- Days (The Kinks song)
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"Days" Single by The Kinks B-side "She's Got Everything" Released 28 January 1969 (UK)
24 February 1969 (USA)Format 7" single Recorded 23, 27 May 1968 at Pye Studios (No. 2), London Genre Pop Label Pye 7N 17573 (UK)
Reprise 0762 (US)Writer(s) Ray Davies Producer Ray Davies The Kinks singles chronology "Wonderboy"
(1968)"Days"
(1969)"Plastic Man"
(1969)"Days" is a song by The Kinks, written by Ray Davies, released as a single in 1969. It also appeared on an early version of the album The Kinks Are the Village Green Preservation Society (released only in continental Europe and New Zealand), and now appears as a bonus track of the remastered CD. On the original Pye 7N 17573 label, the name of the song is "Day's".
Musically, it is an uptempo ballad of sorts. The lyrics are bittersweet in typical Davies fashion. The song addresses a former lover who has either left or died. This person is thanked for the days together, and forgiven for the departure. The lyrics reflect on the lasting effect the person has had, and promise "Though you're gone, you're with me every single day, believe me."
In later interviews, Davies claimed the song was composed in part as an emotional farewell to the original lineup of the band at a time of doubt about their future (founding member Pete Quaife left the band soon afterwards).
The song was an important single for Davies and the Kinks, coming in a year of declining commercial fortunes for the band. The song had been intended as an album track but after the relative failure of the previous single "Wonderboy" (which only reached #36 in the UK), "Days" was rushed out as a single with an old unreleased track "She's Got Everything" (recorded in February 1966 in the same session as "Dedicated Follower of Fashion") as the B-side. It reached #10 on the UK chart,[1] but failed to chart in the U.S. This did not help future releases however as the next four Kinks singles failed to reach the top 30 (two of them failing to chart altogether) in the UK.
The song appeared on an advertisement for the new Volkswagen Golf Cabriolet in 2011.
Contents
Charts
- UK: #10
- Bel: #17
- Ger: #28
- NL: #7
- NZ: #11
Kirsty MacColl version
"Days" Single by Kirsty MacColl from the album Kite A-side Days B-side Happy Released June 1989 Format 7", 10" and 12" vinyl, 3" CD, cassette, CD in kite-shaped box [2] Genre Pop Writer(s) Ray Davies Producer Steve Lillywhite Kirsty MacColl singles chronology "Free World"
(1989)"Days"
(1989)"Innocence"
(1989)Kirsty MacColl covered "Days" on her 1989 album Kite. It was released as a single and reached #12 on the UK singles chart, the same position achieved by The Kinks in 1969. It was re-released in 1995, charting much lower, only reaching #42 in the UK. It was one of MacColl's most popular singles.[3]
Track listing
- "Days"
- "Happy"
- "El Paso"
- "Still Life"
- "Please Help Me, I'm Falling"
The single was released in multiple formats. Each featured "Days" and "Happy", and all bar the 7" and cassette featured "Still Life". Both CD formats (the standard case and the Kite-shaped case) had "Please Help Me, I'm Falling", whilst "El Paso" was only available on the 10".[4]
Other versions
The song was covered by a number of artists at the time including Petula Clark on her 1968 album Petula, The Hillsiders as a B-side to their 1969 single "Kentucky Woman" (RCA 1804) and James Last in an instrumental version on Non-Stop Dancing #7 (also 1969).
A version of the song recorded by Elvis Costello appeared on the soundtrack of the 1991 Wim Wenders film, Until the End of the World. It is also featured on his 1995 covers album Kojak Variety.
"Days/This Time Tomorrow" - Ray Davies and Mumford & Sons is featured on Ray Davies solo album See My Friends.
External links
- The Official Ray Davies Web Site
- The Official Ray Davies Forum - "The Old Grey Board"
- The Official Ray Davies Forum on YouTube
References
- ^ Ray Davies official website
- ^ "freeworld - Kirsty MacColl: Release Trivia (singles)". http://www.kirstymaccoll.com/music/discog/anorak_singles.htm. Retrieved 2008-03-24.
- ^ "freeworld - Kirsty MacColl: singles". http://kirstymaccoll.com/music/singles/index.htm. Retrieved 2008-03-24.
- ^ "freeworld - Kirsty MacColl: Official Releases". http://kirstymaccoll.com/music/discog/index.htm. Retrieved 2008-03-24.
The Kinks Studio albums Kinks · Kinda Kinks · The Kink Kontroversy · Face to Face · Something Else by The Kinks · The Kinks Are the Village Green Preservation Society · Arthur (Or the Decline and Fall of the British Empire) · Lola Versus Powerman and the Moneygoround, Part One · Muswell Hillbillies · Everybody's in Show-Biz · Preservation Act 1 · Preservation Act 2 · Soap Opera · Schoolboys in Disgrace · Sleepwalker · Misfits · Low Budget · Give the People What They Want · State of Confusion · Word of Mouth · Think Visual · UK Jive · PhobiaLive albums EPs Compilations Kinks-Size · Kinkdom · Greatest Hits! · Well Respected Kinks · Sunny Afternoon · The Kink Kronikles · The Great Lost Kinks Album · Come Dancing with The Kinks · The Kinks Are Well Respected Men · Lost & Found (1986–1989) · The Ultimate CollectionUnreleased projects Four More Respected Gentlemen · A Hole in the Sock of (Dave Davies)Related articles Studio albums Desperate Character • Kirsty MacColl • Kite • Electric Landlady • Titanic Days • Galore • Tropical BrainstormNotable singles "They Don't Know" • "There's a Guy Works Down the Chip Shop Swears He's Elvis" • "Terry" • "A New England" • "He's On The Beach" • "Free World" • "Days" • "Innocence" • "Don't Come The Cowboy With Me Sonny Jim!" • "Walking Down Madison" • "My Affair" • "All I Ever Wanted" • "Soho Square" • "Angel" • "Titanic Days" • "Caroline" • "Perfect Day" • "Mambo de la Luna" • "In These Shoes" • "Sun On The Water"With The Pogues "Fairytale of New York" • "Miss Otis Regrets/Just One of Those Things"Related articles Categories:- The Kinks songs
- Petula Clark songs
- Kirsty MacColl songs
- 1968 singles
- 1989 singles
- Songs written by Ray Davies
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