Death of a Clown

1967 single by Dave Davies

"Death of a Clown"

Danish picture sleeve

Single by Dave Davies

from the album Something Else by the Kinks

B-side

"Love Me Till the Sun Shines"

Released

7 July 1967^[1]

Recorded

c. 5 June 1967^[2]

Genre

Chamber pop^[3]

Label

Pye

Songwriter(s)

Dave Davies
Ray Davies

Producer(s)

Shel Talmy

Dave Davies singles chronology

"Death of a Clown"
(1967)

"Susannah's Still Alive"
(1967)

"Death of a Clown" is a song by Dave Davies, lead guitarist of British rock band the Kinks, which was released as his debut solo single in 1967. The song was co-written with his brother Ray Davies, who contributed the 5-bar "La la la" hook; Ray's first wife, Rasa, sings this phrase as well as descant in the second verse, while Ray himself sings harmony in the refrain. Nicky Hopkins played the distinctive introduction, using fingerpicks on the strings of a piano. The single was credited to Dave Davies but the song also appeared on the Kinks' album Something Else by the Kinks, released later in 1967.

Background

In an interview with Yahoo!, Dave Davies said that "Death of a Clown" was written about the repetitive performing schedule he and the rest of the Kinks worked through. He said, "One night I nodded off at a party and woke up and saw all these decadent people running around. I had a vision of being a circus clown. I thought, 'What are we doing?' We were going from day to day to day like performing seals. And that's where I got the idea for 'Death of a Clown.' I went back to me mum's house with the same old out-of-tune piano and I plunked out three notes, and it turned into the song."^[4]

The single release was met with considerable success in the UK, hitting No. 3,^[5] thus prompting Dave Davies to consider embarking on a solo career. When subsequent singles were met with less success, the idea was set aside until 1980, with his debut album being AFL1-3603.

Personnel

According to band researcher Doug Hinman:^[2]

The Kinks

Dave Davies – lead vocal, electric guitar
Ray Davies – backing vocal, acoustic guitar
Pete Quaife – bass
Mick Avory – drums

Additional musicians

Rasa Davies – backing vocal
Nicky Hopkins – piano

Charts

Chart (1967)	Peak position
Australia (Go-Set)^[6]	37
Belgium (Ultratop 50 Flanders)^[7]	5
Belgium (Ultratop 50 Wallonia)^[8]	16
Ireland (IRMA)^[9]	6
Netherlands (Dutch Top 40)^[10]	2
New Zealand (Listener Chart)^[11]	10
Norway (VG-lista)^[12]	7
UK Singles (OCC)^[13]	3
West Germany (Official German Charts)^[14]	3

References

^ Hinman 2004, p. 102.
^ ^a ^b Hinman 2004, p. 101.
^ "Kinks guitarist Dave Davies continues to stake his claim as a rawk god at age 72". 11 April 2019.
^ Weiderhorn, Jon (3 December 2015). "Dave Davies: Musical, Biopic Could Lead to Kinks Reunion". Yahoo. Retrieved 4 December 2015.
^ Chart positions Archived 6 February 2009 at the Wayback Machine, at kinks.it.rit.edu, retrieved 3 May 2007.
^ "Go-Set Australian charts - 20 September 1967". Poparchives.com.au.
^ "Dave Davies – Death of a Clown" (in Dutch). Ultratop 50.
^ "Dave Davies – Death of a Clown" (in French). Ultratop 50.
^ "The Irish Charts – Search Results – Death of a Clown". Irish Singles Chart.
^ "Nederlandse Top 40 – Dave Davies" (in Dutch). Dutch Top 40.
^ "Dave Davies(search)". Flavour of New Zealand. Archived from the original on 20 April 2021. Retrieved 8 April 2022.
^ "Dave Davies – Death of a Clown". VG-lista.
^ "Dave Davies: Artist Chart History". Official Charts Company.
^ "Offiziellecharts.de – Dave Davies – Death of a Clown" (in German). GfK Entertainment charts.

Sources

Hinman, Doug (2004). The Kinks: All Day and All of the Night: Day-by-Day Concerts, Recordings and Broadcasts, 1961–1996. San Francisco, California: Backbeat Books. ISBN 978-0-87930-765-3.

The Kinks singles discography

1960s singles
(UK & US)

1964: "Long Tall Sally"; "You Still Want Me"; "You Really Got Me"; "All Day and All of the Night"

1965: "Tired of Waiting for You"; "Ev'rybody's Gonna Be Happy"; "Set Me Free"; "See My Friends"; "Who'll Be the Next in Line"; "A Well Respected Man"; "Till the End of the Day"

1966: "Dedicated Follower of Fashion"; "Sunny Afternoon"; "Dead End Street"

1967: "Mister Pleasant"; "Waterloo Sunset"; "Death of a Clown" (Dave Davies solo); "Autumn Almanac"; "Susannah's Still Alive" (Dave Davies solo)

1968: "Wonderboy"; "Days"; "Lincoln County" (Dave Davies solo)

1969: "Starstruck"; "Hold My Hand" (Dave Davies solo); "Plastic Man"; "Drivin'"; "The Village Green Preservation Society"; "Shangri-La"; "Victoria"

1970s singles
(UK & US)