Kwyet Kinks | ||||
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EP by | ||||
Released | 17 September 1965 | |||
Recorded | 3 May and c. 5 August 1965 | |||
Studio | Pye, London | |||
Genre | Folk rock | |||
Length | 9:48 | |||
Label | Pye | |||
Producer | Shel Talmy | |||
The Kinks EP chronology | ||||
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Kwyet Kinks is the third EP by the English rock band the Kinks. It was released on 17 September 1965 in the United Kingdom by Pye Records. Driven by the inclusion of the song "A Well Respected Man", Kwyet Kinks topped sales charts in Britain for several weeks. In the United States, which had no corresponding market for EPs, Reprise Records instead used its songs as the basis for the November 1965 LP Kinkdom .
With its mostly acoustic sound, Kwyet Kinks represented a departure from the heavier rock for which the Kinks had become known, a change reflected in the title with its play on the word "quiet". Contemporary and retrospective coverage of the EP has typically focused on "A Well Respected Man", which marked a shift in bandleader Ray Davies's songwriting towards social commentary. Ray hoped that the success of Kwyet Kinks would allow for more EPs made up of exclusive material, but Pye's focus on the more popular singles market meant that future Kinks EPs instead collected previously released recordings.
The Kinks' singles and LPs from mid-1964 to mid-1965 were characterised by a focus on fast, gritty rhythm and blues and rock and roll. [1] Kwyet Kinks marked a stylistic departure from the Kinks' earlier output by being mostly acoustic in sound, [2] a change reflected in the title through its play on the word "quiet". [3] The music critic Richie Unterberger describes the EP as generally folk rock. [4] The Kinks recorded all four of its songs at Pye Studios in London around 5 August 1965, except for "Wait Till the Summer Comes Along", which they recorded on 3 May. [5] Shel Talmy produced the EP and Alan MacKenzie likely engineered. [6]
Dave Davies composed and sang the EP's lead track, "Wait Till the Summer Comes Along", a country-tinged ballad featuring a twelve-string guitar. [7] The song was the first by the Kinks written only by Dave, [8] and his brother Ray Davies composed and sang the EP's remaining three songs. [6] [nb 1] Contemporary and subsequent coverage of the EP has typically focused on Ray's song "A Well Respected Man", which signalled his shift in songwriting from basic sentiments about love towards satire and social commentary about contemporary British society. [9] Among band biographers, Johnny Rogan writes that the song "Such a Shame" suggested the Kinks' transition from beat music to folk rock, [10] and Nick Hasted writes that the appeals to comfort, familiarity and domestic life in "Don't You Fret" anticipated Ray's later songwriting. [11]
Pye Records issued Kwyet Kinks in the United Kingdom on 17 September 1965. [6] The release was the band's third EP released in the UK and their second to feature entirely new material, following the previous year's Kinksize Session . [12] The critic Allen Evans reviewed Kwyet Kinks favourably in New Musical Express , writing that the band's softer sound proved as successful as their louder output. [6] [13] "A Well Respected Man" received regular airplay on UK radio stations, driving sales of Kwyet Kinks, [14] which reached number one on both Record Retailer and Record Mirror magazines' EP charts. [6] [15] The EP remained on Record Mirror's chart for 32 weeks. [16]
One of the year's best sellers, [11] Kwyet Kinks's sales exceeded what was typical for an EP at that time. [17] Prompted by the release's unexpected success, [18] Ray promised in interviews that the Kinks would release more EPs satirising unconventional trends and fashions, [19] hoping that the format would prove an ideal medium in developing his songwriting. [18] As Pye's focus remained on the more profitable singles market, [18] the label cancelled all planned EPs of new Kinks material and instead recycled older material on subsequent releases. [10] [nb 2]
In the United States, where EPs were comparatively uncommon, Reprise Records instead used the songs on Kwyet Kinks as the basis for the US-only LP Kinkdom . Released on 24 November 1965, Kinkdom peaked at number 47 on the Billboard Top LPs chart. In addition, the label issued "A Well Respected Man" as a single on 4 November. [20] Though the band were unable to promote the single's release, it reached number 13 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart. [21] [nb 3] Reflecting on the situation decades later, Rogan characterises the decision by Pye to relegate "A Well Respected Man" to Kwyet Kinks rather than releasing it as a UK single as "[p]robably one of the greatest blunders in the Kinks' career". [23] [nb 4]
All tracks written by Ray Davies, except "Wait Till the Summer Comes Along" by Dave Davies. [nb 1] Track lengths are from the 2011 Deluxe Edition of Kinda Kinks , and are per AllMusic. [24]
Side one
Side two
According to the band researcher Doug Hinman: [6]
The Kinks
Production
Chart (1965–66) | Peak position |
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UK Record Mirror EP chart [15] | 1 |
UK Record Retailer EP chart [6] | 1 |
The Kinks Are the Village Green Preservation Society is the sixth studio album by the English rock band the Kinks. Released on 22 November 1968, Village Green is regarded by commentators as an early concept album. A modest seller on release, it was the band's first studio album which failed to chart in either the United Kingdom or United States, but was lauded by contemporary critics for its songwriting. It was embraced by America's new underground rock press, completing the Kinks' transformation from mid-1960s pop hitmakers to critically favoured cult band.
"A Well Respected Man" is a song by the British band the Kinks, written by the group's lead singer and rhythm guitarist Ray Davies, and originally released in the United Kingdom on the EP Kwyet Kinks in September 1965. The song was released on the album Kinkdom in the United States. It was also released as a single in the US and Continental Europe.
"The Village Green Preservation Society" is a song by the English rock band the Kinks from their 1968 album The Kinks Are the Village Green Preservation Society. Written and sung by the band's principal songwriter Ray Davies, the song is a nostalgic reflection where the band state their intention to "preserve" British things for posterity. As the opening track, the song introduces many of the LP's themes, and Ray subsequently described it as the album's "national anthem".
The Kinks, an English rock band, were active for over three decades, from 1963 to 1996, releasing 24 studio albums and four live albums. The first two albums are differently released in the UK and the US, partly due to the difference in popularity of the extended play format, and partly due to the US albums including the hit singles, and the UK albums not; after The Kink Kontroversy in 1965 the albums were the same. Between 100 and 200 compilation albums have been released worldwide.
"See My Friends" is a song by the English rock band the Kinks, written by the group's singer and guitarist, Ray Davies. Released in July 1965, it reached number 10 on the Record Retailer chart. The song incorporates a drone-effect played on guitar, evoking a sound reminiscent of the Indian tambura.
Four More Respected Gentlemen is an unreleased album by the English rock band the Kinks. The project arose out of the band's different American contract schedule, which obligated them to submit a new LP to Reprise Records in June 1968. As the band continued recording their next album, released later in the year as The Kinks Are the Village Green Preservation Society, bandleader Ray Davies submitted fifteen completed master tapes to Reprise. The label planned to issue the LP in the US in November 1968 but abandoned the project only a month beforehand for unclear reasons.
"Wonderboy" is a song by the English rock band the Kinks, released as a single in 1968. It stalled at number 36 in the UK charts, becoming the band's first single not to make the UK Top Twenty since their early covers.
The Kinks Greatest Hits! is a compilation album by the English rock band the Kinks. Released in the United States in August 1966 by Reprise Records, the album mostly consists of singles issued by the group between 1964 and 1966. The band's first greatest hits album, it remained on the Billboard Top LPs chart for over a year, peaking at number 9, making it the Kinks' highest charting album in the US. The album was in print for decades and was the Kinks' only gold record in America until 1980.
Well Respected Kinks is a compilation album by the English rock band the Kinks. It was released on 2 September 1966 in the United Kingdom on Pye Records's Marble Arch label. The album consists of previously-issued singles and EP tracks recorded in 1964 and 1965. It was issued in both mono and simulated stereo formats.
Kinkdom is a studio album by the English rock band the Kinks, released as their fourth album in the United States. It was issued by Reprise Records on 24 November 1965 in both mono and simulated stereo formats. It peaked at number 47 on the Billboard album chart.
"Picture Book" is a song by the English rock band the Kinks from their 1968 album The Kinks Are the Village Green Preservation Society. Written and sung by Ray Davies, the song's lyrics describe the experience of an ageing narrator flipping through a photo album reflecting on happy memories from "a long time ago". Recorded in May 1968, its cheerful sound is defined by the jangle of an acoustic twelve-string guitar and a disengaged snare drum. In continental Europe, the song was issued as the B-side of the album's lead single, "Starstruck", in November 1968. The same single was issued in the United States in January 1969, though it failed to appear in any charts.
"Village Green" is a song by the English rock band the Kinks from their 1968 album The Kinks Are the Village Green Preservation Society. Written and sung by the band's principal songwriter, Ray Davies, the song was first recorded in November 1966 during the sessions for Something Else by the Kinks (1967) but was re-recorded in February 1967. Both the composition and instrumentation of "Village Green" evoke Baroque music, especially its prominently featured harpsichord played by session keyboardist Nicky Hopkins. Unlike most of the band's late 1960s recordings, it employs real orchestral instruments, including oboe, cello, viola and piccolo, as arranged by English composer David Whitaker.
"Polly" is a song by the English rock band the Kinks. It was released on a non-album single in April 1968, as the B-side to "Wonderboy". Written and sung by bandleader Ray Davies, the song was recorded in March 1968 during sessions for the band's 1968 album The Kinks Are the Village Green Preservation Society. Ray was initially inspired by the character Polly Garter in Dylan Thomas's 1954 radio drama Under Milk Wood, though his resulting character does not share anything with Thomas's besides the same name. The song is one of the few Kinks recordings from the late 1960s to possibly feature real strings, as arranged by David Whitaker.
"Starstruck" is a song by the English rock band the Kinks from their 1968 album The Kinks Are the Village Green Preservation Society. Written and sung by Ray Davies, the song was recorded in July 1968. The song was issued as the album's lead single in continental Europe in November 1968 and in the United States in January 1969. The European release was accompanied by a promo film shot in Waterlow Park, Highgate. The song failed to chart anywhere besides the Netherlands, where it reached No. 13 on the Veronica Top 40 and No. 9 on the Hilversum 3 Top 30.
"Last of the Steam-Powered Trains" is a song by the English rock band the Kinks from their 1968 album The Kinks Are the Village Green Preservation Society. Written and sung by Ray Davies, the song was recorded in October 1968 and was among the final tracks completed for the album. Variously described as a blues, R&B or rock number, the song describes a steam train that has outlived its usefulness and has since moved to a museum.
"Berkeley Mews" is a song by the English rock band the Kinks. It was released on a non-album single in June 1970, as the B-side to "Lola". Written and sung by bandleader Ray Davies, the song was recorded in early 1968 during the sessions for The Kinks Are the Village Green Preservation Society (1968). The title references a small street in London, while the lyrics recount a one-night stand. Influenced by the music of the 1940s, the song employs a heavier production than was typical for the band's 1968 work.
"Johnny Thunder" is a song by the English rock band the Kinks from their sixth studio album, The Kinks Are the Village Green Preservation Society (1968). Written and sung by Ray Davies, the song was recorded in March 1968. Davies was inspired to write the song after seeing the 1953 film The Wild One, basing it on Marlon Brando's character Johnny as well as on a classmate Davies admired as a child. A rock song, its recording features a countermelody played by Dave Davies on electric guitar, wordless vocal harmonies and one of the album's few instances of a single-tracked vocal by Ray.
"Monica" is a song by the English rock band the Kinks from their sixth studio album, The Kinks Are the Village Green Preservation Society (1968). Written and sung by Ray Davies, the song was recorded sometime between late 1967 and May 1968. The song features congas and a syncopated rhythm, indicating Davies's continued interest in calypso music. Its lyrics are a serenade for a prostitute and were partly inspired by Dylan Thomas's radio drama, Under Milk Wood (1954), though Davies kept the lyrics deliberately subtle to avoid a radio ban. Retrospective commentators have disputed the song's level of thematic cohesion with the others on Village Green.
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Then Now and Inbetween is a promotional compilation album by the English rock band the Kinks. Reprise Records issued the album in July 1969 to journalists, radio program directors and disc jockeys in conjunction with the "God Save the Kinks" promotional campaign, which sought to reestablish the Kinks' commercial status in the US after their four-year ban on performing in the country.