Sleepwalker (The Kinks song)

"Sleepwalker" was reportedly written about Ray Davies's move from London to New York City at the time.^[1] The insomniac Davies was then adapting to the 24-hour schedule of the busy city.^[1]

Recording for "Sleepwalker" began sometime between 22 and 30 September 1976, cut during the same week as "Sleepless Night" and "Life Goes On" (all three of which would later appear on the final Sleepwalker album).^[2] Both "Sleepwalker" and "Sleepless Night" had been recorded in lengthy, seven-minute versions, eventually resulting in the tracks being cut down for their final releases.^[2] Backing vocals for the song were added by Ray Davies, Dave Davies, and John Gosling on 11 October of that year.^[2]

Lyrics and music

As the title suggests, "Sleepwalker" is sung from the perspective of a sleepwalker. In the lyrics, the singer claims that "when midnight comes around, [he'll] start to lose [his] mind," calling himself a "sleepwalker", "night stalker", "street walker", and a "night hawker".^[3] A break appears midway through the song, described as "Dylanesque" by Denise Sullivan of AllMusic.^[1]

Release and reception

"Sleepwalker" was released as the first single from album of the same name. It charted in the American Hot 100 (peaking at #48),^[4] the first single from The Kinks to do so since "Apeman". It also hit #54 in Canada.^[2] NME stated, "Set to a backdrop highly reminiscent of the hallowed back-'em-up-shut-'em-down riffing of Phase 1 Kinks .. the main squeeze is that The Kinks are making good records again."^[2] Melody Maker's opinion of the song was mixed, stating "Kinks fans/lovers of 'Waterloo Sunset' won't find 'Sleepwalker' very satisfactory. Respect The Right Honorable Davies though one must, this isn't quite the leap back to form which was hoped for. Not for the chart."^[2] Cash Box said that its "classic rock guitar chords, and an infectious chorus are the pop hooks, and the execution is impeccable throughout."^[5] Record World said that it "should rekindle some of the singles action they were accustomed to during their mid -sixties chart reign."^[6] More recently, Denise Sullivan claimed that, in her review of "Sleepwalker", "it's the kitchen sink of rock & roll songs. With all the earmarks of a classic, it's amazing 'Sleepwalker' didn't chart Top 40."^[1]

"Sleepwalker" also appeared on the compilation album Come Dancing with The Kinks.

Performances

To advertise the track, The Kinks performed "Sleepwalker" multiple times on television shows. The band lip-synched the track on an episode of The Mike Douglas Show (followed by an interview and live performance of "Celluloid Heroes") that aired on 8 February 1977.^[2] It was also performed on Saturday Night Live on 26 February 1977, following a medley of "You Really Got Me", "All Day and All of the Night", "A Well Respected Man", and "Lola".^[2]

References

^ ^a ^b ^c ^d Sullivan, Denise. "AllMusic, Sleepwalker (song)". AllMusic. Retrieved 4 May 2014.
^ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e ^f ^g ^h Hinman, Doug. All Day and All of the Night. pp. 204–210.
^ Davies, Ray. "Lyrics". AllMusic. Retrieved 4 May 2014.
^ Whitburn, Joel (2013). Joel Whitburn's Top Pop Singles, 14th Edition: 1955-2012. Record Research. p. 468.
^ "CashBox Singles Reviews" (PDF). Cash Box. 19 March 1977. p. 16. Retrieved 26 December 2021.
^ "Hits of the Week" (PDF). Record World. 19 March 1977. p. 1. Retrieved 16 February 2023.

v t e The Kinks
Ray Davies Dave Davies Mick Avory Pete Quaife John Dalton John Gosling Andy Pyle Jim Rodford Ian Gibbons Bob Henrit
Studio albums	Kinks (1964) Kinks-Size (1965; US-only) Kinda Kinks (1965) Kinkdom (1965; US-only) The Kink Kontroversy (1965) Face to Face (1966) Something Else (1967) Village Green Preservation Society (1968) Arthur (1969) Lola Versus Powerman (1970) Percy (1971) Muswell Hillbillies (1971) Everybody's in Show-Biz (1972) Preservation Act 1 (1973) Preservation Act 2 (1974) Soap Opera (1975) Schoolboys in Disgrace (1975) Sleepwalker (1977) Misfits (1978) Low Budget (1979) Give the People What They Want (1981) State of Confusion (1983) Word of Mouth (1984) Think Visual (1986) UK Jive (1989) Phobia (1993)
Live albums	Live at Kelvin Hall (1968) One for the Road (1980) Live: The Road (1988) To the Bone (1994/1996) BBC Sessions: 1964–1977 (2001)
EPs	Kinksize Session (1964) Kwyet Kinks (1965)
Compilations	The Kinks Greatest Hits! (1966) Well Respected Kinks (1966) Sunny Afternoon (1967) Then Now and Inbetween (1969) The Kink Kronikles (1972) The Great Lost Kinks Album (1973) Come Dancing with The Kinks (1986) The Kinks Are Well Respected Men (1987) The Ultimate Collection (2002) Picture Book (2008) Waterloo Sunset: The Very Best of The Kinks & Ray Davies (2012) The Essential Kinks (2014)
Unreleased projects	Four More Respected Gentlemen A Hole in the Sock of (Dave Davies)
Concert tours	1965 UK tour 1965 US tour
Related articles	Discography Band members Konk The Kast Off Kinks Argent X-Ray Do It Again Give the People What We Want: Songs of The Kinks This Is Where I Belong – The Songs of Ray Davies & The Kinks Sunny Afternoon (musical)
Category

v t e 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)	1970 "Lola" "Apeman" 1971 "God's Children" "20th Century Man" 1972 "Supersonic Rocket Ship" "Celluloid Heroes" 1973 "One of the Survivors" "Sitting in the Midday Sun" "Sweet Lady Genevieve" "Where Have All the Good Times Gone" 1974 "Money Talks" "Mirror of Love" "Mirror of Love" (band version) "Holiday Romance" "Preservation" 1975 "Everybody's a Star (Starmaker)" "Ducks on the Wall" "You Can't Stop the Music" 1976 "I'm in Disgrace" "No More Looking Back" 1977 "Sleepwalker" "Juke Box Music" "Father Christmas" 1978 "A Rock 'n' Roll Fantasy" "Live Life" "Black Messiah" 1979 "(Wish I Could Fly Like) Superman" "A Gallon of Gas" "Catch Me Now I'm Falling" "Moving Pictures" "Pressure"
1980s singles (UK & US)	1980 "Lola" (live) "You Really Got Me" (live) 1981 "Better Things" "Destroyer" "Predictable" 1982 "Come Dancing" 1983 "Don't Forget to Dance" 1984 "Good Day" "Do It Again" 1985 "Living on a Thin Line" (radio promo only) "Summer's Gone" 1986 "Rock 'n' Roll Cities" "How Are You" 1987 "Lost and Found" 1988 "The Road" 1989 "Down All the Days (Till 1992)"
1990s singles (UK & US)	1990 "How Do I Get Close" 1993 "Only a Dream" "Scattered"
Other singles (non-UK/US)	1966 "Dandy" (Europe) 1969 "Picture Book" (Australia) "Australia" (Australia) 1983 "State of Confusion" (Germany) 1991 "Did Ya" (Europe)
Other songs	"So Mystifying" "Bald Headed Woman" "Stop Your Sobbing" "Dancing in the Street" "I Need You" "I Go to Sleep" "I'm Not Like Everybody Else" "Big Black Smoke" "Party Line" "Rosy Won't You Please Come Home" "Love Me Till the Sun Shines" "David Watts" "Two Sisters" "Polly" "She's Got Everything" "Do You Remember Walter?" "Johnny Thunder" "Last of the Steam-Powered Trains" "Big Sky" "Sitting by the Riverside" "Animal Farm" "Village Green" "Phenomenal Cat" "All of My Friends Were There" "Wicked Annabella" "Monica" "People Take Pictures of Each Other" "Berkeley Mews" "Mr. Churchill Says" "Strangers" "This Time Tomorrow" "Rats" "Got to Be Free" "Have a Cuppa Tea" "Oklahoma U.S.A." "Muswell Hillbilly" "Sitting in My Hotel" "The Hard Way" "Life Goes On" "Misfits" "Attitude" "Low Budget" "Give the People What They Want" "Heart of Gold"

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