10 Most Underrated Kinks Songs

Our list of the 10 most underrated Kinks songs presents a wide variety of tracks from the band that have flown under the radar. Of course, nothing flies under the radar for hardcore Kinks fans, as everyone who is a huge fan of the band knows all the material. However, The Kinks have a vast catalog of music, and there are likely many songs that the general public has missed. The Kinks were first formed in 1963 by brothers Ray and Dave Davies. The two had a tumultuous relationship over the years.

When the group first came together, the original lineup consisted of Ray Davies on lead vocals and rhythm guitar, Dave Davies on lead guitar and vocals, Mick Avory on drums, and Peter Quaife on bass. The Kinks went through many lineup changes throughout their career. From 1963 to 1996, The Kinks released twenty-four studio albums. In addition to the studio albums, the group also released four live albums and numerous compilations. With so many hit singles and a vast catalog, what we will attempt to do here is pick songs from every decade to showcase the changes that the band went through. This task will be fun and challenging.

This list will be presented in Chronological order

# 10 – So Mystifying – The Kinks (1964)

We thought it would be cool to open this list with a track from the first Kinks album. Not only is this song from the first Kinks album, but it’s also the first original Kinks song to ever appear on a Kinks vinyl album. “So Mystifying” was placed as the second song on side A. Ray Davies wrote it. The opening track, “Beautiful Delilah,” was written by Chuck Berry. The first Kinks album was a mix of original songs and covers, much like many British Invasion bands that broke onto the scene in the early ’60s and did the same thing. While this might not be the most underrated Kinks song, it is a pretty important in their history as it stands as the first original Kinks song on a Kinks studio album.

# 9 – The World Keeps Going Round – The Kink Kontroversy (1965)

As we move along on this Kinks underrated songs list, we skip an album because we’re trying to cover as much ground as possible, we turn to the Kinks’ third LP, The Kink Kontroversy. The big hits on this album were “Till the End of the Day” and “Where Have All the Good Times Gone”. However, one of our favorite tracks has always been the side two opener “The World Keeps Going Round” written by Ray Davies. The lineup on the album still includes Ray Davies, Dave Davies, Pete Quaife, and Mick Avory. The legendary Nicky Hopkins plays piano on the entire album, including this song.

# 8 – David Watts – Something Else by the Kinks (1967)

Something Else by The Kinks is one of the most cherished albums in the Kinks’ catalog among their fans. So, of course, a song like “David Watts,” which is the opening track on that album, is fairly well-known among Kinks fans. However, it was never released as a major single, so it definitely qualifies for this list. The song “David Watts” is about a supposed popular kid in Ray Davies’ school. There’s a lot more to the story, but Ray Davies has chosen to keep it somewhat ambiguous.

Once again, Nicky Hopkins guests on piano on this track. The album’s big-time singles were “Waterloo Sunset,” which was released as a standalone single before the album came out, and “Death of a Clown.” This is a classic album from the 1960s that every rock fan should own.

# 7 – Got to Be Free – Lola Versus Powerman and the Moneygoround, Part One – (1970)

As we journey through the history of The Kinks, we venture into the 1970s with one of the band’s most successful albums, Lola Versus Powerman and the Moneygoround, Part One. This was the album that produced “Lola,” a song that alone sent sales of this album soaring. However, this is more than just a one-hit album; it’s an incredible rock and roll record featuring many great songs. We knew we had to represent this album on our list, and we chose to highlight the album’s closing cut, “Got to Be Free,” which is definitely one of the band’s most underrated songs.

# 6 – Sweet Lady Genevieve – Preservation Act 1 – (1973)

Preservation Act 1 was the first of two concept albums titled Preservation Act 1 and Preservation Act 2, representing the 12th and 13th albums in The Kinks’ career. In the early seventies, concept albums had become quite popular, especially after what Pete Townshend had achieved with Tommy. Preservation Act 1 received mixed reviews upon its release, but like many of these albums, it has aged well over the years and has come to be recognized as a classic.

The album is filled with wonderful songs, and it was challenging to pick just one from this record because there are so many great cuts on it. However, the track “Sweet Lady Genevieve” has always stood out as one of those unsung gems written by Ray Davies that we think always deserved a bit more recognition.

# 5 – Brother – Sleepwalker – (1977)

The Kinks’ Sleepwalker album was a major success in the United States, though it didn’t perform as well in the UK. The album was fueled by some pretty big hits such as “Juke Box Music” and “Sleepwalker.” The album’s closing track, “Life Goes On,” was another standout. However, the song “Brother” is just such a sensational ballad that we were really surprised it was never released as a single. I think if it had been used as a single, it could have been a major hit. This one is really special.

# 4 – A Rock ‘n’ Roll Fantasy – Misfits – (1978)

We are a little hesitant about adding this song to the list because it borders on the underrated song genre that we’re aiming for here. Almost all Kinks fans know this song. It was released as the first single from Misfits album. However, it wasn’t a really big hit and stalled at number 30 on the US Billboard Hot 100, so it’s not one of their most famous songs. However, it’s such a good song that we thought there are probably more people who are reading this list that don’t know this song than those who do. So, why not include it here? It’s a real gem.

# 3 – Long Distance – State Of Confusion – (1983)

The Kinks’ album State of Confusion was released in 1983. If you were a Kinks fan who bought the vinyl album, you missed out on a great song. The reason is that it was only released on the cassette version as the final album track. There just wasn’t enough room on the vinyl for this song. Of course, it would later be released on The Best of The Kinks compilation album. Nonetheless, many Kinks fans were quite upset about this one not being included on the vinyl record because it’s simply a stunning song. The song was also released on a six-disc box set called Picture Book in 2008, which consisted mainly of unreleased demos, outtakes, and tracks like this one.

# 2 – How Do I Get Close? – UK Jive – (1989)

As we begin to wind down our list, we turn to the last Kinks studio album featured here, called UK Jive. “How Do I Get Close” represents this album on our list. Both the song and the album stand as some of the most underrated releases in The Kinks’ catalog. The song “How Do I Get Close” is the second track on the album and was also the second single released from it. At the time, the band consisted of Ray Davies, Dave Davies, Jim Rodford (not Radford), Ian Gibbons, and Bob Henrit (not Brian Henry) on drums. This track is a killer tune—a straight-ahead rocker with some great guitar soloing and great vocals. It’s all-around just such a well-written song, and we wish more people knew about this one.

# 1 – Here Comes Yet Another Day – BBC Sessions: 1964–1977 – (2001)

In 2001, The Sanctuary label released a compilation album by The Kinks featuring their BBC Sessions from 1964 to 1977. This incredible live album showcases the band elevating many of their legendary songs to a new level in a live setting. It’s difficult to single out one track from the two-record set—or two-CD set, to be accurate—because it contains so many great ones. Naturally, it includes all their big hits like “All Day and All of the Night,” “You Really Got Me,” and others, making this one just a little extra special.

The song “Here Comes Yet Another Day,” originally appearing on the album Everybody’s in Show-Biz, The Kinks’ eleventh studio album released in 1972, was the album’s opening track. We’re not specifying where to place this track on this list because we’re following chronological order, but since the compilation spans BBC sessions from 1964 to 1977, this seemed like the right spot. Listen to the jam session in the middle of the song—it’s a fun one. If you don’t have this BBC Sessions album in your collection, we highly recommend you pick it up.

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