Arthur (Or the Decline and Fall of the British Empire)
Encyclopedia
Arthur is the seventh studio album
by English rock
band The Kinks
, released in October 1969. Kinks frontman Ray Davies
constructed the concept album
as the soundtrack to a Granada Television
play and developed the storyline with novelist Julian Mitchell
; however, the television programme was cancelled and never produced. The rough plot revolved around Arthur Morgan, a carpet-layer, who was based on Ray Davies' brother-in-law Arthur Anning. A mono version was released in the UK, but not in the US. It is now available on the 2011 deluxe-edition re-issue.
Arthur was met with almost unanimous acclaim upon release. It received generous coverage in the US rock press, with articles running in underground magazines such as Fusion and The Village Voice
. It garnered back-to-back reviews by Mike Daly and Greil Marcus
in Rolling Stone
magazine's lead section; Daly rated it as "the Kinks' finest hour", and Marcus went so far as to call it "the best British album of 1969". Reviews in the UK were also positive. Although it received a mixed review in New Musical Express, Disc & Music Echo praised the album's musical integrity, and Melody Maker
called it "Ray Davies' finest hour ... beautifully British to the core".
The album, although not very successful commercially, was a return to the charts in the US for The Kinks. Their critically well-received previous effort, The Kinks Are the Village Green Preservation Society
, failed to chart in any country upon its release in 1968, with total US sales estimated at under 25,000 copies. The Kinks returned to the Billboard
charts in 1969 after a two year absence, with the lead single from the record, "Victoria
", peaking at number 62. The album itself reached number 50 on the Record World
charts, and number 105 on Billboard, their highest position since 1965. It failed to chart in Britain. Arthur paved the way for the massive success of their 1970 comeback album Lola Versus Powerman and the Moneygoround, Part One
and its accompanying US and UK Top 5 hit "Lola
".
approached Ray Davies
in early January 1969, expressing interest in developing a movie or play for television
. Davies was to collaborate with writer Julian Mitchell
on the "experimental" programme, with a soundtrack by The Kinks to be released on an accompanying LP
. Agreements were finalised on 8 January, but the project was not revealed until a press release on 10 March. Separately, The Kinks began work on the programme's companion record, entitled Arthur (Or the Decline and Fall of the British Empire). Development of Arthur occurred during a rough period for the band, due to the commercial failure of their previous album The Kinks Are the Village Green Preservation Society
and the subsequent single
, "Plastic Man
", as well as the departure of founding member and bassist Pete Quaife
. In early 1969, Quaife had told the band he was quitting, though the other members did not take the remark seriously. When an article in the New Musical Express mentioned Maple Oak, the band that he had formed without the rest of The Kinks' knowledge, Davies unsuccessfully asked Quaife to return for the upcoming sessions of Arthur. As a replacement, Davies called up bassist John Dalton, who had previously filled in for Quaife.
Davies travelled to United Recording Studios in Los Angeles, California on 11 April 1969, to produce American pop band The Turtles
' LP Turtle Soup
with engineer Chuck Britz. While in Los Angeles, Davies helped negotiate an end to the concert ban placed on The Kinks by the American Federation of Musicians
in 1965. Although neither The Kinks nor the union gave a specific reason for the ban, at the time it was widely attributed to their rowdy on-stage behaviour. After negotiations with Davies, the Federation relented, opening up an opportunity for the group to return to touring in America. Once the main sessions for the Turtles LP were completed, Davies returned to England. While Davies was abroad, the other members of the band had been rehearsing and practising for the upcoming album, as well as lead guitarist Dave Davies
' solo album, nicknamed A Hole in the Sock of
. When Ray returned, The Kinks regrouped at his house in Borehamwood
, Hertfordshire
, to rehearse the upcoming album Arthur.
, Lebanon
on 17 May to play three dates at the Melkart Hotel; sessions for Arthur resumed the day after their return, and most of the recording for the album was finished by the end of the month. Mixing and dubbing
began in early June, with arranger Lew Warburton handling string overdubs. The Kinks played a few small gigs in England throughout the remainder of the month, but devoted most of their time to finishing Dave Davies' solo album.
Writing for the TV play progressed through May and June, and on 15 June mixing for Dave Davies' solo LP was completed (tapes for this record were eventually delivered to Pye and Reprise Records, although it never saw official release). A press release announced that the Arthur LP was scheduled for a late July release. As Davies and Mitchell completed their script, the Arthur TV play began to crystallise, and British filmmaker Leslie Woodhead
was assigned the role of director. By early September production was scheduled to begin, with a planned broadcast of late September, but these plans were continually delayed. As problems with the TV play got progressively worse—and, consequently, distracted The Kinks from completing the post-production of the album—the release dates for both projects were pushed further and further back. In early October Ray Davies moved from Borehamwood back to his old family home on Fortis Green
Road, in Muswell Hill
, and travelled to Los Angeles, where he deposited the tapes at Reprise for Arthurs American release. The album's release date was finally set for 10 October, and The Kinks began gearing up for an upcoming US tour to support the album, for which they would depart on 17 October. Shooting for the TV play was eventually set for 1 December. Roy Stonehouse was hired as a designer, and the casting was completed; however, the show was cancelled at the last minute when the producer was unable to secure financial backing. Davies and Mitchell were frustrated at an entire year's work wasted—Doug Hinman stated that Davies witnessed "his grand artistic visions once again dashed by bureaucracy and internal politics."
" in 1970.
notes that "This was the first of two pilot singles for ... Arthur and its failure did not augur well." The group followed with another single in September, "Shangri-La", which again failed to chart in the UK. As with Village Green, the album itself failed to chart when released in October.
In the US, "Victoria
" was chosen as the lead single, backed with the album track "Brainwashed", and was released the same week as the LP. The single proved to be relatively successful, and reached number 62 on the Billboard Hot 100
—their highest position since their Top 20 hit "Sunny Afternoon
" in 1966. The success of the single led to its release in the UK; backed with "Mr. Churchill Says
", it reached a peak of number 30. Arthur itself was a moderate commercial success in the US, where it peaked at number 105 (the highest for a Kinks album since 1965) and remained on the charts for 20 weeks.
, The Kinks' US label, devised an elaborate, multi-levelled promotional
campaign for Arthur in early 1969. The most famous branch of the programme involved a promo package entitled God Save The Kinks. The set featured various items, including a consumer's guide to the band's albums, a bag of "grass" from the "Daviesland village green", and an LP entitled Then, Now and Inbetween. The set was accompanied by a positive letter from Hal Halverstadt of creative services at Warner/Reprise, part of which read, "... [We are led] to believe that The Kinks may not have had it at all ... The Kinks are to be supported, encouraged, cheered. And saved." The campaign was officially launched on 3 July, at a meeting between Ray Davies and Reprise executives in Burbank, California
. Reprise considered seeding false stories in the press to create an "outlaw" image for the group as part of the campaign, including pieces about marijuana possession and income tax evasion. Ray called the idea "mad", and the programme was dropped. Several pieces, however, were used in the press kit for Arthurs release, with titles like "English Pop Group Arrested on Rape Rap".
sleeve, and included a shaped insert depicting Queen Victoria (holding a house containing Arthur Morgan), with lyrics on the reverse. Liner notes in the UK were written by Geoffrey Cannon and Julian Mitchell; in the US, notes by rock critic John Mendelsohn replaced Cannon's.
by The Who
, released earlier in the year. In Rolling Stone
magazine, Arthur was spotlighted in its lead section, with back-to-back reviews by Mike Daly
and Greil Marcus
. Daly called it "an album that is a masterpiece on every level: Ray Davies' finest hour, the Kinks' supreme achievement." Marcus also praised the record, and said: "Less ambitious than Tommy, and far more musical ... Arthur is by all odds the best British album of 1969. It shows that Pete Townshend
still has worlds to conquer and that The Beatles have a lot of catching up to do." A review by Sal Imam ran in Boston's Fusion magazine read that "If Tommy was the greatest rock opera, then Arthur most surely is the greatest rock musical." Writing in his Consumer Guide column of The Village Voice
, Robert Christgau
gave the record a positive review, saying, although Ray Davies' lyrics could get "preachy at times", that the album featured "excellent music and production".
Reception in the UK was not as warm, although reviews were still generally positive. Disc & Music Echo
commented that "Arthur works as a complete score because it is basic and simple and pleasing to the ear, and powerfully conjures up pictures in the eye." Melody Maker
seconded Mike Daly's comments in Rolling Stone, again calling it "Ray Davies' finest hour", and adding that it was "beautifully British to the core." Doug Hinman would later comment on the album's reception in Britain: "In the British music press there [was] less celebration, and coverage [was] relatively routine, though everyone saw the rock opera angle."
of Allmusic stated that Arthur was "one of the most effective concept albums in rock history, as well as one of the best and most influential British pop records of its era," and in 2003 Matt Golden of Stylus
called it "the best rock opera ever". Adrian Denning rated the album "[a] fine ... set of Kinks song[s]" with "absolutely no filler". Georgiy Starostin
gave Arthur a positive review and maximum 10 out of 10 as an overall rating. Starostin appraised it as The Kinks' best record, and also pointed out that the melodies, though simple, were "unbelievingly catchy, funny and sincere, angry and raving at times, emotional and mystic at other times." Switch magazine included Arthur on their "100 Best Albums of the 20th Century" in 1999, and in 2003 Mojo
featured the album on their list of the "Top 50 Most Eccentric Albums".
. The lead character in the album, the fictional Arthur Morgan—modeled after Arthur Anning—is a carpet layer whose family's plight in the opportunity-poor setting of post-war England is depicted. Writer Julian Mitchell detailed the story line and characters in depth, explaining in the liner notes
for the album's LP release:
Davies would later comment in his autobiography, X-Ray
, that Arthur Anning later "told me that he ... knew it [Arthur] had been partly inspired by him ... [it] reminded him of home ... I told Arthur that I felt guilty for using him as a subject for a song, but he shrugged off my apology, saying that he was flattered." With an underlying theme of nostalgia, the songs describe the England that Arthur once knew ("Victoria", "Young and Innocent Days"), the promise of life in Australia for one of his sons ("Australia"), the emptiness of his superficially comfortable life in his home ("Shangri-La"), the resolve of the British people during the Second World War ("Mr. Churchill Says"), the privations that characterised the austerity period after the war ("She's Bought a Hat Like Princess Marina"), and the death of his brother in World War I
("Yes Sir, No Sir", "Some Mother's Son").
Side 1
Side 2
Bonus tracks (Castle 1998, Sanctuary 2004)
* A broken stereo version (due to a mastering error) was included in Castle Records' 1998 release. This was fixed in subsequent reissues
Production
Studio album
A studio album is an album made up of tracks recorded in the controlled environment of a recording studio. A studio album contains newly written and recorded or previously unreleased or remixed material, distinguishing itself from a compilation or reissue album of previously recorded material, or...
by English rock
Rock music
Rock music is a genre of popular music that developed during and after the 1960s, particularly in the United Kingdom and the United States. It has its roots in 1940s and 1950s rock and roll, itself heavily influenced by rhythm and blues and country music...
band The Kinks
The Kinks
The Kinks were an English rock band formed in Muswell Hill, North London, by brothers Ray and Dave Davies in 1964. Categorised in the United States as a British Invasion band, The Kinks are recognised as one of the most important and influential rock acts of the era. Their music was influenced by a...
, released in October 1969. Kinks frontman Ray Davies
Ray Davies
Ray Davies, CBE is an English rock musician. He is best known as lead singer and songwriter for the Kinks, which he led with his younger brother, Dave...
constructed the concept album
Concept album
In music, a concept album is an album that is "unified by a theme, which can be instrumental, compositional, narrative, or lyrical." Commonly, concept albums tend to incorporate preconceived musical or lyrical ideas rather than being improvised or composed in the studio, with all songs contributing...
as the soundtrack to a Granada Television
Granada Television
Granada Television is the ITV contractor for North West England. Based in Manchester since its inception, it is the only surviving original ITA franchisee from 1954 and is ITV's most successful....
play and developed the storyline with novelist Julian Mitchell
Julian Mitchell
Julian Mitchell FRSL , full name Charles Julian Humphrey Mitchell, is an English playwright, screenwriter and occasional novelist...
; however, the television programme was cancelled and never produced. The rough plot revolved around Arthur Morgan, a carpet-layer, who was based on Ray Davies' brother-in-law Arthur Anning. A mono version was released in the UK, but not in the US. It is now available on the 2011 deluxe-edition re-issue.
Arthur was met with almost unanimous acclaim upon release. It received generous coverage in the US rock press, with articles running in underground magazines such as Fusion and The Village Voice
The Village Voice
The Village Voice is a free weekly newspaper and news and features website in New York City that features investigative articles, analysis of current affairs and culture, arts and music coverage, and events listings for New York City...
. It garnered back-to-back reviews by Mike Daly and Greil Marcus
Greil Marcus
Greil Marcus is an American author, music journalist and cultural critic. He is notable for producing scholarly and literary essays that place rock music in a much broader framework of culture and politics than is customary in pop music journalism.-Life and career:Marcus was born in San Francisco...
in Rolling Stone
Rolling Stone
Rolling Stone is a US-based magazine devoted to music, liberal politics, and popular culture that is published every two weeks. Rolling Stone was founded in San Francisco in 1967 by Jann Wenner and music critic Ralph J...
magazine's lead section; Daly rated it as "the Kinks' finest hour", and Marcus went so far as to call it "the best British album of 1969". Reviews in the UK were also positive. Although it received a mixed review in New Musical Express, Disc & Music Echo praised the album's musical integrity, and Melody Maker
Melody Maker
Melody Maker, published in the United Kingdom, was, according to its publisher IPC Media, the world's oldest weekly music newspaper. It was founded in 1926 as a magazine targeted at musicians; in 2000 it was merged into "long-standing rival" New Musical Express.-1950s–1960s:Originally the Melody...
called it "Ray Davies' finest hour ... beautifully British to the core".
The album, although not very successful commercially, was a return to the charts in the US for The Kinks. Their critically well-received previous effort, The Kinks Are the Village Green Preservation Society
The Kinks Are the Village Green Preservation Society
The Kinks Are the Village Green Preservation Society is the sixth studio album by the English rock group The Kinks, released in November 1968. It was the last album by the original quartet, as bassist Pete Quaife left the group in early 1969...
, failed to chart in any country upon its release in 1968, with total US sales estimated at under 25,000 copies. The Kinks returned to the Billboard
Billboard charts
The Billboard charts tabulate the relative weekly popularity of songs or albums in the United States. The results are published in Billboard magazine...
charts in 1969 after a two year absence, with the lead single from the record, "Victoria
Victoria (song)
"Victoria" is a song written by Ray Davies of The Kinks. It is the opening track on the band's 1969 concept album Arthur ....
", peaking at number 62. The album itself reached number 50 on the Record World
Record World
Record World magazine was one of the three main music industry trade publications in the United States, along with Billboard and Cash Box magazines. It was founded in 1946 under the name Music Vendor, but since 1964 changed it to Record World, under the ownership of Sid Parnes and Bob Austin, both...
charts, and number 105 on Billboard, their highest position since 1965. It failed to chart in Britain. Arthur paved the way for the massive success of their 1970 comeback album Lola Versus Powerman and the Moneygoround, Part One
Lola versus Powerman and the Moneygoround, Part One
Lola Versus Powerman and the Moneygoround, Part OneAlternatively titled Kinks Part One: Lola Versus Powerman and the Moneygoround; commonly abbreviated to Lola Versus Powerman is the eighth studio album by British rock band The Kinks, recorded and released in 1970...
and its accompanying US and UK Top 5 hit "Lola
Lola (song)
"Lola" is a song written by Ray Davies and performed by The Kinks which details a romantic encounter between a young man and a transvestite he meets in a club in Soho, London....
".
Background
British production company Granada TVGranada Television
Granada Television is the ITV contractor for North West England. Based in Manchester since its inception, it is the only surviving original ITA franchisee from 1954 and is ITV's most successful....
approached Ray Davies
Ray Davies
Ray Davies, CBE is an English rock musician. He is best known as lead singer and songwriter for the Kinks, which he led with his younger brother, Dave...
in early January 1969, expressing interest in developing a movie or play for television
Television play
From the 1950s until the early 1980s, the television play was a popular television programming genre in the United Kingdom, with a shorter span in the United States. The genre was often associated with the social realist-influenced British drama style known as "kitchen sink realism", which depicted...
. Davies was to collaborate with writer Julian Mitchell
Julian Mitchell
Julian Mitchell FRSL , full name Charles Julian Humphrey Mitchell, is an English playwright, screenwriter and occasional novelist...
on the "experimental" programme, with a soundtrack by The Kinks to be released on an accompanying LP
LP album
The LP, or long-playing microgroove record, is a format for phonograph records, an analog sound storage medium. Introduced by Columbia Records in 1948, it was soon adopted as a new standard by the entire record industry...
. Agreements were finalised on 8 January, but the project was not revealed until a press release on 10 March. Separately, The Kinks began work on the programme's companion record, entitled Arthur (Or the Decline and Fall of the British Empire). Development of Arthur occurred during a rough period for the band, due to the commercial failure of their previous album The Kinks Are the Village Green Preservation Society
The Kinks Are the Village Green Preservation Society
The Kinks Are the Village Green Preservation Society is the sixth studio album by the English rock group The Kinks, released in November 1968. It was the last album by the original quartet, as bassist Pete Quaife left the group in early 1969...
and the subsequent single
Single (music)
In music, a single or record single is a type of release, typically a recording of fewer tracks than an LP or a CD. This can be released for sale to the public in a variety of different formats. In most cases, the single is a song that is released separately from an album, but it can still appear...
, "Plastic Man
Plastic Man (song)
For other uses, see Plastic Man "Plastic Man" is a pop song, written by Ray Davies and recorded by The Kinks in 1969.The song is in a similar style to earlier tracks such as "Dedicated Follower of Fashion". It was written and recorded specifically as an attempt at a hit single, released only days...
", as well as the departure of founding member and bassist Pete Quaife
Pete Quaife
Peter Alexander Greenlaw "Pete" Quaife was an English musician, artist and author. He was a founding member and the original bass guitarist for The Kinks, from 1963 until 1969....
. In early 1969, Quaife had told the band he was quitting, though the other members did not take the remark seriously. When an article in the New Musical Express mentioned Maple Oak, the band that he had formed without the rest of The Kinks' knowledge, Davies unsuccessfully asked Quaife to return for the upcoming sessions of Arthur. As a replacement, Davies called up bassist John Dalton, who had previously filled in for Quaife.
Davies travelled to United Recording Studios in Los Angeles, California on 11 April 1969, to produce American pop band The Turtles
The Turtles
The Turtles are an American rock group led by vocalists Howard Kaylan and Mark Volman. The band became notable for several Top 40 hits beginning with its cover version of Bob Dylan's "It Ain't Me Babe" in 1965...
' LP Turtle Soup
Turtle Soup
Turtle Soup is the last original studio album by The Turtles. It was released in 1969 on the White Whale Records label. The album was produced by Ray Davies of The Kinks – the first time he produced another artist's record. A 1993 Repertoire Records CD-issue included 8 bonus tracks.Turtle Soup...
with engineer Chuck Britz. While in Los Angeles, Davies helped negotiate an end to the concert ban placed on The Kinks by the American Federation of Musicians
American Federation of Musicians
The American Federation of Musicians of the United States and Canada is a labor union of professional musicians in the United States and Canada...
in 1965. Although neither The Kinks nor the union gave a specific reason for the ban, at the time it was widely attributed to their rowdy on-stage behaviour. After negotiations with Davies, the Federation relented, opening up an opportunity for the group to return to touring in America. Once the main sessions for the Turtles LP were completed, Davies returned to England. While Davies was abroad, the other members of the band had been rehearsing and practising for the upcoming album, as well as lead guitarist Dave Davies
Dave Davies
David Russell Gordon "Dave" Davies is an English rock musician best known for his role as lead guitarist and vocalist for the English rock band The Kinks....
' solo album, nicknamed A Hole in the Sock of
A Hole in the Sock of (Dave Davies)
A Hole in the Sock of Dave Davies refers to an unreleased album of solo material by Dave Davies, lead guitarist and co-founder of British rock band The Kinks...
. When Ray returned, The Kinks regrouped at his house in Borehamwood
Borehamwood
-Film industry:Since the 1920s, the town has been home to several film studios and many shots of its streets are included in final cuts of 20th century British films. This earned it the nickname of the "British Hollywood"...
, Hertfordshire
Hertfordshire
Hertfordshire is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in the East region of England. The county town is Hertford.The county is one of the Home Counties and lies inland, bordered by Greater London , Buckinghamshire , Bedfordshire , Cambridgeshire and...
, to rehearse the upcoming album Arthur.
Recording
The group turned to the recording proper on 1 May 1969. The first tracks worked on were "Drivin, intended as their next single release, and "Mindless Child Of Motherhood", written by Dave Davies (the latter would eventually be used as the B-side to "Drivin, and was not included on the LP). The Kinks began a two-week series of focused sessions on 5 May, laying down an early version of the entire Arthur album. Recording was interrupted when The Kinks travelled to BeirutBeirut
Beirut is the capital and largest city of Lebanon, with a population ranging from 1 million to more than 2 million . Located on a peninsula at the midpoint of Lebanon's Mediterranean coastline, it serves as the country's largest and main seaport, and also forms the Beirut Metropolitan...
, Lebanon
Lebanon
Lebanon , officially the Republic of LebanonRepublic of Lebanon is the most common term used by Lebanese government agencies. The term Lebanese Republic, a literal translation of the official Arabic and French names that is not used in today's world. Arabic is the most common language spoken among...
on 17 May to play three dates at the Melkart Hotel; sessions for Arthur resumed the day after their return, and most of the recording for the album was finished by the end of the month. Mixing and dubbing
Dubbing (music)
In sound recording, dubbing is the transfer or copying of previously recorded audio material from one medium to another of the same or a different type. It may be done with a machine designed for this purpose, or by connecting two different machines: one to play back and one to record the signal...
began in early June, with arranger Lew Warburton handling string overdubs. The Kinks played a few small gigs in England throughout the remainder of the month, but devoted most of their time to finishing Dave Davies' solo album.
Writing for the TV play progressed through May and June, and on 15 June mixing for Dave Davies' solo LP was completed (tapes for this record were eventually delivered to Pye and Reprise Records, although it never saw official release). A press release announced that the Arthur LP was scheduled for a late July release. As Davies and Mitchell completed their script, the Arthur TV play began to crystallise, and British filmmaker Leslie Woodhead
Leslie Woodhead
Leslie Woodhead is an award-winning British documentary filmmaker.For his National Service he served in Fife at the Joint Services School for Linguists where he was taught Russian. and posted to West Berlin to monitor the communications of Soviet pilots flying in and out of East Germany...
was assigned the role of director. By early September production was scheduled to begin, with a planned broadcast of late September, but these plans were continually delayed. As problems with the TV play got progressively worse—and, consequently, distracted The Kinks from completing the post-production of the album—the release dates for both projects were pushed further and further back. In early October Ray Davies moved from Borehamwood back to his old family home on Fortis Green
Fortis Green
Fortis Green is a ward in the extreme north-western corner of the Borough of Haringey, North London. It is also the name of the road that runs between Muswell Hill and East Finchley which forms part of the A504....
Road, in Muswell Hill
Muswell Hill
Muswell Hill is a suburb of north London, mostly in the London Borough of Haringey. It is situated about north of Charing Cross and around from the City of London. Muswell Hill is in the N10 postal district and mostly in the Hornsey and Wood Green parliamentary constituency.- History :The...
, and travelled to Los Angeles, where he deposited the tapes at Reprise for Arthurs American release. The album's release date was finally set for 10 October, and The Kinks began gearing up for an upcoming US tour to support the album, for which they would depart on 17 October. Shooting for the TV play was eventually set for 1 December. Roy Stonehouse was hired as a designer, and the casting was completed; however, the show was cancelled at the last minute when the producer was unable to secure financial backing. Davies and Mitchell were frustrated at an entire year's work wasted—Doug Hinman stated that Davies witnessed "his grand artistic visions once again dashed by bureaucracy and internal politics."
Release
Arthur (Or the Decline and Fall of the British Empire) was released in the US and UK on 10 October 1969, in both mono and stereo versions. The album set the stage for The Kinks' return to touring the United States in late 1969, and paved the way for even greater commercial success with the hit song "LolaLola (song)
"Lola" is a song written by Ray Davies and performed by The Kinks which details a romantic encounter between a young man and a transvestite he meets in a club in Soho, London....
" in 1970.
Singles and chart performance
While the sessions for Arthur (Or the Decline and Fall of the British Empire) were nearing completion in June 1969, the track "Drivin was released as a single in the UK, backed with "Mindless Child of Motherhood". For the first time since their breakthrough in 1964, a Kinks single failed to make an impression on the UK charts—Johnny RoganJohnny Rogan
Johnny Rogan is an author of Irish descent best known for his books about music and popular culture. He has written influential biographies of The Byrds, The Smiths and Van Morrison. His writing is characterised by "an almost neurotic attention to detail", epic length and a sometimes hostile...
notes that "This was the first of two pilot singles for ... Arthur and its failure did not augur well." The group followed with another single in September, "Shangri-La", which again failed to chart in the UK. As with Village Green, the album itself failed to chart when released in October.
In the US, "Victoria
Victoria (song)
"Victoria" is a song written by Ray Davies of The Kinks. It is the opening track on the band's 1969 concept album Arthur ....
" was chosen as the lead single, backed with the album track "Brainwashed", and was released the same week as the LP. The single proved to be relatively successful, and reached number 62 on the Billboard Hot 100
Billboard Hot 100
The Billboard Hot 100 is the United States music industry standard singles popularity chart issued weekly by Billboard magazine. Chart rankings are based on radio play and sales; the tracking-week for sales begins on Monday and ends on Sunday, while the radio play tracking-week runs from Wednesday...
—their highest position since their Top 20 hit "Sunny Afternoon
Sunny Afternoon
"Sunny Afternoon" is a song by The Kinks, written by chief songwriter Ray Davies. Like its contemporary "Taxman" by The Beatles, the song references the high levels of progressive tax taken by the British Labour government of Harold Wilson. The track later featured on the Face to Face album as well...
" in 1966. The success of the single led to its release in the UK; backed with "Mr. Churchill Says
Mr. Churchill Says
"Mr. Churchill Says" is a song by Ray Davies of The Kinks. It appears on the album Arthur . The song is about the struggle of World War II on the people of Great Britain...
", it reached a peak of number 30. Arthur itself was a moderate commercial success in the US, where it peaked at number 105 (the highest for a Kinks album since 1965) and remained on the charts for 20 weeks.
Promotion
Reprise RecordsReprise Records
Reprise Records is an American record label, founded in 1960 by Frank Sinatra. It is owned by Warner Music Group, and operated through Warner Bros. Records.-Beginnings:...
, The Kinks' US label, devised an elaborate, multi-levelled promotional
Promotion (marketing)
Promotion is one of the four elements of marketing mix . It is the communication link between sellers and buyers for the purpose of influencing, informing, or persuading a potential buyer's purchasing decision....
campaign for Arthur in early 1969. The most famous branch of the programme involved a promo package entitled God Save The Kinks. The set featured various items, including a consumer's guide to the band's albums, a bag of "grass" from the "Daviesland village green", and an LP entitled Then, Now and Inbetween. The set was accompanied by a positive letter from Hal Halverstadt of creative services at Warner/Reprise, part of which read, "... [We are led] to believe that The Kinks may not have had it at all ... The Kinks are to be supported, encouraged, cheered. And saved." The campaign was officially launched on 3 July, at a meeting between Ray Davies and Reprise executives in Burbank, California
Burbank, California
Burbank is a city in Los Angeles County in Southern California, United States, north of downtown Los Angeles. The estimated population in 2010 was 103,340....
. Reprise considered seeding false stories in the press to create an "outlaw" image for the group as part of the campaign, including pieces about marijuana possession and income tax evasion. Ray called the idea "mad", and the programme was dropped. Several pieces, however, were used in the press kit for Arthurs release, with titles like "English Pop Group Arrested on Rape Rap".
Packaging and liner notes
Artwork for Arthur was created by Bob Lawrie. The album was packaged in a gatefoldGatefold
A gatefold is a type of fold used for advertising around a magazine or section, and for packaging of media such as vinyl records.- LP covers :...
sleeve, and included a shaped insert depicting Queen Victoria (holding a house containing Arthur Morgan), with lyrics on the reverse. Liner notes in the UK were written by Geoffrey Cannon and Julian Mitchell; in the US, notes by rock critic John Mendelsohn replaced Cannon's.
Critical response
The album was critically acclaimed at the time of release, especially in the US rock press. It was favourably compared to contemporary works, namely TommyTommy (rock opera)
Tommy is the fourth album by English rock band The Who, released by Track Records and Polydor Records in the United Kingdom and Decca Records/MCA in the United States. A double album telling a loose story about a "deaf, dumb and blind boy" who becomes the leader of a messianic movement, Tommy was...
by The Who
The Who
The Who are an English rock band formed in 1964 by Roger Daltrey , Pete Townshend , John Entwistle and Keith Moon . They became known for energetic live performances which often included instrument destruction...
, released earlier in the year. In Rolling Stone
Rolling Stone
Rolling Stone is a US-based magazine devoted to music, liberal politics, and popular culture that is published every two weeks. Rolling Stone was founded in San Francisco in 1967 by Jann Wenner and music critic Ralph J...
magazine, Arthur was spotlighted in its lead section, with back-to-back reviews by Mike Daly
Mike Daly
Mike Daly is an American producer / songwriter / multi-instrumentalist who grew up in Roselle Park, New Jersey, United States. Daly attended the Berklee College of Music in Boston, graduating in 1994. Soon after, he joined the band Swales and recorded one album, What's His Name? for Bar/None Records...
and Greil Marcus
Greil Marcus
Greil Marcus is an American author, music journalist and cultural critic. He is notable for producing scholarly and literary essays that place rock music in a much broader framework of culture and politics than is customary in pop music journalism.-Life and career:Marcus was born in San Francisco...
. Daly called it "an album that is a masterpiece on every level: Ray Davies' finest hour, the Kinks' supreme achievement." Marcus also praised the record, and said: "Less ambitious than Tommy, and far more musical ... Arthur is by all odds the best British album of 1969. It shows that Pete Townshend
Pete Townshend
Peter Dennis Blandford "Pete" Townshend is an English rock guitarist, vocalist, songwriter and author, known principally as the guitarist and songwriter for the rock group The Who, as well as for his own solo career...
still has worlds to conquer and that The Beatles have a lot of catching up to do." A review by Sal Imam ran in Boston's Fusion magazine read that "If Tommy was the greatest rock opera, then Arthur most surely is the greatest rock musical." Writing in his Consumer Guide column of The Village Voice
The Village Voice
The Village Voice is a free weekly newspaper and news and features website in New York City that features investigative articles, analysis of current affairs and culture, arts and music coverage, and events listings for New York City...
, Robert Christgau
Robert Christgau
Robert Christgau is an American essayist, music journalist, and self-proclaimed "Dean of American Rock Critics".One of the earliest professional rock critics, Christgau is known for his terse capsule reviews, published since 1969 in his Consumer Guide columns...
gave the record a positive review, saying, although Ray Davies' lyrics could get "preachy at times", that the album featured "excellent music and production".
Reception in the UK was not as warm, although reviews were still generally positive. Disc & Music Echo
Disc (magazine)
Disc was a weekly British popular music magazine, published between 1958 and 1975, when it was incorporated into Record Mirror. It was also known for periods as Disc Weekly and Disc and Music Echo ....
commented that "Arthur works as a complete score because it is basic and simple and pleasing to the ear, and powerfully conjures up pictures in the eye." Melody Maker
Melody Maker
Melody Maker, published in the United Kingdom, was, according to its publisher IPC Media, the world's oldest weekly music newspaper. It was founded in 1926 as a magazine targeted at musicians; in 2000 it was merged into "long-standing rival" New Musical Express.-1950s–1960s:Originally the Melody...
seconded Mike Daly's comments in Rolling Stone, again calling it "Ray Davies' finest hour", and adding that it was "beautifully British to the core." Doug Hinman would later comment on the album's reception in Britain: "In the British music press there [was] less celebration, and coverage [was] relatively routine, though everyone saw the rock opera angle."
Recent criticism
Today the album receives generally positive reviews. Stephen Thomas ErlewineStephen Thomas Erlewine
Stephen Thomas Erlewine is a senior editor for Allmusic. He is the author of many artist biographies and record reviews for Allmusic, as well as a freelance writer, occasionally contributing liner notes. He is also frontman and guitarist for the Ann Arbor-based band Who Dat?Erlewine is the nephew...
of Allmusic stated that Arthur was "one of the most effective concept albums in rock history, as well as one of the best and most influential British pop records of its era," and in 2003 Matt Golden of Stylus
Stylus Magazine
Stylus Magazine was an online music and film magazine launched in 2002. It featured long-form music journalism, four daily music reviews, movie reviews, a number of different podcasts, an MP3 blog, and a text blog....
called it "the best rock opera ever". Adrian Denning rated the album "[a] fine ... set of Kinks song[s]" with "absolutely no filler". Georgiy Starostin
Georgiy Starostin
Georgiy Sergeevich Starostin is a Russian linguistics researcher at the Center of Comparative Studies at the Russian State University for the Humanities, and a participant at the Santa Fe Institute's Evolution of Human Languages project...
gave Arthur a positive review and maximum 10 out of 10 as an overall rating. Starostin appraised it as The Kinks' best record, and also pointed out that the melodies, though simple, were "unbelievingly catchy, funny and sincere, angry and raving at times, emotional and mystic at other times." Switch magazine included Arthur on their "100 Best Albums of the 20th Century" in 1999, and in 2003 Mojo
Mojo (magazine)
MOJO is a popular music magazine published initially by Emap, and since January 2008 by Bauer, monthly in the United Kingdom. Following the success of the magazine Q, publishers Emap were looking for a title which would cater for the burgeoning interest in classic rock music...
featured the album on their list of the "Top 50 Most Eccentric Albums".
Story and theme
The story is partially inspired by the Davies brothers' older sister Rose, who emigrated to Australia in 1964 with her husband Arthur Anning. Her departure devastated Ray Davies, and it inspired him to write the song "Rosie Won't You Please Come Home", included on the 1966 album Face to FaceFace to Face (The Kinks album)
Face to Face, released in 1966 on Pye Records in the United Kingdom and on Reprise Records in the United States, is the fourth UK studio album by The Kinks. A major artistic breakthrough for Kinks' songwriter Ray Davies, the LP represents the first full flowering of Davies' use of narrative,...
. The lead character in the album, the fictional Arthur Morgan—modeled after Arthur Anning—is a carpet layer whose family's plight in the opportunity-poor setting of post-war England is depicted. Writer Julian Mitchell detailed the story line and characters in depth, explaining in the liner notes
Liner notes
Liner notes are the writings found in booklets which come inserted into the compact disc jewel case or the equivalent packaging for vinyl records and cassettes.-Origin:...
for the album's LP release:
"Arthur Morgan ... lives in a London suburb in a house called Shangri-La, with a garden and a car and a wife called Rose and a son called Derek who's married to Liz, and they have these two very nice kids, Terry and Marilyn. Derek and Liz and Terry and Marilyn are emigrating to Australia. Arthur did have another son, called Eddie. He was named for Arthur's brother, who was killed in the battle of the Somme. Arthur's Eddie was killed, too—in Korea."
Davies would later comment in his autobiography, X-Ray
X-Ray (book)
X-Ray was Ray Davies' first major attempt to write prose outside of his musical career as founding member of the British rock band the Kinks...
, that Arthur Anning later "told me that he ... knew it [Arthur] had been partly inspired by him ... [it] reminded him of home ... I told Arthur that I felt guilty for using him as a subject for a song, but he shrugged off my apology, saying that he was flattered." With an underlying theme of nostalgia, the songs describe the England that Arthur once knew ("Victoria", "Young and Innocent Days"), the promise of life in Australia for one of his sons ("Australia"), the emptiness of his superficially comfortable life in his home ("Shangri-La"), the resolve of the British people during the Second World War ("Mr. Churchill Says"), the privations that characterised the austerity period after the war ("She's Bought a Hat Like Princess Marina"), and the death of his brother in World War I
World War I
World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
("Yes Sir, No Sir", "Some Mother's Son").
Track listing
All songs written by Ray Davies, except when noted.Side 1
- "VictoriaVictoria (song)"Victoria" is a song written by Ray Davies of The Kinks. It is the opening track on the band's 1969 concept album Arthur ....
" – 3:40 - "Yes Sir, No Sir" – 3:46
- "Some Mother's Son" – 3:25
- "Drivin – 3:21
- "Brainwashed" – 2:34
- "Australia" – 6:46
Side 2
- "Shangri-La" – 5:20
- "Mr. Churchill SaysMr. Churchill Says"Mr. Churchill Says" is a song by Ray Davies of The Kinks. It appears on the album Arthur . The song is about the struggle of World War II on the people of Great Britain...
" – 4:42 - "She's Bought a Hat Like Princess Marina" – 3:07
- "Young and Innocent Days" – 3:21
- "Nothing to Say" – 3:08
- "Arthur" – 5:27
Bonus tracks (Castle 1998, Sanctuary 2004)
- "Plastic ManPlastic Man (song)For other uses, see Plastic Man "Plastic Man" is a pop song, written by Ray Davies and recorded by The Kinks in 1969.The song is in a similar style to earlier tracks such as "Dedicated Follower of Fashion". It was written and recorded specifically as an attempt at a hit single, released only days...
" (Mono mix) – 3:04 - "King Kong" (Mono mix) – 3:23
- "Drivin (Mono mix) – 3:12
- "Mindless Child of Motherhood" (Mono mix) (Dave Davies) – 3:16
- "This Man He Weeps Tonight" (Mono mix) (Dave Davies) – 2:42
- "Plastic Man" (Alternate stereo version) – 3:04
- "Mindless Child of Motherhood" (Stereo mix) (Dave Davies) – 3:16
- "This Man He Weeps Tonight" (Stereo mix)
* (Dave Davies) – 2:42 - "She's Bought a Hat Like Princess Marina" (Mono mix) – 3:07
- "Mr. Shoemaker's Daughter"Unreleased track from Dave Davies solo albumA Hole in the Sock of (Dave Davies)A Hole in the Sock of Dave Davies refers to an unreleased album of solo material by Dave Davies, lead guitarist and co-founder of British rock band The Kinks...
(Dave Davies) – 3:08
Personnel
The Kinks- Mick AvoryMick AvoryMichael Charles "Mick" Avory is an English musician, best known as the longtime drummer and percussionist for the British rock band, The Kinks, joining them shortly after their formation in 1964 and remaining with them until 1984, when he left amid creative friction with guitarist Dave Davies...
– drumsDrum kitA drum kit is a collection of drums, cymbals and often other percussion instruments, such as cowbells, wood blocks, triangles, chimes, or tambourines, arranged for convenient playing by a single person ....
, percussionPercussion instrumentA percussion instrument is any object which produces a sound when hit with an implement or when it is shaken, rubbed, scraped, or otherwise acted upon in a way that sets the object into vibration... - John DaltonJohn Dalton (musician)John Dalton is a British bass guitar player, best known as a member of The Kinks' from 1969 to 1976, replacing original member Pete Quaife.- Biography :...
– bass guitarBass guitarThe bass guitar is a stringed instrument played primarily with the fingers or thumb , or by using a pick....
, backgroundBacking vocalistA backing vocalist or backing singer is a singer who provides vocal harmony with the lead vocalist or other backing vocalists...
vocalsSingingSinging is the act of producing musical sounds with the voice, and augments regular speech by the use of both tonality and rhythm. One who sings is called a singer or vocalist. Singers perform music known as songs that can be sung either with or without accompaniment by musical instruments... - Dave DaviesDave DaviesDavid Russell Gordon "Dave" Davies is an English rock musician best known for his role as lead guitarist and vocalist for the English rock band The Kinks....
– lead guitarLead guitarLead guitar is a guitar part which plays melody lines, instrumental fill passages, guitar solos, and occasionally, some riffs within a song structure...
, co-lead vocal on "Arthur", background vocals, "screaming"Credited in album notes - Ray DaviesRay DaviesRay Davies, CBE is an English rock musician. He is best known as lead singer and songwriter for the Kinks, which he led with his younger brother, Dave...
– lead vocals, rhythm guitarRhythm guitarRhythm guitar is a technique and rôle that performs a combination of two functions: to provide all or part of the rhythmic pulse in conjunction with singers or other instruments; and to provide all or part of the harmony, ie. the chords, where a chord is a group of notes played together...
, keyboardsKeyboard instrumentA keyboard instrument is a musical instrument which is played using a musical keyboard. The most common of these is the piano. Other widely used keyboard instruments include organs of various types as well as other mechanical, electromechanical and electronic instruments...
(harpsichordHarpsichordA harpsichord is a musical instrument played by means of a keyboard. It produces sound by plucking a string when a key is pressed.In the narrow sense, "harpsichord" designates only the large wing-shaped instruments in which the strings are perpendicular to the keyboard...
and pianoPianoThe piano is a musical instrument played by means of a keyboard. It is one of the most popular instruments in the world. Widely used in classical and jazz music for solo performances, ensemble use, chamber music and accompaniment, the piano is also very popular as an aid to composing and rehearsal...
), productionRecord producerA record producer is an individual working within the music industry, whose job is to oversee and manage the recording of an artist's music...
Production
- Lew Warburton – horn and stringString instrumentA string instrument is a musical instrument that produces sound by means of vibrating strings. In the Hornbostel-Sachs scheme of musical instrument classification, used in organology, they are called chordophones...
arrangementArrangementThe American Federation of Musicians defines arranging as "the art of preparing and adapting an already written composition for presentation in other than its original form. An arrangement may include reharmonization, paraphrasing, and/or development of a composition, so that it fully represents...
s - Andrew Hendriksen – engineeringAudio engineeringAn audio engineer, also called audio technician, audio technologist or sound technician, is a specialist in a skilled trade that deals with the use of machinery and equipment for the recording, mixing and reproduction of sounds. The field draws on many artistic and vocational areas, including...
- Brian Humphries – engineering on "Drivin
- Bob Lawrie – album art
- Austin Sneller – credited as "album 'tester
Album
| Year | Billboard Billboard (magazine) Billboard is a weekly American magazine devoted to the music industry, and is one of the oldest trade magazines in the world. It maintains several internationally recognized music charts that track the most popular songs and albums in various categories on a weekly basis... | Cash Box | Record Retailer Record Retailer Record Retailer was a trade newspaper for the UK record industry. It was founded in August 1959 as a monthly newspaper covering both labels and dealers. Its founding editor was Roy Parker... |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1969 | 105 | 53 | 50 |
Singles
| Year | Title | Peak chart positions | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| UK | US | NL | ||
| 1969 | "Plastic Man"Not included on the LP release of Arthur | 28 | — | 17 |
| "Drivin | — | — | — | |
| "Shangri-la" | — | — | 27 | |
| "Victoria" | 30 | 62 | — | |
| "—" denotes the release failed to chart. | ||||