"The Kinks Are the Village Green Preservation Society" is the sixth studio album by the English rock band the Kinks, released on November 22, 1968. Although it was a modest commercial success, the album received critical acclaim for its songwriting and is regarded by many as an early concept album. Despite its lack of chart success in both the United Kingdom and the United States, the album found favor with the new underground rock press in America, which marked the Kinks' shift from pop hitmakers of the mid-1960s to a more critically respected cult band.
The album's concept, loosely developed by Ray Davies, the Kinks' frontman, revolves around a series of character studies, an idea inspired by Dylan Thomas's 1954 radio drama Under Milk Wood. The themes of nostalgia, memory, and preservation permeate the album, reflecting Davies's concerns about the increasing modernization of English society and the growing influence of America and Europe. Musically, the album features a blend of various styles, including pop, rock, music hall, folk, blues, psychedelia, and calypso. It was also the first album that Davies produced on his own and marked the last album to feature the original Kinks lineup, as bassist Pete Quaife left the band in March 1969. The album also saw the final collaboration with session keyboardist Nicky Hopkins, whose contributions on piano, harpsichord, and Mellotron were prominent.
The sessions for the album began in March 1968 at Pye Studios in London, and the album included the non-album singles "Wonderboy" and "Days." The album was initially slated for release in September 1968 but was delayed by two months due to last-minute changes to the tracklisting. Despite this, the album was released in some European countries as a 12-track version. In the UK, there was no lead single to promote the album, though "Starstruck" was released in the US and Europe.
While Village Green was not commercially successful upon its initial release, it went on to influence numerous musical acts, particularly American indie bands in the late 1980s and 1990s, as well as Britpop bands like Blur and Oasis. Its impact helped the album experience a resurgence in the 1990s, both critically and commercially. It was reissued multiple times, including an expanded edition in 2018. Over time, it became the Kinks' best-selling album in the UK, earning silver certification from the British Phonographic Industry (BPI) in 2008 and gold certification in 2018. The album has been consistently ranked among the greatest albums of all time in critics' polls, including those from Rolling Stone and the book All Time Top 1000 Albums.
In July 1965, the Kinks were effectively banned from performing in the United States by the American Federation of Musicians. The reasons for the ban are unclear but are generally thought to stem from several incidents during the band's first US tour. Ray Davies later attributed the ban to a combination of bad luck, poor management, and the band's own behavior. Despite their recent commercial success, the Kinks’ inability to tour in the US led to Ray experiencing a nervous breakdown in March 1966. Following this, the band scaled back on their touring commitments, allowing them to spend more time in the studio, which in turn allowed Ray to grow as a songwriter.
During this period, Ray became increasingly concerned about the direction of English society, particularly the influence of America and Europe on traditional British culture. In interviews, Ray expressed a desire to write "very English songs" and hoped to preserve aspects of British life that he feared were being eroded by modernity. He also became fascinated with the ideals of English aristocracy and the decline of rural traditions. This sense of nostalgia and longing for a simpler, more traditional England would come to dominate the themes of The Kinks Are the Village Green Preservation Society.
Ray’s evolving songwriting approach can be seen as a progression from the early years of the Kinks. Initially known for their catchy singles, the band began to shift towards more conceptually unified works. Their 1965 album The Kink Kontroversy marked the first instance of Ray writing songs specifically for an album, while their 1966 album Face to Face was one of the first to employ a thematic link between tracks. Despite facing objections from their record label, Ray’s vision for Face to Face as a thematically connected album was one of the first instances of rock music embracing album-length cohesion.
In November 1966, as the band began sessions for their next album, Something Else by the Kinks, Ray started conceptualizing an album centered around his new song "Village Green." Over time, this idea evolved, and Ray considered various formats, including a piece of musical theater or a television special. Ultimately, the idea was shelved in favor of the Something Else album, which was seen as a more appropriate project at the time. However, Ray continued to think about his concept for a solo album, and press releases in June 1967 indicated that his solo LP would include orchestral music and connected songs. This solo album never materialized, and instead, Ray focused his efforts on Village Green.
The album reflects Ray's interest in English rural life, drawing from his childhood experiences in Fortis Green, a suburban area in North London, which he often described in pastoral terms. He also cited nearby Waterlow Park in Highgate as an influence. His lyrics reflect the idealization of English life, evoking images of a more innocent, rural past that was increasingly threatened by modern life and outside influences.
Ray's use of nostalgia in Village Green has been compared to the work of English pastoral poets like William Blake and William Wordsworth, who often wrote about an idealized vision of rural England. Scholars have also noted similarities between the album’s themes and George Orwell's Coming Up for Air, which explores themes of nostalgia and societal change. The album’s reflections on the loss of a simpler way of life were also linked to the cultural shift following World War II and the rise of “heritage escapism” in post-war England.
In later interviews, Ray has cited the Kinks' ban from America as a catalyst for his focus on English-centric lyrics, distancing the band from American cultural influences. His sense of pride in being British and his desire to protect England's cultural identity became central to the Village Green concept, a thematic preoccupation that would resonate in the album's lyrics and overall message.
