"Give the People What They Want" is a song by the British rock band, The Kinks. Released on their 1981 album '' Give the People What They Want'', the song was written by the band's main singer and core songwriter, Ray Davies.

Background

The origins of "Give the People What They Want" are found during the sessions from '' Low Budget'', where it was included in early running orders of the album. "Give the People What They Want", however, would be held from the final line-up of ''Low Budget''.

Release

"Give the People What They Want" was released as the second track on The Kinks' 1981 album '' Give the People What They Want''. It wasn't released as a single in any countries. The song appeared in live form on two of the band's live albums, '' Live: The Road'' in 1988 (this rendition of the song appeared on the compilation album ''

Lost & Found (1986-1989) The Kinks, an English rock band, were active for over three decades, from 1963 to 1996, releasing 24 studio albums and four live albums. The first two albums are differently released in the UK and the US, partly due to the difference in popular ...

'' and the American release of '' To the Bone'' in 1996. It has since appeared on multiple compilation albums, including ''You Really Got Me: The Very Best of the Kinks'' and the box set ''The Arista Years''.

Reception

AllMusic AllMusic (previously known as All Music Guide and AMG) is an American online music database. It catalogs more than three million album entries and 30 million tracks, as well as information on musicians and bands. Initiated in 1991, the databas ...

'' critic

Stephen Thomas Erlewine Stephen Thomas Erlewine (; born June 18, 1973) is an American music critic and senior editor for the online music database AllMusic. He is the author of many artist biographies and record reviews for AllMusic, as well as a freelance writer, occ ...

said that "there's a certain charm in ... his pure cynicism on Give the People What They Want' and went on to cite the track as a highlight from the '' Give the People What They Want'' album. Music critic

Robert Christgau Robert Thomas Christgau ( ; born April 18, 1942) is an American music journalist and essayist. Among the most well-known and influential music critics, he began his career in the late 1960s as one of the earliest professional rock critics and ...

called "Give the People What They Want" misanthropic.

References

{{authority control The Kinks songs Songs written by Ray Davies Song recordings produced by Ray Davies 1981 songs