The Kinks Vinyl Records

The Kinks built one of the most distinctively English catalogues in 1960s rock. Where the Beatles and the Stones internationalised, Ray Davies's songwriting turned increasingly inward — to suburbia, music halls, English class, the architecture of village life — and produced the run of late-1960s concept albums (The Village Green Preservation Society, Arthur, Muswell Hillbillies) that secured the band's lasting reputation.

The vinyl pressings of the Pye-era catalogue are sought-after. The 2018 Village Green box set in particular collects the entire surrounding material — alternative takes, demos, the Dave Davies solo sessions — and gives the original LPs the showcase they deserved.

Best The Kinks Albums on Vinyl

The Kinks Are the Village Green Preservation Society (1968)
— The masterpiece. Fifteen songs of pastoral English nostalgia recorded in defiance of psychedelia. The title track, "Picture Book", "Animal Farm".

Muswell Hillbillies (1971)
— The Davies-family-portrait record. "20th Century Man", "Acute Schizophrenia Paranoia Blues".

Arthur (Or the Decline and Fall of the British Empire) (1969)
— The follow-up to Village Green. The TV-play tie-in concept album. "Victoria", "Shangri-La".

Something Else by The Kinks (1967)
— The bridge between the early hits and the late-1960s concept work. "Waterloo Sunset", "Death of a Clown".

If You Like The Kinks vinyl records, check these out:

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