kia has a new commercial out that features a 68-71 Kinks song...just tryin to figure what song it is......I know......being a Kinks fan, I should know !!!
One day we'll be free....the man knows how to tell a story! I was very fortunate to see him in the Summer of 2006. My wife surprised me and totally made my day!
This whole album is a fucking classic. I can't believe it barely was a blip on the the musical radar in 1968. It's as timeless and awesome now as I am sure it was back then.
How can anyone turn their face at this song and say it is anything less than a masterpiece? I haven't seen anything famous or mainstream even close to this much intellect and inner express for a LONG time... It seems we have lost touch with ourselves. It should also be implied that most popular current music is shit.
Today I woke up and felt tired and blank. I sat on my bed half an hour trying to figure things out, and then I turned on this song and suddenly I couldn't stop smiling. I go through different music phases, but it seems like I also get back to The Kinks eventually.
I recommended VGPS to a lady, well actually I gave her the disc. Wasn't much(?) and told her to give it to her 11-year-old daughter. It all sounds like childrens' songs. Unique sounding this is, doesn't sound like Misfits or Sleepwalker or Rock n Roll Fantasy.
I hate it when people compare groups. It's like making a top ten list of songs, drummers, albums, etc. It's so arbitrary. What hits one listener might mean nothing to someone else. I love the Kinks. I also adore the Beatles and the Who. Ray Davies, John Lennon, Pete Townshend, John Fogerty, and Paul Simon are all brilliant songwriters. Why rank them?
Why do so many Kinks fans feel such resentment towards the Beatles? Like any other art form, music isn't intended to be a contest, although it's constantly made into one by the fans.
@fromthenorthwest I think the reason is because The Beatles are all that most people think of when they think of 60s british rock, while the Kinks get almost no public love in comparison. Heck, same for The Zombies and early Syd Barrett era Floyd
I don't think it's resentment, at least not in my experience. To me it's more or less like The Kinks got robbed of the credit they so rightfully deserved. It is what it is. The Kinks were banned from the U.S. at the height of the British Invasion and not marketed to U.S. audiences. The Beatles were marketed like no other and obviously the results speak for themselves. I consider myself fortunate to be a Kinks fan and appreciate their influence in my life.
yeah the Kinks rule. I'm in a Kinks cover band called the Muswell Hillbillies and we're playing at the BB King Blues Club this summer. You should check it out
The arrangement of this song is just so goddamn ambitious- and remastered, flawless. The spoken word, the spiritual content, the bludgeoning drums, the harmonies, the eastern drone, the irony, the 'druggy' references, the utopian observations, the dichotomy between a loving and disinterested god. As much as I love the Beatles... Ray Davies is a treasure, makes me wish I was British.
i walked outside looked at the big sky and cranked up the music the birds loved it sang a tune flew away yeah yeah yeah homesick blues seeker lovely to see you my friend on the fence moon dark night feed my soul let me feel the truth
@KPizzle1000 I was 15 in l964, loved the beatles, the first 5 albums of the rolling stones, but the kinks were the band that got ahold of my heart...I cant explain it but although I loved the Beatles, it was the kinks music that meant the most to me, they were like a big brother to, I was oldiest in my family....loved the early stones, but then they started to suck after that...the kinks got better and better...still hooked after all these years
@ethifanman When I was 15 (in 1992), I too loved the Beatles and earlier Stones but some of my first musical memories are of the Kinks. When I was learning how to play guitar, I wasn't trying to figure out what John or Keith were playing. I was fixed on the Kinks because they were rawer than the Stones and easier ( to play) than the Beatles. And the Kinks just kicked ass... Great lyrics and melodies, often in about two minutes and change. I too am still hooked..... Aloha fellow Kinks fan!
@ethifanman Yeah, I know what you mean about the stones, I still prefer the Brian Jones-era Stones. Later in the 70's they weren't that great. And yes, the KINKS kept getting better with each album they releases. Very consistent quality in Ray's songs.
Actually on the Blur thing "Modern Life Is Rubbish" is a quote from Ray Davies. Apparently Damon Albern and he were talking at a party.. and you get the idea..
just goes to show how screwed up the world is - when the band with the most Establishment-friendly social commentary/alignment would be banned from the US...never could figure that one out. my folks loved the Kinks they thought they were one of Them not Us...i'm bitter.
Kinksboss1 is exactly on the money - I couldnt say it better - the kinks have tons of great UNKNOWN songs that would have been hits if the morons in the music industry had half a brain.
So true! I believe some people in the music industry actually laugh at the Kinks. I.E. - Rolling Stone magazine published a paragraph in a write-up about the Rolling Stones' "Between the Buttons" album saying that half the song on it are so corny that they should have been sent to the Kinks - postage-paid!?!? What a misconception of a great album (Between the Buttons) - and of a great group (The Kinks).
no other band has more "gems" than these legends, about 400 songs, and their best songs are unheard by 99% of rock listeners, it's really both a shame and a source of pride for us enlightened few
Comments on YouTube are almost always positive (every artist seemingly a "genius") and Kinks comments even more so: supposedly no such thing as a bad Kinks song. I doubt even the Bros. Davies would agree with that. Still, I'm glad they make you happy (Everybody's gonna be happy...)!
Agreed, you start by clicking on songs/artists you like. But then users click around on the menus and occasionally have some critical comments. I'm saying that even for YouTube, the comments regarding the Kinks songs are exceptionally, indiscriminately, glowingly positive.
Jimi Hendrix said this was one of his favorite songs ever, and yet most people have never heard it. Just another Kinks Klassic. No band has had as much influence on all of rock (including punk) as The Kinks; The Beatles were great, but they could not match The Kinks for originality - if The Kinks had not been banned by the f**ing US, they coulda been as big as Beatles - but I'm glad they weren't. To be a part of the Kinks Klub is a special thing, but you need to listen to ALL their LPs 1st :)
This is probably my favorite Kinks album though it's hard to choose. I know "Revolver" is my favorite Beatles album with "The White Album" coming in second. Too bad THIS album was released the same day as "The White Album" (Nov. 22, 1968). There's just no winning that fight! Both bands were equally as good in their own ways, that's why I love practically ALL the music of the '60s. You get to love ALL of it as far as I'm concerned.
The US (Government) did not "ban" the Kinks. Think about it. The government can only ban criminals and no member of the Kinks had been convicted of a felony anywhere. The TRUTH is that the US Entertainment UNIONS withdrew their support of the Kink's tours - since they would employ non-Union stage labor. Typical Ray Davies. Listen to "Get Back into the Line". So PLEASE don't let the myth myth that the US banned the Kinks continue. Pure hogwash.
@JRPetruk Hmmm, me thinkst you should check out the FBI's file on John Lennon. The USA were well known for conspiring against those who didn't toe the line. Unfortunately for JL he got to stay. The Kinks were banned from playing live and from most broadcasts but their music was still released in the US.
@indierocktv, dude, The Beatles put out 12 albums of ground breaking music that pioneered most music you hear today, and I'm still hearing songs on the radio that were totally ripped off from there music. sooo I'm pretty sure the beatles beat the crap out of The Kinks (even though The Kinks are good too).
@PHELCAN The Beatles may still be huge and possibly the most influential band ever, but without the Kinks we would never have had punk, alternative, or even metal, so shut up.
@stoprejectingmynames speaking of metal, the first metal esque song was the kinks' wicked annabella...just listen to the chunky guitar and the subject matter...very metal
@PHELCAN ...Its been said that the Beatles were jealous of the kinks, also, they ripped off ray with some of his ideas....The Beatles were great and always be great in my book, but the kinks got screwed along the way for some unknown reason, just as talented as Beatles....kinks better than the stones or who...
@hegerluke Well I wouldn't go that far to say he was "better" than any of these you mentioned. Well, he is better than Jagger. Lennon and McCartney, Harrison, and Townsend weren't exactly slouches in the songwriting dept. I would say that Ray had a better "eye". He can observe things, mundane everyday things and put them into song. Also, his songs can be both hard-edged and sensitive. There is a poignant and melancholy quality to Ray's songs, but he could also be sharp and scathing.
@indierocktv Excellent review of the kinks, Ive been a fan since day one, Im pushing 61 now, loved the Beatles but to me the kinks were like my older brother...their music hit home for me....Ray is awesome...he has it made, he can walk the streets w/o fans bothering him....
@indierocktv You got it backwards, The Kinks were great, but could not touch The Beatles for originality. It's not even close. 1967 & '68 alone The Beatles output was musically well beyond what The Kinks ever put out as far as stylistic diversity. What do The Kinks have that is close to the barrage of "Helter Skelter", the montage of "Rev. #9", "Within You Without You", "Stw. Fields" or as bare and soul-baring as "Yer Blues"? As great as Davies has been, there's not a great range in their sound.
@indierocktv -- Interesting interpretation, I was just thinking that the backing vocals for the chorus in this song sound a lot like those in "Wind Cries Mary," which was released the year before this album. Along with that, this concept album also kind of touched on ideas like in the other first key concept albums, Pet Sounds and Sgt. Peppers in the two years before. I don't think the Kinks invented anything, but I love them for the sake of witty interpretation what others were doing.
I never took this song as being about an indifferent god, though compared to a "personal god" that's how it must seem. Just a god that's not a giant-size version of us - and I find that vision very comforting, and find this song very soothing as well.
Whenever people try to force their version of god on me as if god is some kind of personal pan pizza, I think Why stop at one god? Let's have thousands, millions, billions...and so we have, each our own, all shared under one Big Sky.
Well I've read that Ray wrote this after attending a play or something and as he was exiting the playhouse, he noticed all the "upper crust" sitting in the upstairs balcony looking down on everybody else. You know, typical Ray singing about those in power and thinking they are God.
sounds dead right to me... rays deep insight to his post war surroundings as a child and its effect on english society as he was growing up coupled with... his distain for the "old guard" stiff upper lip is everywhere in this song... Best kinks album ever...
Late edition? Floyd made one album before Gilmour replaced Barrett. In fact they had material that Barrett had recorded that they used on "A Saucerful of Secerts" after Gilmour joined the band, so they can both be heard on that album (the song "set the controls for the heart of the sun" contains guitar work from both members). What could you possibly mean by "late edition" though? he was there for all but one album.
This lp convinced me I wasn't doomed to be a true hippy in 68-69. Too many stories in my head, too. I tried to be influenced by Ray's style in music but I ended up being an English Lit. teacher. But this lp & "Something Else"... Well, you just had to be there to really understand what it meant to us...that's all.
The Kinks were so awesome in the 60s, but after that.....what happened? Ray got too cynical in the 70s and it all went downhill from there. The Kinks were a fun band in concert in the 70s (I saw them many times) but their albums on RCA and Arista are nowhere near the brilliance of their 60s output.
I first saw the Kinks on the Low Budget tour in 1979 and was blown away...but had been listening to them since Schoolboys in Disgrace, their music from 1964-94 remains immoral...true, this song would be hard to beat anytime but they had great songs like Scattered until the end
I suppose so, but I guess after seeing them in concert on every tour from '71-'76 I got tired of them and lost interest. The final straw was a show with The Pretty Things as the opening act (promoting their "Silk Torpedo" LP), and I thought they were much more impressive than The Kinks.
Unfortunately they lost me as a fan when the RCA period was ending and never got me back. I moved on to other things. I'm glad you like the later stuff but I wasn't interested in Ray's quaint little storysongs anymore. That's my story.
the stories and the melodies were there, but musically they were best in the 60s. I didn't like that generic-sounding rock they did for Arista. It was sort of like Ray Davies backed by Bad Company or something. Ray got a bit too big for his britches and the band started playing stadiums instead of medium sized venues and that's when it wasn't as good anymore. They went too mainstream for me.
This is definately one of the best songs on the album. Such a beautiful song!
Fuck the Jonas Bros, this is REAL talent, not mainstream shit made by a fake manufactured Disney band, whose only talent is an exceptional ability to create bad music.
Tough call about the The Kinks being better than the Beatles...but what I will say individually Ray Davies was a better songwriter than anyone in The Beatles...save perhaps John Lennon.
Ray is whizzing on a stove? Good thing it's not an electric stove!! Why is there a stove in the gents? Is that why the Brits sing "God Save the Latrine"?!? No wonder you all have green teeth.
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PHELCAN 2 weeks ago
One day, we'll be free...!
DailyAlice100 1 month ago
This Is England.
I'm not even from England, but surely everyone knows that this is the real sound of '68.
Disillusionment with the spirit of '67 on a comedown, not wanting to embrace the roughness of America.
Look back, and what it means to be (middle class) English.
The Village Green Preservation Society is a beautiful journey, which everyone can enjoy.
Jarren202 2 months ago
This album is one of the best albums ever made. Not a dud on it.
MusicJew158 3 months ago 5
Saguaroboy is right on
MusicJew158 3 months ago
thanks a ton...and ..."God Save the Kinks"
brianthebastard 3 months ago
@brianthebastard
and its the Toyata Prius family ad
kinksboss1 3 months ago
kia has a new commercial out that features a 68-71 Kinks song...just tryin to figure what song it is......I know......being a Kinks fan, I should know !!!
brianthebastard 3 months ago
@brianthebastard
The Kia ad song is "Gotta Be Free"
jinky0 3 months ago
@jinky0
er..."Got To Be Free"
jinky0 3 months ago
hahaha who knew the aquabats version was a remake.... I dont know which I like better.
ashnikes 4 months ago
I play big sky in the morning, I play big sky at night; I play big sky in the afternoon, It makes me feel alright.
44buckwheat 4 months ago in playlist kinks
One day we'll be free....the man knows how to tell a story! I was very fortunate to see him in the Summer of 2006. My wife surprised me and totally made my day!
Sooji78k 5 months ago
This whole album is a fucking classic. I can't believe it barely was a blip on the the musical radar in 1968. It's as timeless and awesome now as I am sure it was back then.
LTDViperDeli 5 months ago
When will we be free? I guess it won't let it get me down...
ScienceMystifies 6 months ago
i feel alive when i hear this music the music of my year 1968
68beano 6 months ago
first hip-hop song ever?
jdmarbury3 7 months ago
How can anyone turn their face at this song and say it is anything less than a masterpiece? I haven't seen anything famous or mainstream even close to this much intellect and inner express for a LONG time... It seems we have lost touch with ourselves. It should also be implied that most popular current music is shit.
TheNoBSZone 7 months ago 3
this tune is a killer
danalovesjoe5555 7 months ago 2
I like the feel and sound of this song. A new song to me, but glad for a new discovery.
Broblem12 8 months ago
Today I woke up and felt tired and blank. I sat on my bed half an hour trying to figure things out, and then I turned on this song and suddenly I couldn't stop smiling. I go through different music phases, but it seems like I also get back to The Kinks eventually.
Dandyincursive 9 months ago
never mind the details the Kinks Are forever!
TheFlambrosia 9 months ago
Fuck the Beatles!!
173rdbobby1967 9 months ago
i can see why jimi liked this, it kinda has a "hey joe" feel to it God Save the Kinks!!!
brianthebastard 10 months ago
5 dislikes? why?..
bjmarchives 10 months ago
I recommended VGPS to a lady, well actually I gave her the disc. Wasn't much(?) and told her to give it to her 11-year-old daughter. It all sounds like childrens' songs. Unique sounding this is, doesn't sound like Misfits or Sleepwalker or Rock n Roll Fantasy.
spoildn8410 11 months ago
I hate it when people compare groups. It's like making a top ten list of songs, drummers, albums, etc. It's so arbitrary. What hits one listener might mean nothing to someone else. I love the Kinks. I also adore the Beatles and the Who. Ray Davies, John Lennon, Pete Townshend, John Fogerty, and Paul Simon are all brilliant songwriters. Why rank them?
JohnnyCxviii 11 months ago 2
Ray Davies= lyrical genius right on the level of Lennon, McCartney and Syd Barrett for that matter.
DaveS12382 1 year ago
The Kinks and The Beatles are both fucking amazing.
MusicJew158 1 year ago
Big Sky ....God ?
DaDa2Phlux 1 year ago
what mix is this? is it the remastered cd?
elephantstone222 1 year ago
beatles can't be overrated.
i love the kinks too.
nestorguti2176 1 year ago
Why do so many Kinks fans feel such resentment towards the Beatles? Like any other art form, music isn't intended to be a contest, although it's constantly made into one by the fans.
fromthenorthwest 1 year ago 8
@fromthenorthwest I think the reason is because The Beatles are all that most people think of when they think of 60s british rock, while the Kinks get almost no public love in comparison. Heck, same for The Zombies and early Syd Barrett era Floyd
DangerMcDeathface 7 months ago
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CreatingExcellence 2 months ago
This has been flagged as spam show
@fromthenorthwest
I don't think it's resentment, at least not in my experience. To me it's more or less like The Kinks got robbed of the credit they so rightfully deserved. It is what it is. The Kinks were banned from the U.S. at the height of the British Invasion and not marketed to U.S. audiences. The Beatles were marketed like no other and obviously the results speak for themselves. I consider myself fortunate to be a Kinks fan and appreciate their influence in my life.
CreatingExcellence 2 months ago
klub is spelled with a c
jfig1000 1 year ago 4
@jfig1000 You should call it the Kool Kinks Klub. KKK seems pretty catchy
conboybp 1 year ago
yeah its too bad that only few people really knw much about them and the music. and yes they are amazing
Duddydolittle 1 year ago
I love the message they convey in this song
snoopsmiles 1 year ago
nice little guitar riff
me likey:)
67arielove 1 year ago
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PicnicHikeMusic 1 year ago
What I wouldn't give to have been alive and English during the 60's..........
Dandyincursive 1 year ago
This song is so kickass that is just killed me and brought me back to life again man. dude :O
ZeppelinxOfxLed 1 year ago
Ive got 2 Kinks singles collection cds and neither includes this song, which is a shame cos its brilliant
TheSpursrule4ever 1 year ago
yeah the Kinks rule. I'm in a Kinks cover band called the Muswell Hillbillies and we're playing at the BB King Blues Club this summer. You should check it out
leveille1313 1 year ago
Wow this song is a humanity's masterpiece !
AnarchoSoyaboy 1 year ago
Rest in peace, Pete Quaife. I'm keeping your memory, and the Spirit of The 60s alive.
SidTheLoveRat 1 year ago 2
this song is freaking amazing.....I have heard at least 20kinks songs.....werewolfs of london was influence by this......lol
coversongsallthetime 1 year ago
@indierocktv I can totally hear Jimi doing a version of this.
jcgrabow 1 year ago
RIP, Pete. And thank you.
wickedannabella69 1 year ago
happy birthday ray davies
shanehenning26 1 year ago
Play this loud, there's a lot going on.
paddyo702 1 year ago 2
the intro is fantastic, 1968 flavor
pietrogutta 1 year ago
The arrangement of this song is just so goddamn ambitious- and remastered, flawless. The spoken word, the spiritual content, the bludgeoning drums, the harmonies, the eastern drone, the irony, the 'druggy' references, the utopian observations, the dichotomy between a loving and disinterested god. As much as I love the Beatles... Ray Davies is a treasure, makes me wish I was British.
saguaroboy 1 year ago 17
@saguaroboy thank you, for your cultured insight. :) rock on
JJJCFLS4 4 months ago
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JJJCFLS4 4 months ago
KINKS THE BEST OF THE BEST11111
kentcrawf 1 year ago
i walked outside looked at the big sky and cranked up the music the birds loved it sang a tune flew away yeah yeah yeah homesick blues seeker lovely to see you my friend on the fence moon dark night feed my soul let me feel the truth
68beano 1 year ago 4
poop poop im immature
BagelHottness 1 year ago
Why are we talking about Pink Floyd? This is a Kinks' song.
idieinelevators 1 year ago
or highliy underrated work on a very good album(a little bit to romantic for ´68 zeitgeist)naja aber wir mögen es was?
feldi71 1 year ago
The kniks are the village green preservation society is in my opinion the kinks best work and a highly underrated album
jimmy47202 1 year ago
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stonerbudkap 1 year ago
When people ask me if I'm a Beatles or Stones fan, I'm proud to say Kinks.
KPizzle1000 1 year ago 65
And I'm proud to say Beatles but the Kinks are good too.
PHELCAN 1 year ago
@KPizzle1000 nice
johnseabron 1 year ago
@KPizzle1000 I was 15 in l964, loved the beatles, the first 5 albums of the rolling stones, but the kinks were the band that got ahold of my heart...I cant explain it but although I loved the Beatles, it was the kinks music that meant the most to me, they were like a big brother to, I was oldiest in my family....loved the early stones, but then they started to suck after that...the kinks got better and better...still hooked after all these years
ethifanman 1 year ago 2
@ethifanman When I was 15 (in 1992), I too loved the Beatles and earlier Stones but some of my first musical memories are of the Kinks. When I was learning how to play guitar, I wasn't trying to figure out what John or Keith were playing. I was fixed on the Kinks because they were rawer than the Stones and easier ( to play) than the Beatles. And the Kinks just kicked ass... Great lyrics and melodies, often in about two minutes and change. I too am still hooked..... Aloha fellow Kinks fan!
KPizzle1000 1 year ago
@ethifanman Yeah, I know what you mean about the stones, I still prefer the Brian Jones-era Stones. Later in the 70's they weren't that great. And yes, the KINKS kept getting better with each album they releases. Very consistent quality in Ray's songs.
greengargantua 1 year ago
@KPizzle1000 FUCK YES
COPMMUSIC 1 year ago
@KPizzle1000 hater
BlackSN8K 8 months ago
@BlackSN8K How is he hating?
MRdownfoemythang 8 months ago
@MRdownfoemythang he's a hater and so are you.. now get off my nuts!
BlackSN8K 8 months ago
@BlackSN8K Straight trollin.
MRdownfoemythang 8 months ago
@MRdownfoemythang what tha fuck are you talking about?!
BlackSN8K 8 months ago
Comment removed
MRdownfoemythang 8 months ago
@MRdownfoemythang what tha fuck is trollin'? i don't know gay shit like that!..
BlackSN8K 8 months ago
@MRdownfoemythang I wondered that myself!
KPizzle1000 8 months ago
Actually on the Blur thing "Modern Life Is Rubbish" is a quote from Ray Davies. Apparently Damon Albern and he were talking at a party.. and you get the idea..
Jonestein13 1 year ago
who killed sgt pepper?
antonfjordson 1 year ago
Unban me damn it.
slctdmbntwrx 1 year ago
why did i block you and how do you unblock you?and who are you?
antonfjordson 1 year ago
kinksactuallyschooledeveryoneincludingbandstheysayarebetter
sarahlafish 2 years ago
that fucking riff
beethousand 2 years ago 2
WHICH ONE! There's, like, two in the song. Awesome.
StevieWonder501 1 year ago
just goes to show how screwed up the world is - when the band with the most Establishment-friendly social commentary/alignment would be banned from the US...never could figure that one out. my folks loved the Kinks they thought they were one of Them not Us...i'm bitter.
talpajam 2 years ago
save a tree and smoke a plant =]
fro164 2 years ago 2
This song reminds the Gift by velvet underground.They have similar diction.Also Blur's Parklife is almost a copy of this one
jimi8978 2 years ago
Blur often cited the Kinks as an influence. There's definitely some Kinks in a lot of their songs.
ronson232 2 years ago
First posted about this magnificent song 8 mos ago...
I still get that feeling... when I look at this photo... and hear that music... that the men's room is a sacred place ! :)
Seriously, I love the bigness of this song.
sbarr10 2 years ago 2
Kinksboss1 is exactly on the money - I couldnt say it better - the kinks have tons of great UNKNOWN songs that would have been hits if the morons in the music industry had half a brain.
ethifanman 2 years ago 4
They didn't yes the right people.
PorchDogPondering 2 years ago
@ethifanman
So true! I believe some people in the music industry actually laugh at the Kinks. I.E. - Rolling Stone magazine published a paragraph in a write-up about the Rolling Stones' "Between the Buttons" album saying that half the song on it are so corny that they should have been sent to the Kinks - postage-paid!?!? What a misconception of a great album (Between the Buttons) - and of a great group (The Kinks).
classiclistener01 2 years ago
The fun with Kinks is that once in a while you'll find a gem. This is one of them.
ScottAln05 2 years ago
@ScottAln05
no other band has more "gems" than these legends, about 400 songs, and their best songs are unheard by 99% of rock listeners, it's really both a shame and a source of pride for us enlightened few
kinksboss1 2 years ago 11
once in a while ?????
i love em all : )
jamreaper 2 years ago 2
Comments on YouTube are almost always positive (every artist seemingly a "genius") and Kinks comments even more so: supposedly no such thing as a bad Kinks song. I doubt even the Bros. Davies would agree with that. Still, I'm glad they make you happy (Everybody's gonna be happy...)!
ScottAln05 2 years ago 3
well the reason most youtube comments r good is because u dont wanna watch something thats bad
so ur gonna watch things u like so ur gonna write good comments about em
jamreaper 2 years ago
Agreed, you start by clicking on songs/artists you like. But then users click around on the menus and occasionally have some critical comments. I'm saying that even for YouTube, the comments regarding the Kinks songs are exceptionally, indiscriminately, glowingly positive.
ScottAln05 2 years ago
Quite brilliant, really.
jcatjoey 2 years ago 3
I always thought this song had a "Hendrix" feeling, I'm not surprised that he loved it, but it's nice to hear!
cpartilecoco 2 years ago 6
Jimi Hendrix said this was one of his favorite songs ever, and yet most people have never heard it. Just another Kinks Klassic. No band has had as much influence on all of rock (including punk) as The Kinks; The Beatles were great, but they could not match The Kinks for originality - if The Kinks had not been banned by the f**ing US, they coulda been as big as Beatles - but I'm glad they weren't. To be a part of the Kinks Klub is a special thing, but you need to listen to ALL their LPs 1st :)
indierocktv 2 years ago 35
This is probably my favorite Kinks album though it's hard to choose. I know "Revolver" is my favorite Beatles album with "The White Album" coming in second. Too bad THIS album was released the same day as "The White Album" (Nov. 22, 1968). There's just no winning that fight! Both bands were equally as good in their own ways, that's why I love practically ALL the music of the '60s. You get to love ALL of it as far as I'm concerned.
MattHatter 2 years ago
Were the Kinks really banned in the US? why?
happyness1957 2 years ago
The US (Government) did not "ban" the Kinks. Think about it. The government can only ban criminals and no member of the Kinks had been convicted of a felony anywhere. The TRUTH is that the US Entertainment UNIONS withdrew their support of the Kink's tours - since they would employ non-Union stage labor. Typical Ray Davies. Listen to "Get Back into the Line". So PLEASE don't let the myth myth that the US banned the Kinks continue. Pure hogwash.
JRPetruk 2 years ago
@JRPetruk Hmmm, me thinkst you should check out the FBI's file on John Lennon. The USA were well known for conspiring against those who didn't toe the line. Unfortunately for JL he got to stay. The Kinks were banned from playing live and from most broadcasts but their music was still released in the US.
Beadgarden 2 years ago
@indierocktv
Kids Kinks Klub
DevinTClark 1 year ago
@indierocktv, dude, The Beatles put out 12 albums of ground breaking music that pioneered most music you hear today, and I'm still hearing songs on the radio that were totally ripped off from there music. sooo I'm pretty sure the beatles beat the crap out of The Kinks (even though The Kinks are good too).
PHELCAN 1 year ago
@PHELCAN The Beatles may still be huge and possibly the most influential band ever, but without the Kinks we would never have had punk, alternative, or even metal, so shut up.
stoprejectingmynames 1 year ago
@stoprejectingmynames speaking of metal, the first metal esque song was the kinks' wicked annabella...just listen to the chunky guitar and the subject matter...very metal
Egduf57 1 year ago
@PHELCAN ...Its been said that the Beatles were jealous of the kinks, also, they ripped off ray with some of his ideas....The Beatles were great and always be great in my book, but the kinks got screwed along the way for some unknown reason, just as talented as Beatles....kinks better than the stones or who...
ethifanman 1 year ago
@ethifanman Ray Davies is a better lyricist than John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison, Mick Jagger and Pete Townsend put together!
hegerluke 1 year ago
@hegerluke Well I wouldn't go that far to say he was "better" than any of these you mentioned. Well, he is better than Jagger. Lennon and McCartney, Harrison, and Townsend weren't exactly slouches in the songwriting dept. I would say that Ray had a better "eye". He can observe things, mundane everyday things and put them into song. Also, his songs can be both hard-edged and sensitive. There is a poignant and melancholy quality to Ray's songs, but he could also be sharp and scathing.
greengargantua 1 year ago
@hegerluke Thats a bold statement. One that has merit but is certainly arguable to the end of time. Like your ambitiousness though.
DaveS12382 1 year ago
@indierocktv Excellent review of the kinks, Ive been a fan since day one, Im pushing 61 now, loved the Beatles but to me the kinks were like my older brother...their music hit home for me....Ray is awesome...he has it made, he can walk the streets w/o fans bothering him....
ethifanman 1 year ago
@indierocktv Just one thing to tell you:you are the man!Totally agree with you.
Eliascalifa 1 year ago
@indierocktv i think the Beatles had a much bigger influence. they were much bigger. thus they influenced more people.
ChairZomg 1 year ago
@indierocktv Then, once you're in the Klub, all the members apologize to you for your having to listen to "Soap Opera" and "Preservation." :-)
anjiaoshi 1 year ago
@indierocktv this is my favorite Kinks song too. I'm not surprised about Hendrix, there are elements from this song in Burning The Midnight Lamp.
No need to measure them to the Beatles, who really were totally overrated. There were so many better bands from the late 60s.
Citadin 1 year ago
@indierocktv You got it backwards, The Kinks were great, but could not touch The Beatles for originality. It's not even close. 1967 & '68 alone The Beatles output was musically well beyond what The Kinks ever put out as far as stylistic diversity. What do The Kinks have that is close to the barrage of "Helter Skelter", the montage of "Rev. #9", "Within You Without You", "Stw. Fields" or as bare and soul-baring as "Yer Blues"? As great as Davies has been, there's not a great range in their sound.
Ldale11 11 months ago 2
@indierocktv fuck yeah indie!
TheFlambrosia 10 months ago
@indierocktv -- Interesting interpretation, I was just thinking that the backing vocals for the chorus in this song sound a lot like those in "Wind Cries Mary," which was released the year before this album. Along with that, this concept album also kind of touched on ideas like in the other first key concept albums, Pet Sounds and Sgt. Peppers in the two years before. I don't think the Kinks invented anything, but I love them for the sake of witty interpretation what others were doing.
theseanze 9 months ago
@indierocktv why were they banned from the US?
TheRaizen33 9 months ago
@indierocktv Hendrix's cover of La poupee qui fait non sounds a lot like this song, it reminds me of it.
Slider388 8 months ago
I never took this song as being about an indifferent god, though compared to a "personal god" that's how it must seem. Just a god that's not a giant-size version of us - and I find that vision very comforting, and find this song very soothing as well.
Whenever people try to force their version of god on me as if god is some kind of personal pan pizza, I think Why stop at one god? Let's have thousands, millions, billions...and so we have, each our own, all shared under one Big Sky.
fantacyber 2 years ago
i can't get over how brilliant the kinks are.
whitestripebuzz 2 years ago 3
This is a great song!
paddyo702 2 years ago 3
Song about an indifferent God. Wow.
TKATPGAS is an amazing album. I regret discovering it for myself relatively late in my youth.
SteveAndIdiAmin 2 years ago
Well I've read that Ray wrote this after attending a play or something and as he was exiting the playhouse, he noticed all the "upper crust" sitting in the upstairs balcony looking down on everybody else. You know, typical Ray singing about those in power and thinking they are God.
MattHatter 2 years ago 3
sounds dead right to me... rays deep insight to his post war surroundings as a child and its effect on english society as he was growing up coupled with... his distain for the "old guard" stiff upper lip is everywhere in this song... Best kinks album ever...
markpetersound 2 years ago
If Ray rejuvinates The Kinks I'm hoping he keeps Dave Clarke on as lead Guitar.That guy is awesome.
bsmithgates 2 years ago
It's not the Kinks without Dave Davies on lead guitar. That's like Pink Floyd trying to be Pink Floyd without David Gilmour.
boscoruby 2 years ago 2
But Piper At the Gates of Dawn is an amazing album and that has no gilmour
ExxonAmadeus 2 years ago
uhm, Dave Gilmour Is a relatively late edition to the Floyd actually.
Jonestein13 1 year ago
uhm, Dave Gilmour led the band after Waters' departure after "The Wall" (or "The Final Cut" if you want to be a dick about it).
boscoruby 1 year ago
You have a point? Gilmour joined before ummagumma, Waters was there for 11 of 14 studio albums. All I was saying is bands change.
Jonestein13 1 year ago
Late edition? Floyd made one album before Gilmour replaced Barrett. In fact they had material that Barrett had recorded that they used on "A Saucerful of Secerts" after Gilmour joined the band, so they can both be heard on that album (the song "set the controls for the heart of the sun" contains guitar work from both members). What could you possibly mean by "late edition" though? he was there for all but one album.
kmcc2576 1 year ago
I can't believe this song isn't on The Kinks Ultimate Collection... it fucking should be! Amazing song.
ladyj2502 2 years ago 2
This lp convinced me I wasn't doomed to be a true hippy in 68-69. Too many stories in my head, too. I tried to be influenced by Ray's style in music but I ended up being an English Lit. teacher. But this lp & "Something Else"... Well, you just had to be there to really understand what it meant to us...that's all.
rhinohouse 2 years ago 2
My absolute favorite Kinks song. Ray is such a genius. Just think he was only 24 when this song was released!
hunkyboots 2 years ago 10
BEST ALBUM EVER
COPMMUSIC 2 years ago 2
its the business isnt it, years ahead of their time
locorojo25 2 years ago 2
btw, in this song EVERY person in the world can find a solution to their problems: 1:22 ff.
=o)
whity72 2 years ago
The Kinks were so awesome in the 60s, but after that.....what happened? Ray got too cynical in the 70s and it all went downhill from there. The Kinks were a fun band in concert in the 70s (I saw them many times) but their albums on RCA and Arista are nowhere near the brilliance of their 60s output.
moorlock2003 2 years ago
I first saw the Kinks on the Low Budget tour in 1979 and was blown away...but had been listening to them since Schoolboys in Disgrace, their music from 1964-94 remains immoral...true, this song would be hard to beat anytime but they had great songs like Scattered until the end
kinksboss1 2 years ago
I suppose so, but I guess after seeing them in concert on every tour from '71-'76 I got tired of them and lost interest. The final straw was a show with The Pretty Things as the opening act (promoting their "Silk Torpedo" LP), and I thought they were much more impressive than The Kinks.
moorlock2003 2 years ago
I would say Sleepwalker is as brilliant as their 60ies albums, same as Soap Opera - great little stories and / or perfect melodies - The Kinks! :)
whity72 2 years ago
Unfortunately they lost me as a fan when the RCA period was ending and never got me back. I moved on to other things. I'm glad you like the later stuff but I wasn't interested in Ray's quaint little storysongs anymore. That's my story.
moorlock2003 2 years ago
the stories and the melodies were there, but musically they were best in the 60s. I didn't like that generic-sounding rock they did for Arista. It was sort of like Ray Davies backed by Bad Company or something. Ray got a bit too big for his britches and the band started playing stadiums instead of medium sized venues and that's when it wasn't as good anymore. They went too mainstream for me.
moorlock2003 2 years ago
moorlock2003, thanks for the great comment, opens the mind for a different look on their work...
whity72 2 years ago
The Kinks changed my life.
8herecomesthesun 2 years ago 3
Totally Great song and band
seansurlow 2 years ago
This is definately one of the best songs on the album. Such a beautiful song!
Fuck the Jonas Bros, this is REAL talent, not mainstream shit made by a fake manufactured Disney band, whose only talent is an exceptional ability to create bad music.
worldsno1drwhofan 2 years ago 13
Have my babies? xD
SickIncKamikaze 2 years ago 4
Wow, way to drop the music lit level of the conversation.
Jonestein13 1 year ago
This comment has received too many negative votes show
There are a lot of bands from the 60s that are better than both the beatles and the kinks, it's pointless to debate.
This being said, Big Sky is a magnificent song.
Citadin 2 years ago
Oh yeah? Please share with me which bands are better and why they are better?
tbmang12 2 years ago
ahahahaha. This is ridiculous.
citta93 2 years ago
It seems opinions are pointless in the world of Youtube.
TheWalrusOfLife 2 years ago 3
Comment removed
enigmaCSS 2 years ago
this ones funny
Kinks > Van Halen
Jake2396 2 years ago 2
Tough call about the The Kinks being better than the Beatles...but what I will say individually Ray Davies was a better songwriter than anyone in The Beatles...save perhaps John Lennon.
FaithIsAnnoyed 2 years ago 3
yea... im confused... why do people always have to compare?
2 different bands.... i mean wtf
enigmaCSS 2 years ago 2
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HelterSkelter085 2 years ago
KINKS > beatles kinks are >9000 better than beatles
mercee95 2 years ago 3
KINKS > beatles
walker5577 2 years ago 7
Couldnt agree more. This album alone is enough to show it.
worldsno1drwhofan 2 years ago
i like both but im a die-hard beatles fan
enigmaCSS 2 years ago
Saw the Kinks twice in the 70s/80s. Great live band!
Flop did a very decent cover of this on their debut album "Flop & the Fall of the Mopsqueezer".
shadowtoia 2 years ago
such a great song
kinksboss1 2 years ago
In his autobiography, Ray said that when he was a kid the family doctor told Ray's mother that Ray was destined to be a preacher.
Preach on Ray!
sbarr10 2 years ago 4
I cannot tell you how true that is.
worldsno1drwhofan 2 years ago
Boy, after listening to this and seeing this image, I'll never think of the mens room the same way again, LOL !
sbarr10 2 years ago 2
Is Ray taking a whiz?
MurrayShempstein 2 years ago 3
"Is Ray taking a whiz? "
Isn`t it a coal-burning stove ?
Looks like a Rorschach test
And it`s the Whizz-Art of US who makes us perceive what we expect to be true.
Macrotodon 2 years ago
Ray is whizzing on a stove? Good thing it's not an electric stove!! Why is there a stove in the gents? Is that why the Brits sing "God Save the Latrine"?!? No wonder you all have green teeth.
BailMeOutObama 2 years ago 4