Days first appeared on the 1968 European edition of The Kinks Are The Village Green Preservation Society. It didn’t make the cut for the US LP but was released as a single. All very interesting because it’s one of the best loved and most covered Kinks tunes of all time. The Kinks themselves recut the song in 1991 to reflect how they had been playing it live for years. I’ll start with the 1968 version and then move on to the 1991 remake. I’ll discuss the covers after the break as well.

Here’s Ray lip syncing and the band miming on tevee in 1968:

This 1991 remake was also inspired by the success of two covers in particular as we shall see:

Days has been recorded in a variety of styles by an odd assortment of artists. Elvis Costello recorded an interesting interpretation in 1991 for the Wim Wenders film Until The End Of The World. Kirsty MacColl had a hit in the UK in 1989 and even made a video. I’m also posting versions by Flo & Eddie of Turtles and Mothers fame as well as an uber poppy version by Petula Clark. Pet made it sound not unlike Don’t Sleep In The Subway, which was quite a feat, darling.

Okay, on with the music Maestro. First, Elvis Costello:

The late Kirsty MacColl’s 1989 video was a high budget undertaking that featured period costumes and cartoon critters:

Howard Kaylan and Mark Volman assumed the identities of Flo & Eddie when they joined the Mothers Of Invention  because of legal issues flowing from their departure from the Turtles. They were apparently unhappy together. Here’s their Turtley take on Days from 1973:

Finally, Sixties pop diva Petula Clark: