The Kinks consists of Bob Henrit (drums), Dave Davies (guitar, vocals), Gordon Edwards (keyboards), Jim Rodford (bass), Ray Davies (guitar, vocals).
The Kinks were a British rock group. They first gained prominence in the mid- 1960s on the heels of the well-received and highly influential single " You Really Got Me". Originally consisting of lead singer/guitarist Ray Davies, his brother lead guitarist Dave Davies, drummer Mick Avory and bassist Peter Quaife. The core of the group over the years has remained the Davies brothers. With Ray's splendid songwriting skills and ' mockney' vocals, Dave's impressive guitar work and Avory's tight and steady drumming, the band became one of the best and most influential groups of British rock and the " British Invasion" of America.
It is ironic that one of Britain's most enduring and respected bands, spawned from the beat boom of the early 60s, received, for the best part of two decades, success, adulation and financial reward in the USA. This most "English" institution was able to fill stadiums in any part of the USA or Europe, while in their homeland Britain, a few thousand devotees watched their heroes perform in comparatively small clubs or halls. This reflected mostly in Davies' songwriting, where he mocked the British gluttonous aristocracy and philistinism.
For a brief period in the mid-'60s, the band rivalled The Rolling Stones as the second most popular British group behind only The Beatles. Just as the group were starting their artistic best, internal squabbles, conflicts with the music industry, and an untimely ban from touring the United States eroded their popularity on both sides of the Atlantic. However, they experienced popular fan revivals in the late-70s and early-80s and today they are credited as founding fathers of genres as diverse as Britpop, punk rock and heavy metal.
The musically inclined Davies brothers were born in Muswell Hill, London into a large family. Ray Davies (b. Raymond Douglas Davies, 21 June 1944; vocals/guitar/piano) studied at Hornsey College of Art and gained an experience in music as a guitarist with the Soho-based Dave Hunt Band in 1963. Meanwhile Ray's brother Dave (b. 3 February 1947; guitar/vocals) and his schoolmate Pete Quaife (b. 31 December 1943, Tavistock, Devon, England; bass) formed a band. Soon after that, they invited Ray to participate and Ray immediately accepted. Like the Davies brothers Quaife played guitar, but switched to bass.
