The Kinks Celebrate 60th Anniversary With Career-Defining Release, ‘The Journey’

Legendary British rockers the Kinks are celebrating their 60th anniversary this year.

Formed in 1963 by guitar-toting brothers Ray and Dave Davies along with bass player Pete Quaife (1943-2010) and joined by drummer Mick Avory early the following year, the Kinks soon established themselves as one of the hottest bands of London’s Swinging Sixties.

Their first single, a cover of Little Richards’ "Long Tall Sally,” appeared in early 1964 and was followed up by the "You Still Want Me" 7-inch a couple of months later, though neither managed to chart.

It would be the Kinks’ third single, "You Really Got Me," released in the summer of ’64 that broke the band on both sides of the Atlantic and established them as one of the most important groups of the British Invasion.

Since then, the Kinks have sold over 50 million records worldwide with streams now topping a billion.

In the U.S., the band has scored five top ten singles and nine top 40 albums to date. In their U.K. homeland, the Kinks have clocked up an amazing twenty-two top 20 singles/EPs as well as six top ten albums.

Now, to mark the Rock and Roll Hall of Famers’ milestone 60th anniversary, BMG will be releasing the Kinks’ career-defining anthology, The Journey, in two parts, beginning with Part 1 on 24 March 2023.

The Journey – Part 1 will be released on 2CD, 2LP, Digital and HD Digital album formats. The physical releases feature a booklet containing photos of the band plus notes written by the Davies brothers and Avory.

Covering the earlier part of the Kinks’ career from 1964 to 1975, The Journey – Part 1 comprises newly remastered tracks curated by the original band members.

These include Kinks classics such as “You Really Got Me”, “Waterloo Sunset”, “All Day and All of the Night,” “Celluloid Heroes”, “Supersonic Rocket Ship”, “Dead End Street” and “Death of a Clown.”

“I’m delighted with what I think is an inspiring selection of timeless and magical Kinks music,” said Dave Davies.

Further news of The Journey – Part 2 is expected to follow later this year.

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Pre/order the Kinks' The Journey – Part 1 here.