Kinks Weeks – Sunny Afternoon …eclecticmusiclover.com

I’ve been going to Jeff’s site for years at https://eclecticmusiclover.com. He features newer music on his blog from a large range of bands. He does a lot of great work there… often getting inside information and interviews with the bands themselves. Go check Jeff out…he is a fine writer. 

I’m honored to be included in Max’s series on The Kinks, and my pick is their 1966 single “Sunny Afternoon”, which ranks among my top ten favorites of their songs. I was 11 when the song came out and I remember liking it a lot, not only because of its catchy, upbeat melody but also for the lines “Save me, save me, save me from this squeeze. I gotta big fat mama trying to break me” which, being an 11-year-old, I found pretty funny. Though I didn’t fully comprehend the deeper meaning of the lyrics at the time, my guess was that the song was generally about a guy’s discontent over his current life situation.

Written by Kinks frontman Ray Davies while he was at home suffering from a bad cold, “Sunny Afternoon” was inspired by the high levels of progressive tax imposed by the British Labour government of Harold Wilson (a subject also covered by the Beatles in their song “Taxman”), as well as a host of difficult issues he was facing at the time. Despite the Kinks’ immense success, group tensions, lawsuits, an unrealistic workload and unsupportive management was making them miserable. Davies was also dealing with new fatherhood, and had even left the band for a while.

In writing the song, Davis composed the melody first, then created an alter ego to express his feelings. He later recalled: “The only way I could interpret how I felt was through a dusty, fallen aristocrat who had come from old money as opposed to the wealth I had created for myself.” In order to prevent the listener from sympathizing with the song’s protagonist, a spoiled aristocrat bemoaning the loss of his vast unearned wealth, Davies said, “I turned him into a scoundrel who fought with his girlfriend after a night of drunkenness and cruelty.” (Songfacts)

Regarding those lyrics I loved as a kid, Davies explained in a 2016 interview with Q magazine: “My mother was quite large. But that also alludes to the government, the British Empire, trying to break people.”

Davies was still suffering from his cold on the day he recorded the song on May 13, 1966, and now that I know this, his nasal congestion is apparent in his vocals, which nevertheless still sound great to me. He recalled to Q magazine: “I did it in one take and when I heard it back I said, ‘No, let me do it properly,’ but the session was out of time. So that was the vocal. I heard it again the other day. I was 22 but I sound like someone about 40 who’s been through the mill. I really hang on some of the notes. A joyous song, though, even if it’s suppressed joy. I had real fun writing that.” Backing vocals were sung by Dave Davies, Kinks bassist Pete Quaife, and Ray Davies’ then wife Rasa.

With its strong music hall vibe (a type of British theatrical entertainment similar to American vaudeville that was popular from the early Victorian era through World War I, characterized by a mix of popular songs, comedy and specialty acts), “Sunny Afternoon” was a continuation of the stylistic departure from the band’s earlier hard-driving, power chord songs like “You Really Got Me” and “All Day and All of the Night” that began with 1965’s “A Well Respected Man”. Besides Davies’ wonderful vocals, I love Pete Quaife’s jaunty bass riff, session musician Nicky Hopkins’ spirited piano, and the charming little musical touches like the harmonica, tambourine and lively percussion heard throughout the track.

Released as a single on June 3, 1966, “Sunny Afternoon” went to #1 on the UK Singles Chart that July, where it spent three weeks. The song also reached #1 in Ireland, Canada, the Netherlands and Norway, and peaked at #14 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart in the U.S. It was later included on their fourth album Face to Face, released in October 1966, as well as becoming the title track for their 1967 compilation album.

The promotional video produced for the single featured the band performing in a cold, snowy environment, in sharp contrast to the lyrics about enjoying a sunny afternoon.

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Author: Badfinger (Max)

Power Pop fan, Baseball, Beatles, Alternative music, old movies, and tv show fan. Also anything to do with pop culture in the 60s and 70s... I'm also a songwriter, bass and guitar player. Not the slightest bit interested in politics at all.

28 thoughts on “Kinks Weeks – Sunny Afternoon …eclecticmusiclover.com”

  1. Impressive they were doing videos back in 66 in the snow and is that Dave playing a Flying V? Good call on them singing about a sunny day while doing a video in the snow.

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    1. Deke…that Flying V…he said he walked into a shop and he saw the weird case and asked to see it…and the owner said “oh you don’t want that…no one does really” and no one was playing them then much at all…and it was one of the first ones…he still has it…I think he said he bought it for less than $100….it’s worth a fortune now.

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  2. A true classic, this one. Even I know it! 😉

    I didn’t know about Ray singing this with a cold, but now you mention it, it makes perfect sense.

    (I have absolutely no idea why, but I somehow always pigeon-hole this track with ‘Itchycoo Park’ by The Small Faces. ) ?????

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  7. One that showcases young Ray’s wry songwriting, and when you said ‘Nicky Hopkins on piano’ I thought, ‘well, of course.’ Nicky had just the right touch to add to the tracks he played on rather than try to put his stamp on it. what a help he must have been in the studio.

    This song is the musical equivalent of that happy/sad mask they use in theatres.

    Great info and write up.

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  8. I didn’t know the backstory. Since the lyrics are not at all sympathetic to the rich character it gives it an interesting flavor…is Davies feeling sorry for himself for paying high taxes while simultaneously recognizing that, as a rich person, he has no reason to feel sorry for himself?

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  9. Great choice, Jeff. One of my favorites of theirs. Interesting choice of winter for the demo, but he is whining about being left out in the cold, so maybe that’s what they’re going for? I always thought the “big fat mama” was a wife suing for alimony, but Mother England and their horrible taxes makes more sense. I do like your choice of videos. They all look so young and handsome.

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  11. Yeah, finally a song in this fun series I know. It also happens to be one of my all-time favorites by The Kinks.

    I love the descending melody in the intro. I also think “Sunny Afternoon” is quite catchy, though not necessarily in a conventional way, if this makes sense. Last but not least, I dig the lyrics.

    Great pick!😀

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