I Own That CD! - The Kinks

First - a definition.

A village green is a common open area within a village or other settlement. Historically, a village green was common grassland with a pond for watering cattle and other stock, often at the edge of a rural settlement, used for gathering cattle to bring them later on to a common land for grazing.

Second - a band.

The Kinks were an English rock band formed in Muswell Hill, north London, in 1963 by brothers Ray and Dave Davies. They are regarded as one of the most influential rock bands of the 1960s. The band emerged during the height of British rhythm and blues and Merseybeat.

Let’s combine the two to come up with one of the most influential releases of all time - The Village Green Preservation Society is today’s feature on I Own That CD!

Now, out of the gate, the release was pretty much a failure. While the critics had positive things to say about it, it just didn’t catch on with music fans. 1968 was a year of great releases, including Hendrix Electric Ladyland, the Stones’ Beggars Banquet, Led Zeppelin’s debut and it was released the same day as The Beatles White Album. The Kinks didn’t have that kind of sound which was taking the world by storm. Their release was a subtle, funny, surreal, and at times almost tender record.

Ray Davies, lead singer and writer of all the tracks, was moving beyond the brash early sounds of three-chord rock music. The track “Village Green” was inspired by a visit to Devon, England in late 1966. The song suggests a broad theme (“I miss the village green, and all the simple people”) a world which could be extended by adding an “Animal Farm” and “Sitting by the Riverside”. The characters all live there or are involved in the concept - Daisy, Walter, Johnny Thunder, just to name a few.

Davies did not compose the songs to fit a predetermined theme of the album but one critic described it as a “concept album lamenting the passing of old-fashioned English traditions.”

Some of my favorite tracks include “Picture Book”, a song that features a 12-string guitar and the snare drum with the snare off. Davies saw it the way Phil Spector used to work - having a sound and writing the song to fit it. “Wicked Annabella”, which was a different sounding track than the others on the release. It was darker and distorted. The song also has never been performed live by The Kinks.

It was an incredible chance for a band that was really coming into its own. Its influence has resonated across several rock generations, from Paul Weller and The Jam to Blur and Oasis to Yo La Tengo and Green Day. If you’d like to be influenced by it, you can borrow my copy.