"God's Children" 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 voca ...

and performed by

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 rhythm ...

. It was released as a single in

1971 * The year 1971 had three partial solar eclipses ( February 25, July 22 and August 20) and two total lunar eclipses (February 10, and August 6). The world population increased by 2.1% this year, the highest increase in history. Events Ja ...

and also on the soundtrack album of the film ''

Percy The English surname Percy is of Norman origin, coming from Normandy to England, United Kingdom. It was from the House of Percy, Norman lords of Northumberland, derives from the village of Percy-en-Auge in Normandy. From there, it came into use ...

''. The theme of "God's Children" is the limits of technology, inspired by the

penis transplant Penis transplantation is a surgical transplant procedure in which a penis is transplanted to a patient. The penis may be an allograft from a human donor, or it may be grown artificially, though the latter has not yet been transplanted onto a hu ...

subject matter of the ''Percy'' film. Music critic

Johnny Rogan John Rogan (14 February 1953 – 21 January 2021) was a British author of Irish descent best known for his books about music and popular culture. He wrote influential biographies of the Byrds, Neil Young, the Smiths, Van Morrison and Ray Davies. ...

described the melody of "God's Children" as "spellbinding."

sings the lead vocal. The song uses acoustic instrumentation, accompanied by an orchestral arrangement by Stanley Myers.

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 ind ...

praised the song as "phenomenal, an amazing song which is timeless and if you play it now it could sit quite comfortably in any decade." Kinks organist John Gosling regards "God's Children" as one of his three favorite Kinks' songs. Rogan has stated that Davies' "plea for a return to Edenic innocence was powerful and moving and arguably the closest he has come to writing a religious song." ''

Billboard Magazine ''Billboard'' (stylized as ''billboard'') is an American music and entertainment magazine published weekly by Penske Media Corporation. The magazine provides music charts, news, video, opinion, reviews, events, and style related to the music ...

'' described the song as "a potent lyric ballad set to a rock beat" and regarded it as a "strong entry for Top 40, FM and

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 streaming ...

." However, the single's success was hampered by lack of promotion by the label, and lack of live concert support from the band. "God's Children" has been included on some Kinks compilation albums such as ''

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 ...

''. A 25-second instrumental from the song entitled "God's Children - End" is used as the concluding track of ''Percy''.

References

{{Authority control The Kinks songs Songs written by Ray Davies 1971 songs Song recordings produced by Ray Davies Pye Records singles