RANKING THE KINKS ALBUMS IN MY CD COLLECTION 

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I didn't get into The Kinks until late 1975 when my brother gave me a copy of Schoolboys In Disgrace for my 19th birthday. I immediately love it, the sound of the band and the concept of this release. The one thing I thought was very odd was US RCA Records Dynaflex vinyl, way too easy to bend and I could not scratch it. However, other Kinks LPs came into my possession over the years until the CD told me to give the vinyl a Waterloo Sunset in 1999. I only saw The Kinks in concert once in 1979 and parts of that show became One For The Road, I have the remastered CD. It's quite good in my opinion, but I turned down an offer to receive an RIAA gold record sales award, which now many years in retrospect was not a smart move on my part.

As a young kid in 64ish, I met them in the Sacramento airport. They were waiting for a plane like normal people. They were very friendly to me- it was unforgettable.

The Kinks' albums from 1966 - 1971 were underappreciated at the time. But today, they are loved and critically acclaimed as a great run of albums. They were definitely considered more of a singles band in the US at that time. Now, they are considered to be right up there with The Beatles and Stones.

I recently finished acquiring all the Kinks studio albums (cds). Those were harder to get than what you would think. I found a State of Confusion at a Goodwill store and was thrilled, the original owner put an identifying label on it and I was cleaning it off and accidently snapped it in half. Fortunately another store i frequent got a hdcd of it in. I'm enjoying them all.

Ray Davies is one of the best lyricists in rock music history

The Kinks blew me away when they first came out Larry with You Really Got Me and All Day And All Of The Night,to me that was the start of heavy metal right there,later they branched out into more diverse material,mainly due to Ray Davies's great song writing,a super talented band. Bob

They’ve definitely become one of my fav bands. I only had a few of their cd’s but because of Spotify I’ve been able to check out their entire catalogue and it’s amazing! I now have a 150 song Kinks playlist I listen to on a regular basis. Streaming services have opened my mind to so many new bands that I would have never really gotten into in the past. I bought my first kinks album in 1981 and it’s taken me this long to really appreciate them. Cheers ✌️

There are only three more albums you need from the “classic” period which are Kinda Kinks, the Kink Kontroversy, and the Percy soundtrack. From there you can check out the mid 70s “theatrical” period, and from there you check out the late 70s/80s hard rock stuff.

I love The Kinks, the mood is so great...very British !

So many albums that you need to get, Larry. Soap Oprea, School Boys, Sleepwalker, Misfits, Low Budget, Give the People what they Want, Live 1980, State of Confusion and Word of Mouth. Hopefully you’ll get them in the next few weeks!😜. Great band, good video.

Like you, the Kink Kronikles was my gateway Kinks album. My parents bought it for me in '73 (I was 8). I love Schoolboys in Disgrace, Misfits, Low Budget and Give the People What They Want. I saw them live on their One For the Road tour. God Save The Kinks.

Good choice for your No.1 ... Arthur would be my favourite Kinks album too!

As for me, I have Village Green Preservation Society, Sleepwalker, Arthur, Lola, Something Else, The Essential Kinks, and Celluloid Heroes. Used to have a compilation album called The Best of The Kinks, which only covered from 1964-1968. I was at the Springfield Civic Center in Springfield MA in either late 1983-early '84 when they did a show with Cyndi Lauper opening. She got booed mercilessly. It was right around the time "Girls Just Wanna Have Fun" hit the chart.

Great idea for a video. The first 45 I ever bought, in March 1965, was The Kinks' All Day And All of The Night. And Kinks music just kept changing and getting better after that. I agree with your top four and glad to see Arthur at the top. Days, one of their greatest songs, was released as the "non-album single" at the same time the album Village Green came out. If Days had been included it would have made that great album even greater.

Our respective opinions coincide well. Arthur is a masterpiece.

Village Green preservation society Is my all time favourite

Hi Larry - Low Budget is my favourite Kinks album & one of my favourite live albums is One For The Road recorded on the Low Budget tour which I saw.

Very interesting keep up the great work thank you

I really fell for Muzzwell Hillbillies. Addictive flow. Though their 60's run of psyche/sunset tunes are hard to beat. I did not know their 1st was as early as 64.🤔 The quantity of great songs is mindblowing when i stop to thinkkink over the yarz, seriously.

Nice collection. I heartily recommend the later SLEEPWALKER and MISFITS. Beautifully produced, great songs, band operating on all cylinders.

I've liked everything I've heard from them. I'm sure I'd like the rest of it too.

Village Green Preservation Society way out in front for me. I've played it over and over since I bought it in 68 and will continue to do so. Great band who never really made a bad album.

I have the entire Kinks discography and my top 4 are the same as your ranking. I'd switch Village Green with Lola however. Arthur has always been my favorite.

Got to have some Kinks in the collection. Another good one Larry!

That is great, a whole Kinks-video at last ❤ You say you may not be the hugest Kinksfan, well, I am! And because I'm simply hung up on the Kinks, I may not be the best advisor, I love all their albums (My favourite is the one I play, I always say). But if I must mention one suggestion, listen to Preservation, act 1 and yes this was actually followed by Act 2! I hope these albums are next in line for remastered issues, the sound quality of act 2 could have been better imho. And State of Confusion and Word of Mouth are also not to miss. (And the rest of their albums are just as fine...) Enjoy!

You didn't mention Stop Your Sobbin' on the Kinks first album- great song that was later covered by Chrissie Hynde on The Pretenders first album.

Hi Larry i love the kinks they got so many great songs and ray davies is one of the greatest songwriters 👍✌️

Loved the kinks but never really listened to them that much. This was an interesting look at your collection of their work. Cheers. Dave

I'm sooo glad that by the time you reached your no.1 it was Arthur atop your list, not your lost. Personally, I slightly prefer Village Green. I suppose the lyrics mean more to me as an Englishman growing up in the gloriously green and hilly Peak District (if you don't know how lovely it is check it out on wiki or YT) but in both cases - and with Muswell - I think the title track is the standout pick of the otherwise also excellent best of their albums. Those are my three favourites. My two non-concept album favourites of theirs, though, are Something Else and Face to Face. Don't you think that in attitude and sonic assault on older people back then, The Kinks, The Stones and The Who were the original punk rockers?

Nice list.👏🏻 Lately I’ve been on a Phobia and Preservation kick. I’m not saying they are better than the albums you mentioned but they’re great too. I suggest you all check out the demo recordings Ray did for the musical 80 days. It’s on RU-vid and fantastic. Sounds best with Bluetooth headphones. Peace. 😁

Your top three are all great. Village Green is my favorite, but those three are all great. Ray Davies will go down in history of being one of the coolest guys in rock history by being the father of Chrissy Hynde’s child (not to mention he was part of one of the greatest bands in rock history).

Hey Larry! One album everyone seems to love is 'Muswell Hillbillies', and it took me forever to get into it, but I finally did. Still struggling with 'Face to Face though. Cheers!

I'd always heard about The Kinks but had never listened to any of their albums. This video provides a good starting point. Thanks, Larry!

As a long time Kinks fan I would concur with other comments here re Schoolboys in Disgrace, Sleepwalker and Misfits. My favourite of these being the mini rock musical concept of Schoolboys. Terrible reviews at the time, a now dodgy album cover but full of anthemic great tunes. A Soap Opera and the two Preservation albums are also good but not as immediate as the other Kinks albums. Great video Larry.

Fantastic band! There's a story that one of the Davie's brothers, in the early days, slashed the speakers of his guitar amp with a knife to get the right level of distortion he wanted. Correct me in the comments if I got that wrong, but I remember that. It fits with a widely held belief that 'You Really Got Me' Was the first 'metal' song. True pioneers! Thanks Larry, nice review of the Kinks' legacy. 👍

Larry, You need to pick up Kinks School Boys in Disgrace. I have it on vinyl, cassette, and cd. May be hard to find, but worth it.

I would get Kontroversy next. Not to the level of your top 4 or so, IMO, but still great.

the kinks are underrated in my opinion

Kontroversy is really good too Larry

Kinks are my 3rd favorite band, behind the Beatles & The Who. No qualms with your ranking. I might exchange one or two, but overall I like your choices.

Kronikles

I just went through their whole discography last week. Preservation Act 1 was more or less at the same level as Everybody’s in Showbiz for me, so maybe check that one out. I think they struggled the most in the mid 70s, but towards the end of that decade they got some momentum going into the 80s with Misfits and Low Budget. However, I was most impressed with their 80s stuff given how many 60s acts struggled there. State of Confusion and Word of Mouth have a great pop sound to them.

i think they were too english ,especially in the village green preservation society the lyrics prove that,if this album was released in 1966 before sergeant pepper'sit would be hailed as a masterpiece and they would have gain the recognition thy deserved,anyway they always made honest good quality music,Ray always was a gret lyricist,autumn almanac,waterloo sunset,days,death of a clown,many diamonds in their works

Truly a great band. I am most definitely a fan. However, I am ashamed to admit, I don't own any of the albums on your list! I was aware of them but just never bought them. This lack of ownership will make it all the more hard for me to be taken seriously when I criticize your pronunciation of the family name. Any true Kinks fan knows that Ray and Dave pronounce their family name as 'Davis'. At the risk of drawing criticism, I have to admit that I eagerly bought and played the hell out of the sequential albums of Misfits, Low Budget and Give the People What They Want. I really enjoyed those three. I know they aren't liked by many of the purists... but, I like what I like. Of course, inserted in there is one of my all time favourite live albums - 1980's One For the Road. I have heard friends criticize it as being an attempt to rockify their songs as a kind of response to Van Halen striking gold with their cover of You Really Got Me. Whatever. I love it.

Nice video.

Hi I got the exact same albums as you have. It was their golden period. And I heard a lot of other Kinks album, but I always think they are below par. Take care

God save The Kinks!