THE KINKS - AUTUMN ALMANAC

Released: October 13, 1967

Charted:  UK: #3 

"Autumn Almanac" is a song penned by Ray Davies, celebrated for its classic status and keen observation of English customs. It's been praised for its mellow, melodic sound, which heralded the band's subsequent musical direction. The song was released as a non-album single in 1967, filling the gap between the albums "Something Else by the Kinks" and "The Kinks Are the Village Green Preservation Society". Despite its success in the UK, where it reached #3 on the singles chart, the song was not released in the US until it appeared on The Kink Kronikles compilation in 1972. 

Ray Davies shared with Q magazine that the lyrics were inspired by Charlie, a friend of his father who helped clean up his garden by sweeping leaves. Davies wrote the song in early autumn, reflecting the changing colors of the leaves. 

Musically, the song features a baroque style with experimental elements such as tape-manipulated feedback and backwards guitar. Davies mentioned his experimentation with reversing tapes, highlighting that the "This is my street" segment in the song is actually the first part played in reverse. He expressed satisfaction with how these elements came together in the tune.

"Autumn Almanac" from the mid-to-late 1960s was issued in both mono and stereo versions. The mono release served as the single and is included as a bonus track on the 1998 CD reissue of "Something Else by The Kinks," along with most compilation albums. In contrast, the stereo edition, extending by ten seconds and incorporating psychedelic audio effects like the tape loop during the fadeout, is featured on the 1972 compilation "The Kink Kronikles" and the deluxe 2-CD reissue of "Something Else."