110. The Kinks — The Kinks Are The Village Green Preservation Society (1968)

More like village RED society, amiright?

1. Naturally my favorite Kinks album on the list thus far is the one that flopped hardest. This is a complete album in a way that the prior two Kinks albums simply weren’t. It’s all the more remarkable given this is their third album in three years, and by far the most full considered. You’d think they’d be out of ideas. They were just getting started.
2. Reading on the background of the album, it does sound like Ray Davies was burned out, but it appears burnout can be a hell of a muse. The album captures a nostalgic picture of small town England, vignette after vignette revolving around the “village green.” There’s not a song on here that I disliked, and it’s an incredibly breezy 40 minute listen.
3. The opening track calls to mind The Beatles’ Sgt Pepper; from there, the Kinks form their own britpop sound. “Do You Remember Walter” is clearly the inspiration for ELO’s “Mr Blue Sky,” a funny and incisive tale of an old friend. “Picture Book” is pop excellence, with a chorus backing also cribbed by Mac DeMarco’s recent hit “Salad Days” (which would fit in on this album perfectly). “Village Green” — the inspiration for the whole project — is baroque, lovely storytelling. The album captures the weariness that led to the project, but also a wistful longing that’s pretty irresistible.
4. I feel I’ve kept waiting for the Kinks to be THE KINKS, and here, they’ve finally arrived. The album sold like shite when it came out, but is now evidently their best selling; that seems sensible to me. I’ll be returning to the Village Green again.

One Essential Song:

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