The Kinks

 Today in 1975 The Kinks released the album Schoolboys in Disgrace

Muswell Hill, London, England Rock

Status:Active

Years active:1964–1996, 2018–present

Although they weren't as boldly innovative as the Beatles or as popular as the Rolling Stones or the Who, the Kinks were one of the most influential bands of the British Invasion. Like most bands of their era, the Kinks began as an R&B/blues outfit. Within four years, the band had become the most staunchly English of all their contemporaries, drawing heavily from British music hall and traditional pop, as well as incorporating elements of country, folk, and blues.

RCA

Ray Davies - vocals, guitar, piano

Dave Davies - lead guitar, vocals

Mick Avory - drums

John Dalton - bass guitar

John Gosling - keyboards

John Beecham - trombone

Alan Holmes - saxophones

Nick Newell - tenor saxophone

Pamela Travis - background vocals

Debbie Doss - background vocals

Shirley Roden - background vocals

All tracks written by Ray Davies.

Side one

No. Title Length

1. "Schooldays" 3:31

2. "Jack the Idiot Dunce" 3:19

3. "Education" 7:07

4. "The First Time We Fall in Love" 4:01

Side two

No. Title Length

1. "I'm in Disgrace" 3:21

2. "Headmaster" 4:03

3. "The Hard Way" 2:35

4. "The Last Assembly" 2:45

5. "No More Looking Back" 4:27

6. "Finale" 1:02

Schoolboys in Disgrace or The Kinks Present Schoolboys in Disgrace is a 1975 concept album by the Kinks. It was considered to be the last album by critics in what they dubbed the group's "theatrical" period, and their final release for RCA Records.

According to the back cover liner notes, the story which the album presents is as follows:

Once upon a time there was a naughty little schoolboy. He and his gang were always playing tricks on the teachers and bullying other children in the school. One day he got himself into very serious trouble with a naughty schoolgirl and he was sent to the Headmaster who decided to disgrace the naughty boy and his gang in front of the whole school.

After this punishment the boy turned into a hard and bitter character. Perhaps it was not the punishment that changed him but the fact that he realised people in authority would always be there to kick him down and the Establishment would always put him in his place. He knew that he could not change the past but he vowed that in the future he would always get what he wanted. The naughty little boy grew up... into Mr Flash.

Mr Flash was the name of the villain from the Kinks' rock opera Preservation (released as Preservation Act 1 and Preservation Act 2).

In 2015, Dave Davies spoke positively of the album in a Yahoo interview, saying, "Schoolboys in Disgrace is a great album. At the time, we were so busy doing it and getting it out and touring and playing it. Over a matter of three years it was gone and we were doing something else. But when you draw this into the present, it’s like, 'Oh my God, what the f— is this?!? How did we do that?' We've been very fortunate, Ray and I and the Kinks. We’ve had such a wealth of materials, ideas, and observations. We’ve been very good at following our intuition. That's something you can’t really teach."

The front cover was illustrated by Mickey Finn of T. Rex. It later appeared on NME's list of the '50 worst covers of all time'.

In 1978 the Finnish band Kontra had a number one hit with the song "Jerry Cotton" which was a cover version of the song "Jack the Idiot Dunce."