Kinks Good Luck Charm

One of the great bands of the rock & roll era, the Kinks pioneered hard rock with such wild early ravers as "You Really Got Me" and "All Day and All of the Night," singles that inspired such peers as the Who and David Bowie while also pointing the way forward for punk and metal. That turned out to be the first act in a career that ran into the 1990s, making them the only British Invasion band outside of the Rolling Stones to last that long. Where the Stones always occupied center stage, the Kinks operated on the margins, both by accident and design. Lead singer/songwriter Ray Davies fashioned himself as an observer of human behavior, developing a gift for character and commentary that flourished on such mid-'60s singles as "Dedicated Follower of Fashion" and "Sunny Afternoon."

Are you more like The Beatles or the Stones ? Kinks ! There are many who chant this name when the famous question sounds. For while the Davies brothers gang never achieved the public success of its two "rivals" , it remains one of the most important and most influential rock bands of the 60s / 70s.Like Lennon/McCartney and Jagger/Richards, Ray Davies was able to challenge himself and thus offer a wide stylistic palette. The Kinks did everything. Rock imbued with rhythm'n'blues and blues, garage rock, stadium rock, Elizabethan rock, country, classic pop, folk, cabaret, etc. but their real uniqueness is to have remained the most british of all English bands of that time.

Face to Face was a remarkable record, but its follow-up, Something Else, expands its accomplishments, offering 13 classic British pop songs. As Ray Davies' songwriting becomes more refined, he becomes more nostalgic and sentimental, retreating from the psychedelic and mod posturings that had dominated the rock world. Indeed, Something Else sounds like nothing else from 1967. The Kinks never rock very hard on the album, preferring acoustic ballads, music hall numbers, and tempered R&B to full-out guitar attacks. Part of the album's power lies in its calm music, since it provides an elegant support for Davies' character portraits and vignettes. From the martial stomp of "David Watts" to the lovely, shimmering "Waterloo Sunset," there's not a weak song on the record, and several – such as the allegorical "Two Sisters," the Noël Coward-esque "End of the Season," the rolling "Lazy Old Sun," and the wry "Situation Vacant" – are stunners. And just as impressive is the emergence of Dave Davies as a songwriter. His Dylanesque "Death of a Clown" and bluesy rocker "Love Me Till the Sun Shines" hold their own against Ray's masterpieces, and help make Something Else the endlessly fascinating album that it is.

Face to Face was a remarkable record, but its follow-up, Something Else, expands its accomplishments, offering 13 classic British pop songs. As Ray Davies' songwriting becomes more refined, he becomes more nostalgic and sentimental, retreating from the psychedelic and mod posturings that had dominated the rock world. Indeed, Something Else sounds like nothing else from 1967. The Kinks never rock very hard on the album, preferring acoustic ballads, music hall numbers, and tempered R&B to full-out guitar attacks. Part of the album's power lies in its calm music, since it provides an elegant support for Davies' character portraits and vignettes. From the martial stomp of "David Watts" to the lovely, shimmering "Waterloo Sunset," there's not a weak song on the record, and several – such as the allegorical "Two Sisters," the Noël Coward-esque "End of the Season," the rolling "Lazy Old Sun," and the wry "Situation Vacant" – are stunners. And just as impressive is the emergence of Dave Davies as a songwriter. His Dylanesque "Death of a Clown" and bluesy rocker "Love Me Till the Sun Shines" hold their own against Ray's masterpieces, and help make Something Else the endlessly fascinating album that it is.

The Kinks were an English rock band formed in Muswell Hill, North London, by brothers Ray and Dave Davies in 1964. Categorised in the United States as a British Invasion band, the Kinks are recognised as one of the most important and influential rock groups of the era…

Limited six disc box set from the British rockers. This release is collated from all of the BBC owned Kinks recordings that still exist in the archive and charts the inexorable rise of the band: from the first steps on the Pye label, to the glory days as one of the greatest acts of all time. The BBC gave the band a platform and support at crucial stages in their career and The Kinks At The BBC could be seen essentially as an alternate Greatest Hits, a musical growing up in public. This incredible archive represents a great set of previously unreleased recordings in the Kinks catalog. The collection has been brought together by trawling the BBC archives, but also by inviting contributions from fans. Included also is a DVD of the bands sought after appearances on Top of the Pops and the Old Grey Whistle Test a well as concerts from throughout the band's career. This is a first for the band as these recordings have never been available in one place before. The Kinks At The BBC is a triumphant collection of the defining moments of a truly seminal British band, as witnessed, broadcast and archived by the voice of the nation, the BBC.

Limited six disc box set from the British rockers. This release is collated from all of the BBC owned Kinks recordings that still exist in the archive and charts the inexorable rise of the band: from the first steps on the Pye label, to the glory days as one of the greatest acts of all time. The BBC gave the band a platform and support at crucial stages in their career and The Kinks At The BBC could be seen essentially as an alternate Greatest Hits, a musical growing up in public. This incredible archive represents a great set of previously unreleased recordings in the Kinks catalog.

BBC Sessions: 1964–1977 is a 2001 compilation album collecting live tracks recorded by British rock group The Kinks for the BBC.