The Kinks Change Rock N’ Roll Forever With Hit “A Well Respected Man”

The Kinks Change Rock N’ Roll Forever With Hit “A Well Respected Man” | Society Of Rock Videos

YouTube Channel (Ryan Miller)

He’s Oh So Good

As the first “well- oriented” song that lead singer Ray Davies wrote, “A Well Respected Man” was by far one of the more successful singles that the Kinks released and is included on the Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame’s list of 500 Songs That Shaped Rock and Roll. Based upon a negative experience Davies had with an upperclassman at a resort, the lyrics seem to mock the individual that he felt did not live up to his appearance.

Interesting Fact: Kinks frontman Ray Davies wrote this song after the group’s 1965 tour of the United States. The tour did not go well, with infighting, fatigue and a conflict with the musician’s union that kept them from performing in the country for another four years.

Giving their interpretation of what constitutes a “well respected man,” the Kinks deliver the check list in an upbeat, contagiously poppy beat that you cannot help but hop up and down to.

+ A Well Respected Man Lyrics +

‘Cause he gets up in the morning
And he goes to work at nine
And he comes back home at five-thirty
Gets the same train every time
‘Cause his world is built ’round punctuality
It never fails

And he’s oh, so good
And he’s oh, so fine
And he’s oh, so healthy
In his body and his mind
He’s a well-respected man about town
Doing the best thing so conservatively

And his mother goes to meetings
While his father pulls the maid
And she stirs the tea with councilors
While discussing foreign trade
And she passes looks, as well as bills
At every suave young man

‘Cause he’s oh, so good
And he’s oh, so fine
And he’s oh, so healthy
In his body and his mind
He’s a well-respected man about town
Doing the best thing so conservatively

And he likes his own backyard
And he likes his fags the best
‘Cause he’s better than the rest
And his own sweat smells the best
And he hopes to grab his father’s loot
When Pater passes on

‘Cause he’s oh, so good
And he’s oh, so fine
And he’s oh, so healthy
In his body and his mind
He’s a well-respected man about town
Doing the best thing so conservatively

And he plays at stocks and shares
And he goes to the regatta
He adores the girl next door
‘Cause he’s dying to get at her
But his mother knows the best about
The matrimonial stakes

‘Cause he’s oh, so good
And he’s oh, so fine
And he’s oh, so healthy
In his body and his mind
He’s a well-respected man about town
Doing the best thing so conservatively

 

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