Kinks Kopykats (Bet You Didn’t Know This Was Written By Ray Davies) Special Edition #1 — “This Strange Effect”: Brace for the Obscure (60s rock)! — October 11, 2022

THE GREATEST SONGS OF THE 1960s THAT NO ONE HAS EVER HEARD

606) The Kinks — “This Strange Effect”

Ray Davies pops up wherever you look. This magical David Lynch-y song has had a strange affect/strange effect (I never know which is right!) on pop culture over the years. As Kurt Wolff tells us, “[f]or a song that was written by Ray Davies over 50 years ago, but never officially recorded by the Kinks, ‘This Strange Effect’ has had a wild ride.” (https://coloradosound.org/this-strange-effect-nine-perfect-strangers-theme-song-story-kinks/) Dave Berry (see #554) had a #37 hit with it in the UK. Richie Unterberger notes that it “was [also] a huge European hit”. (https://www.allmusic.com/artist/dave-berry-mn0000959279/biography) and that “[h]aunting ballads . . . [such as ‘Effect’] were [Berry’s] greatest strength” (https://www.allmusic.com/album/this-strange-effect-the-decca-sessions-1963-1966-mw0001362859)

Kurt takes us along for the ride:

If you’ve watched the Hulu series Nine Perfect Strangers, starring Nicole Kidman and Melissa McCarthy, you’ve probably been entranced by the theme song that begins each episode. And maybe you’ve even thought, ‘I’ve heard this before.’ There’s a good reason the song may sound familiar, because it’s been around for decades. The version of “This Strange Effect” in Nine Perfect Strangers is by L.A. band Unloved, with guest vocals by Raven Violet. Dreamy, haunting, and gently psychedelic, it was previously used in an episode the series Killing Eve (Unloved provided numerous songs for that series), but its placement as the opening theme song for A-list star vehicle Nine Perfect Strangers gives it much higher visibility. The song itself was written in 1965 by Ray Davies of the Kinks, though the Kinks never officially released it. . . . “This Strange Effect” was instead first recorded and released by Dave Berry . . . . The song was a modest hit in the U.K. and Europe in 1965, but it didn’t break into the American charts. It’s interesting that the Unloved version of the song isn’t drastically different from the original – especially the Kinks version, which has a little more meat on its bones. Even though the Kinks never officially released it, the song didn’t fade into obscurity. In 1998, Belgian electronic/trip-hop group Hooverphonic introduced the song to a whole new generation, bathing it with an ultra-lush production. And love for the song didn’t stop there. Artists who recorded also the song over the years include Squeeze, Thievery Corporation, the Undertones, and Steve Wynn. Even Bill Wyman of The Rolling Stones included the song on his 1992 solo album Stuff. And then there’s the Shacks, who recorded a version of “This Strange Effect” that was used an Apple iPhone commercial. . . .

https://coloradosound.org/this-strange-effect-nine-perfect-strangers-theme-song-story-kinks/

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Here are the Kinks on BBC’s Top of the Pops:

Here’s Dave Berry:

Unloved:

Hooverphonics:

The Shacks:

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