The Kinks

The Kinks were a major part of the British musical invasion of America. They are often credited for their influence within the music industry, particularly in the beginnings of heavy metal and punk. When asked if The Kinks were becoming more of a heavy metal band, Dave Davies replied by saying, “It wasn’t called heavy metal when I invented it.”

They were inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame in 1990, and into the UK Music Hall of Fame in 2005. While songs like You Really Got Me, Sunny Afternoon and All Day and All of the Night have all gone down as rock classics, none made it to the top of the US charts. They twice hit number six, with those successes coming almost 20 years apart. That’s the closest they ever got to a number one single, but on the bright side, their famous song Lola was parodied by Weird Al Yankovic, which is probably a greater testament to their popularity anyway.