Sunny afternoon
Sunny Afternoon is the title of a hit released by British rock group Kinks in 1966.
History of origin
Since June 1965, Ray Davies believed that the management of the group and the music publisher were earning more from the Kinks than the group itself. As a result, in November 1965 he had a contract with the music publisher Belinda Music Ltd. signed, although he was still legally connected to Kassner Music . This sued him for breach of contract, so that his author royalties initially flowed into an escrow account, where they remained blocked until the end of the legal dispute in November 1970. Then on September 2, 1965, documents were filed in court that ultimately led to the termination of Larry Page's managerial contract. On November 10, 1965, Kassner Music obtained a judicial ban on 'Till The End of the Day, which was scheduled for publication on November 27, 1965 . Pye Records decided at short notice to even release the single on November 19, 1965, contrary to the judgment. On June 5, 1967, a court ruling in Denmark Productions v Boscobel Productions ended the management contract with the Kinks. At the same time, Ray Davies filed a lawsuit against his music publisher Ed Kassner Music for insufficient author royalties .
This accumulation of legal disputes, the intensive tour program and the high pressure on Ray Davies as a composer led to a nervous breakdown in early March 1966, which even made him bedridden from March 7, 1966. In the upcoming Belgium and France tour (the latter began on March 17, 1966) Ray Davies was replaced by Mick Grace. During his forced break he wrote two songs, I'm Not Like Everybody Else and Sunny Afternoon . Despite the nervous problems, Davies was in his most productive and lyrically most distinctive phase.
Sunny Afternoon was quickly in the morning during an intimate session with the much sought-after session musician Nicky Hopkins on piano and on a Hohner - Melodica completed the solo part. While Ray Davies rounded off his composition on the piano, producer Shel Talmy told Nicky Hopkins, "Do exactly what Ray does"; the next morning, May 13, 1966 at Pye Studio # 2, Hopkins played the piano part perfectly on two or three takes . Due to the melody carried by the melodica, the song ultimately becomes a catchy tune .
The satirical text is about a rich young man of the establishment , who complained about the tax policy of the government because it confiscated the tax office all the assets, but leaves him left his mansion. He can no longer sail his yacht either, his girlfriend has run away in his car and tells her parents fairy tales about binge drinking and atrocities. In the chorus he wishes to be freed from this financial need, because he has a powerful mother who is just waiting to bring him down. The predominantly negative text impression is compensated for by the chorus, because the protagonist, who is troubled in this way, loves the luxury life of lazing around sipping an ice-cold beer on a sunny afternoon. Sunny Afternoon is the ironic masterpiece of the Kinks.
Publication and Success
The single Sunny Afternoon / I'm Not Like Everybody Else (Pye 7N 17125) was released on June 3, 1966. After its release, it ousted the Beatles hit paperback writer from number one in the UK. When the single had reached first position on the British charts for two weeks on July 7, 1966, the group matches of the 1966 World Cup with England were taking place on a sunny afternoon. Sunny Afternoon was the Kinks' final number one hit . In the US charts, reception was low, with a 14th place.
The album Face to Face was recorded from April 1966 after Ray Davies' recovery. So this album is filled with lyrics about financial difficulties, especially in the auction drama Most Exclusive Residence for Sale , A House in the Country and Sunny Afternoon , the group's last big hit for many years. These songs feature the most lyrical lyrics in the Kinks repertoire, which made writer Ray Davies one of the great pop composers.
Sunny Afternoon was rarely covered , according to cover info 21 times. These included versions of the Stereophonics , Standells (1967), Bob Geldof (1992), Jimmy Buffett (1994), Brian Bennett (2000), Haley Reinhart (2017) and Wolfgang Ambros ' German version Umlieg'n in der Sunn (2004 ) and Günter Gall's Low German adaptation "Op Sommerdag" (2006).
Individual evidence
- ↑ Since February 12, 1964 there was a management contract with Robert Wace's management company Boscobel Productions
- ^ Ed Kassner Music
- ↑ the publishing rights to Sunny Afternoon were exercised by Belinda , a company belonging to the American music publisher Freddy Bienstock
- ^ Neville Marten / Jeffrey Hudson, Kinks - Well Respected Men , 1996, p. 65
- ↑ Rolling Stone, interview with Ray Davies on November 10, 1969
- ↑ Julian Dawson / Kristian Lutze, Nicky Hopkins: Eine Rock-Legende , 2010, p. 110
- ^ Neville Marten / Jeff Hudson, The Kinks , 2001, p. 77
- ↑ Thomas M. Kitts, Ray Davies: Not Like Everybody Else , 2007, p. 72
- ↑ Cover info about Sunny Afternoon