It may be more than 60 years since the Kinks–Beatles rivalry was at its peak, but Dave Davies isn’t letting sleeping dogs lie.
Speaking at a new Kinks artwork exhibition at the Gibson Garage in London, the guitarist took aim at two members of the Beatles while naming the only one he says he genuinely liked.
In conversation with British tabloid The Mirror at the launch of The Kinks: Brothers, Davies didn’t hold back when asked about the Fab Four and the long-running rivalry between the two bands.
“John Lennon didn’t like the Kinks, he really didn’t,” Davies said, confirming something he has long suggested. “In fact, John Lennon didn’t really like anybody!”
Paul McCartney, who recently released his nostalgia-tinged album The Boys from Dungeon Lane, also came in for criticism. Davies said the 18-time Grammy winner “wrote a few decent songs,” but offered little more by way of praise.
Ringo Starr, who duets with McCartney on Dungeon Lane, escaped mention altogether. Instead, Davies reserved his warmest words for George Harrison.
“George Harrison was the only one I really liked,” he said. “He was the nicest guy.”
The roots of the Kinks’ rivalry with the Beatles are widely traced to a Bournemouth show in the summer of 1964, where the Kinks opened for the Liverpool band. According to later accounts, Lennon approached Davies before the show and made several cutting remarks, including a dig at the Kinks’ lack of hit records.
Writing in his 1994 autobiography, X-Ray, Kinks frontman Ray Davies suggested Lennon’s put-down stemmed from insecurity. He claimed the audience was calling for the Kinks to return to the stage for an encore just as the Beatles were preparing to perform.
If so, Lennon’s comments quickly proved ill-timed. Just days later, “You Really Got Me” topped the U.K. charts and reached the top 10 in the U.S., Australia, Canada, Ireland and Sweden. In a fitting twist, it displaced the Beatles single “A Hard Day’s Night” from the number one spot.
The song — later introduced to a new generation through Van Halen’s explosive cover — became one of electric-guitar rock’s defining moments. Davies famously slashed the speaker cone of his guitar amp with a razor blade to create the raw distortion that helped lay the groundwork for modern rock guitar.
This has already been a busy year for Davies. In March, he pushed back against transphobia accusations made by electronica artist Moby, and he has also criticized a new Kinks biography, saying it contains “misinformation.”
The renewed attention has also prompted fresh questions about a possible Kinks reunion, with Davies suggesting his relationship with older brother Ray may finally be improving.
“We enjoy each other’s company,” he recently said (via MusicRadar). “We have fluctuated between getting on really well and not getting on at all over the years, but there’s always been telepathy, since childhood… Never say never.”
