Muswell Hillbillies

Muswell Hillbillies is an album released in November 1971 by the British rock group The Kinks. The album is named after the Muswell Hill area of London, where band leader Ray Davies and guitarist Dave Davies grew up, and where the band formed in the early 1960s.

Related Topics:
Muswell Hillbillies - 1971 - The Kinks - Muswell Hill - London - Ray Davies - Dave Davies - 1960s

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The album is a solid, wide-ranging collection of Ray Davies compositions which focus on the frustrations and stresses of modern life. Davies had addressed this theme in many of his previous songs, and it reached full maturity on this album. The musical styles of the songs range from rock ("20th Century Man") and country ("Holloway Jail") to blues ("Here Come the People in Grey") and theatrical, music-hall inspired numbers ("Alcohol"). Many consider this to be the last of the group's truly great albums from their "golden age" of 1966-1971. In 1984, Rolling Stone magazine editors called this album Davies' "signature statement."

Related Topics:
Ray Davies - Rolling Stone

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Muswell Hillbillies was the band's first album for RCA Records, their entire prior career having been with Pye Records (and Reprise Records in the US). Following its release, Davies took the Kinks into a "theatrical" incarnation (1972-1975), with thematic concept albums constructed around elaborate stage shows.

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