23 February saw the death of a clown. One of the most famous of all time. Stan Laurel had lit up cinema screens as one half of one of the most influential double acts of all time alongside Oliver Hardy. Laurel had officially retired after his partner’s death in 1957. On 19 February he had suffered a heart attack. Four days later he told his nurse he wouldn’t mind going skiing. When she remarked she didn’t know he was a skier, he replied ‘I’m not! I’d rather be doing that than this!’. A few minutes later he had died in his armchair.
Following the groundbreaking rock of their third single and first number 1, You Really Got Me, the Kinks recorded their debut album. Released in October 1964, the patchy Kinks consisted of their hit, new material and covers. Faring far better was their follow-up single All Day and All of the Night. Okay, this may have been a rewrite of You Really Got Me, but I happen to think it just might well be better, once you get over the similarity. It reached number two. Set Me Free differed from their previous work in showcasing a softer sound, but it was average at best.
Far better was their first single of 1965. Tired of Waiting for You began as one of Ray Davies’ first ever songs, written while he was at art school. Davies was beginning to worry he was already running out of new material, so returned to the tune for inspiration. Unfortunately he had forgotten the lyrics. Something was also missing from the music. The band were happy to be trying something gentler, but also felt it was missing something. That key ingredient was Dave Davies’ guitar. Once this was added to the mix, albeit reined in from the last few singles, the track was coming together. Ray quickly penned new lyrics on the train journey to the studio. His younger brother felt they had written the perfect pop song.
While I don’t agree with that, Tired of Waiting for You was a fine track and after narrowly missing out on the top spot with All Day and All of the Night, a deserved number 1. Ray’s vocal really gets across the sense of lethargy and irritation he’s singing about. It’s as though the initial raw sexuality of his feelings for the girl in You Really Got Me have eroded over time into boredom and annoyance. Dave was right to add his guitar to the mix too, as it gives the production some extra weight.
Tired of Waiting for You proved the Kinks were no one-trick pony, and was a sign of things to come from the group. Ray was about to blossom into one of the decade’s finest songwriters when it comes to social commentary.
Written by: Ray Davies
Producer: Shel Talmy
Weeks at number 1: 1 (18-24 February)
Deaths:
Comic actor Stan Laurel – 23 February
