face to Face, one of the finest collections of pop songs released during the '60s. Conceived as a loose concept album, Face to Face sees Ray Davies' fascination with English class and social structures flourish, as he creates a number of vivid character portraits…

The Kinks are recognised as one of the most important and influential British groups of all time, with millions of record sales and countless awards and accolades to their name. From their explosive beginnings as part of the British Beat movement to forays into concept albums, stadium rock and acoustic balladeering, The Kinks have left an unimpeachable legacy of classic songs, many of which form the building blocks of popular music as we know it today.

The Kinks are recognised as one of the most important and influential British groups of all time, with millions of record sales and countless awards and accolades to their name. From their explosive beginnings as part of the British Beat movement to forays into concept albums, stadium rock and acoustic balladeering, The Kinks have left an unimpeachable legacy of classic songs, many of which form the building blocks of popular music as we know it today.

Ray Davies and company had already participated in one failed television musical when the movie Percy came along - it wasn't as original as Arthur, nor did Davies have nearly as much to do with its creation, but he still outdid himself given the material at hand. Directed and co-produced by Ralph Thomas, who had been responsible for some brilliant thrillers (The Clouded Yellow, Above Us the Waves) and very popular comedies (Doctor in the House) in past decades, Percy was the story of the world's first penis transplant (it was probably inspired, or at least justified, by big-budget efforts of the period like Myra Breckinridge). Although virtually unseen in the United States, it was still popular enough to yield a sequel (Percy's Progress), but its real impact came from its soundtrack. Davies wrote some hauntingly beautiful ballads and some solid blues and country…

The Kink Kontroversy was a considerable leap forward in terms of quality, but it pales next to Face to Face, one of the finest collections of pop songs released during the '60s. Conceived as a loose concept album, Face to Face sees Ray Davies' fascination with English class and social structures flourish, as he creates a number of vivid character portraits. Davies' growth as a lyricist coincided with the Kinks' musical growth. Face to Face is filled with wonderful moments, whether it's the mocking Hawaiian guitars of the rocker "Holiday in Waikiki," the droning Eastern touches of "Fancy," the music hall shuffle of "Dandy," or the lazily rolling "Sunny Afternoon." And that only scratches the surface of the riches of Face to Face, which offers other classics like "Rosy Won't You Please Come Home," "Party Line," "Too Much on My Mind," "Rainy Day in June," and "Most Exclusive Residence for Sale," making the record one of the most distinctive and accomplished albums of its time.

Although they generally aren't thought of as being as innovative as their contemporaries the Beatles, the Rolling Stones or the Who, the Kinks, thanks to Ray Davies' ever evolving songwriting and brother Dave Davies' power chording, fuzzed-out guitar sound, may well have influenced the actual sound of later bands more than any of those groups. This fine single disc collection brings together the Kinks' Pye Records singles from the 1960s, and includes the power chord shot heard around the world, "You Really Got Me," as well as its close siblings "All Day and All of the Night," "Tired of Waiting for You" and "Til the End of the Day," and later and relatively more sophisticated hits like "Waterloo Sunset" and "Lola." The end result is a solid chronological survey of the Kinks' most commercial and influential period.

The Kink Kontroversy was a considerable leap forward in terms of quality, but it pales next to Face to Face, one of the finest collections of pop songs released during the '60s. Conceived as a loose concept album, Face to Face sees Ray Davies' fascination with English class and social structures flourish, as he creates a number of vivid character portraits. Davies' growth as a lyricist coincided with the Kinks' musical growth. Face to Face is filled with wonderful moments, whether it's the mocking Hawaiian guitars of the rocker "Holiday in Waikiki," the droning Eastern touches of "Fancy," the music hall shuffle of "Dandy," or the lazily rolling "Sunny Afternoon." And that only scratches the surface of the riches of Face to Face, which offers other classics like "Rosy Won't You Please Come Home," "Party Line," "Too Much on My Mind," "Rainy Day in June," and "Most Exclusive Residence for Sale," making the record one of the most distinctive and accomplished albums of its time.

Sony's 2016 Legacy edition of Everybody's in Show-Biz turns the 1972 double-LP into a double-CD set by mining the March 1972 Carnegie Hall recordings that provided the album with its live second disc. Thirteen of the 17 songs on the second CD come from these live tapes, the exceptions being the unreleased completed outtake "History" – a slightly dreamy, wry look back at the past that feels like a gateway to Preservation – the backing track to "Sophisticated Lady," and alternate mixes of "Supersonic Rocket Ship" and "Unreal Reality." These are nice footnotes, but the story lies in the live tracks, which offer more of the same from the original record.

The Kinks were one of the most important bands from the "British Revolution" in the sixties. The band, based in Muswell Hill in London, consisted of the brothers Davies, (Ray and Dave), Mick Avory and Pete Quaife. During their existence they have played different styles of rock('n'roll) music. Interesting were their lyrics, usually about the lower class of society. Singer Ray Davies has always had a fascination for the ordinary people. After two flops they had their first big hit in 1964: You Really Got Me. This song had a rough guitar riff, that's why some people even call it the first heavy metal song ever. They kept scoring hits after that, timeless songs like Sunny Afternoon, Waterloo Sunset, Lola and All Day And All Of The Night.