Dynamic Kinks Broadcast From The Filmore West 1969 Ray Davies travelled to Los Angeles in April 1969, to negotiate an end to the American Federation of Musicians' ban on The Kinks from performing in the US. The group's management quickly made plans for a North American tour, to help restore their standing in the states. Before their return, the band recorded their next album, Arthur (Or the Decline and Fall of the British Empire). As with the group s previous two records, Arthur was grounded in characteristically English lyrical and musical hooks. A modest commercial success, it was well received by American music critics. The Kinks embarked on a tour of the US in October 1969, but it was generally unsuccessful, as the group struggled to find cooperative promoters and interested audiences, and many of the scheduled dates were cancelled. The band did, however, manage to play a few major venues such as Bill Graham s Fillmore West in San Francisco, where the group put on a stunning show on 25th November. Playing a choice set of cuts from the new album, plus a host from previous records, and a smattering of Kinks classics too, the entire proceedings were the subject of an FM radio broadcast, transmitted along the West Coast. Available here for the first time, this dynamic show is now available for Kinks fans across the globe to hear just how potent the Kinks remained at the end of the decade in which they made their name.
