"Autumn Almanac" is a song written by

Ray Davies Sir Raymond Douglas Davies ( ; born 21 June 1944) is an English musician. He was the lead vocalist, rhythm guitarist, and main songwriter for the rock band the Kinks, which he led with his younger brother Dave on lead guitar and backing voc ...

and recorded by the rock group

the Kinks The Kinks were an English rock band formed in Muswell Hill, north London, in 1963 by brothers Ray and Dave Davies. They are regarded as one of the most influential rock bands of the 1960s. The band emerged during the height of British rhyt ...

in 1967. "Autumn Almanac" has since been noted for being an "absolute classic", "a finely observed slice of English custom", and a "weird character study", and praised for its "mellow, melodic sound that was to characterize the Kinks' next usicalphase..." Some have placed this and other Davies compositions in the

pastoral A pastoral lifestyle is that of shepherds herding livestock around open areas of land according to seasons and the changing availability of water and pasture. It lends its name to a genre of literature, art, and music (pastorale) that depict ...

- Romantic tradition of the poetry of Wordsworth, among others. In his 1995 autobiography ''X-Ray'' and in subsequent performances of his '' VH1 Storytellers'' effort, Davies described the song as being inspired by a local hunch-backed gardener in his native

Muswell Hill Muswell Hill is a suburban district of the London Borough of Haringey, north London. The hill, which reaches over above sea level, is situated north of Charing Cross. Neighbouring areas include Highgate, Hampstead Garden Suburb, East Fi ...

neighbourhood of North London. "Autumn Almanac" was a non-album single in between 1967's ''

Something Else by the Kinks ''Something Else by the Kinks'', often referred to simply as ''Something Else'', is the fifth UK studio album by the Kinks, released in September 1967. The album continued the Kinks' trend toward an eccentric baroque pop and music hall-influence ...

'' and 1968's '' The Kinks Are the Village Green Preservation Society''. The song was a big success in the UK, reaching #3 on the singles chart, but not in the US, where it failed to chart on the

Billboard Hot 100 The ''Billboard'' Hot 100 is the music industry standard record chart in the United States for songs, published weekly by '' Billboard'' magazine. Chart rankings are based on sales (physical and digital), radio play, and online stream ...

. Like many recordings of the mid-to-late 1960s, "Autumn Almanac" was released in both

mono Mono may refer to: Common meanings * Infectious mononucleosis, "the kissing disease" * Monaural, monophonic sound reproduction, often shortened to mono * Mono-, a numerical prefix representing anything single Music Performers * Mono (Japanes ...

and

stereo Stereophonic sound, or more commonly stereo, is a method of sound reproduction that recreates a multi-directional, 3-dimensional audible perspective. This is usually achieved by using two independent audio channels through a configuration ...

versions. The mono version was released as single and appears as a bonus track on the 1998 CD reissue of ''Something Else by The Kinks'' as well as most compilations. The stereo version, which is ten seconds longer and features more

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audio effects such as a

tape loop In music, tape loops are loops of magnetic tape used to create repetitive, rhythmic musical patterns or dense layers of sound when played on a tape recorder. Originating in the 1940s with the work of Pierre Schaeffer, they were used among cont ...

during the fadeout, appears on the 1972 compilation ''

The Kink Kronikles ''The Kink Kronikles'' is a compilation double album by the Kinks, released on Reprise Records in 1972, after the band had signed with RCA Records in 1971. It contains thirteen non-album singles, fourteen tracks taken from five albums released ...

'' as well as the deluxe 2-CD reissue of ''Something Else''. Dave Davies spoke highly of "Autumn Almanac" in an interview with ''

Yahoo! Yahoo! (, styled yahoo''!'' in its logo) is an American web services provider. It is headquartered in Sunnyvale, California and operated by the namesake company Yahoo Inc., which is 90% owned by investment funds managed by Apollo Global Mana ...

'', saying, "I was playing through 'Autumn Almanac' ecentlyand it’s a phenomenal recording. You can understand why it has lasted so long." Damon Albarn named the song as likely his favorite Kinks song in a 1995 interview, stating, "I think '

Dead End Street A dead end, also known as a cul-de-sac (, from French for 'bag-bottom'), no through road or no exit road, is a street with only one inlet or outlet. The term "dead end" is understood in all varieties of English, but the official terminology ...

' and 'Autumn Almanac' are my favourites. Primarily because there are so many bits to them and they’re so graphic. I could pick at least 20, but off the top of my head those are my favourites. 'Autumn Almanac' is probably my favourite."

Personnel

According to band researcher Doug Hinman: The Kinks *

lead vocal, acoustic guitar *

Dave Davies David Russell Gordon Davies (born 3 February 1947) is an English guitarist, singer and songwriter. He was the lead guitarist and backing vocalist for the English rock band the Kinks, which also featured his elder brother Ray Davies. He was in ...

backing vocal, electric guitar *

Pete Quaife Peter Alexander Greenlaw Quaife (born Kinnes; 31 December 1943 – 23 June 2010) was an English musician, artist and author. He was a founding member and the original bass guitarist for the Kinks, from 1963 until 1969. He also sang backing voca ...

backing vocal, bass *

Mick Avory Michael Charles Avory (born 15 February 1944) is an English musician, best known as the longtime drummer and percussionist for the English rock band the Kinks. He joined them shortly after their formation in 1964 and remained with them until 1984, ...

drums Additional musicians *Rasa Davies backing vocals *

Nicky Hopkins Nicholas Christian "Nicky" Hopkins (24 February 1944 – 6 September 1994) was an English pianist and organist. Hopkins performed on many popular and enduring British and American rock music recordings from the 1960s to the 1990s, most notably ...

piano,

Mellotron The Mellotron is an electro-mechanical musical instrument developed in Birmingham, England, in 1963. It is played by pressing its keys, each of which pushes a length of magnetic tape against a capstan, which pulls it across a playback head. ...

Notes

References

Sources

* * {{authority control The Kinks songs 1967 singles Songs written by Ray Davies Song recordings produced by Ray Davies Pye Records singles 1967 songs Reprise Records singles Baroque pop songs