THE KINKS’ DAVE DAVIES ANSWERS WHETHER JIMMY PAGE PLAYED GUITAR ON “YOU REALLY GOT ME” AND IF THE BAND CONTRIBUTED TO THE CREATION OF HEAVY METAL

Greg Prato for Ultimate Guitar spoke with The KinksDave Davies, the segment appears in its entirety, below.

Ultimate Guitar: I think I recall once in an interview that producer Eddie Kramer claimed that Jimmy Page actually recorded guitars on You Really Got Me. Is that true or false?

Dave Davies: No, it’s not true. He [Page] was there at the sessions, because I thought they worried that we couldn’t play. There’s no animosity, and Jimmy was a nice guy, we got on well with him. I hardly said anything to him.

Ultimate Guitar:The Kinks are often credited with contributing to the creation of heavy metal. What are your thoughts?

Dave Davies: Yeah, I think so. I think it was true. And we did come at the time when the heavy metal wave was evident, and that was really important for us. And we were lucky. We were blessed with… Ray wrote the songs, wrote some great songs. And you have to remember that there comes a backstory with all these tracks. And it wasn’t easy. I’m glad.

Ultimate Guitar: Another style The Kinks are credited with helping create was punk rock.

Dave Davies: Well, I thought [The Kinks song] Prince of the Punks was a bit funny. It’s a funny song, really, because it was a little kind of a nod to a guy that we knew in a punk band [allegedly Tom Robinson]. We tend to take things in their stride.

4 Responses

  1. In concept, I agree with the observation. IMO, the Kinks’ contribution to heavy metal was their use of distortion, which they created by cutting the speakers. So, I guess that qualifies as a “contribution” to heavy metal. But they were not a heavy metal band….not even close!

    1. Rattle,

      Thank you, for that information, I had no idea.

      I own one The Kinks album (One For The Road) andI cannot recall, the last time I listened to it. Their riff, from Catch Me Now I’m Falling, is a total StonesJumpin’ Jack Flash bite.

  2. I love the Kinks! One of my favorite albums is Low Budget! I would say most of their songs are rock and a few are hard rock like Around the Dial. They even have a disco song, Superman which is a great song. Back when it came out they used to play it all the time on fm radio. One for the Road is in my opinion one of the best live albums ever! I love to hear people views on music especially if they are like me and like the bands deeper cuts. The Kinks have their own sound and own vibe different from anyone.

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