The guitarist Dave Davies said sounded better drunk
While there were plenty of raucous songs to have emerged during the golden age of rock and roll in the 1950s, very few tracks from this period caused an awakening quite like The Kinks did with ‘You Really Got Me’.
From the opening chords, you know you’re in for a ride, and the band’s third single only dials up the aggression from there on out. Considered proto-punk by many retrospective commentaries on the song, the riff is perhaps one of the most influential to have ever been written, and was miles ahead of its time when you consider the musical landscape of the mid-1960s was still being dominated by more commercial sounds.
Normally, it’s frontman Ray Davies who is responsible for the majority of the band’s innovation, but in this instance, it’s his brother, Dave Davies, who can be credited as the genius behind the song, having written the riff and sliced the speaker cone with a razor blade in order to create the signature distorted sound.
Considering the band were relative unknowns at the time, the sheer ballsiness of the song meant that listeners hypothesised about the track’s origins at the time, with many supposing that another session musician had been the one responsible for the song’s electrifying lead break. This was eventually debunked, and Dave Davies remains the one who is rightfully credited as the song’s star performer, with the song’s legacy living on.
The song is perfect as it is, but because it’s been so influential, others have tried to cover it in the years since, with mixed results. Many would argue that tributes to existing songs have to be approached with care, and given how he wrote the song, Davies has always endeavoured to be protective over his brainchild.
One of the most famous cover versions of ‘You Really Got Me’ is Van Halen’s interpretation, taken from their 1978 debut album, and while it’s beloved by many, Davies has never been a big fan of the track, largely for how it replaces some of its original magic with over-the-top performances.
During a 2010 interview with Classic Rock, Davies berated the American rock icons for how they butchered his composition and made some disparaging comments about their virtuoso guitarist, Eddie Van Halen. “There’s the thing,” he began. “Good art isn’t always about having the comfiest technique. I shouldn’t encourage him, but I’m sure Eddie Van Halen played better when he was drunk.”
He continued by softening his stance somewhat, but still took his chance to have another swipe at their all-out rock version. “It must be a good record if people like it. Van Halen’s version was very Middle America. It was like, ‘Hey man, look at me with my tight trousers! Here’s our version of ‘You Really Got Me’!”
At least Davies was able to praise it where necessary, but while this isn’t the most glowing review of one of the greatest and most innovative guitarists of all time, he does have a good reason to be bitter about what Van Halen did to the song – he did write it, after all.
