Ranking the 5 Best Album-Openers by The Kinks

The Kinks could get it done in many different ways when it came to their albums. They could give you one where every song played into some all-encompassing theme. Or they could simply deliver a crackerjack set of songs unified by nothing other than their excellence.

No matter how they did it, they were quite adept at choosing excellent tracks to begin these LPs. Here are the five best album-openers in the hallowed history of The Kinks.

5. “Do It Again” from Word of Mouth (1984)

No one predicted The Kinks getting back into the Top 10 with a single in 1983, but that’s exactly what transpired with “Come Dancing.” That ensured the veteran band would receive more attention for the follow-up, and for the most part, they delivered a worthy effort with Word of Mouth. The crackling leadoff song had a lot to do with it. “Do It Again” harnesses some of the crunching energy of the band’s earliest days, while Ray Davies channels his frustration at his frantic schedule in such a fashion that anyone can relate and, with the energy of the music helping out, get through it.

4. “David Watts” from Something Else (1967)

In terms of their non-concept albums, Something Else is generally accepted as the finest in The Kinks’ catalog. Ray Davies’ songwriting had taken an incredible leap in the few years since the rather simple approach he applied to the band’s riff-rock hits. Many people focus the attention on the title character of “David Watts” when trying to analyze the song. But it’s really the narrator’s story, as he spends all his time envying the life of this successful lad, to the point he forgets to live his own. It all comes in a tight pop package, with a fun fa-fa-fa chorus to boot.

3. “Misfits” from Misfits (1978)

By the time Misfits rolled around, The Kinks had largely given up on the concept album approach, realizing it was not their best path forward in a commercial sense. They were also reeling a bit, in that different members of the band were coming and going in rapid succession, as Ray and Dave Davies tried to find the right fit. But with a songwriter like Ray Davies, the possibility exists at any time for a wonderful song to emerge. The title track from the album, a tender ode to societal outsiders with a winning acoustic lilt, is just such a song.

2. “Victoria” from Arthur (Or the Decline and Fall of the British Empire) (1969)

Like a lot of concept albums, Arthur ended up being somewhat loosely tied together from song to song, at least compared to the artist’s original intent. But it still proved to be a standout work, as Ray Davies tried to reconcile England’s current status with the supposed golden days of their past. You can take “Victoria” a couple of ways, and it works no matter what. On the one hand, you could interpret it patriotically and consider the narrator’s loyalty quite noble. Or you can see it as blindness on his part, as he fails to see his country has let him down. In any case, Dave Davies’ bluesy guitar fills carry it a long way.

1. ”The Village Green Preservation Society” from The Kinks Are The Village Green Preservation Society (1968)

Ray Davies’ first attempt at a concept album was undercut somewhat by the fact that different countries released different versions of it. But the album holds together as a series of snapshots of people caught between trying to preserve some imagined past and making sense of confusing modernity. “The Village Green Preservation Society” is a songwriting marvel, via its deft wordplay and depth. You’re never quite sure if this society is to be lauded or feared. The song is also beautifully rendered, with the expert piano work of session ace Nicky Hopkins providing a melodic lift to an already extremely catchy song.

When you purchase through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission.

Photo by Howard Barlow/Redferns