The Kinks are undoubtedly responsible for some of the best and most quintessential English pop singles ever to grace both the UK and US music charts.
Led by Ray Davies and his brother Dave, with Mick Avory on drums and the late Pete Quaife on bass, they were a force to be reckoned with.
If The Beatles and Stones were at the top of the Premier League, then the Kinks and The Who would be just below them, with a game in hand!
It was Ray’s lyrics that set them apart. Witty, sarcastic, and often imbued with a melancholic air.
They told stories in three minutes, and more often than not accompanied them with a gloriously memorable tune.
Sunny Afternoon has been a hugely popular musical ever since its conception in 2014 and now it’s touring the UK again until the end of May.
Oh, those tunes!
Days, I’m Not Like Everybody Else, All Day and All of the Night, Waterloo Sunset, Lola, classics all.
To my eternal regret I never saw The Kinks live, Ray Davies at Glastonbury in 2010 was the nearest I ever got!
This production is an exhilarating celebration of the songs, told through a story written by Joe Penhall. It effortlessly meshes the tunes with our main protagonists.
Who in this instance are Danny Horn as Ray and Oliver Hoare as Dave.
They are not only portraying the quarrelsome brothers but actively singing and playing as The Kinks, basically as a live band at the epicentre of the show and a story based on certain aspects of their career.
The initial, tentative forays into a music scene dominated by outdated management practices, friction over fame and their disastrous first attempt to conquer the US market in1965 are all covered here.
There’s relationship problems, money problems, all human life is here. There’s a particular scene with Pete (played by Harry Curley) and Ray that tore at the heartstrings.
An energetic and talented support cast were super fun too.
Please try to catch this marvellous show. It’s life affirming and has the riff from You Really Got Me played very loud, on numerous occasions, which is a very good thing.
By John Haylock
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