Animal Farm (song)

"Animal Farm"
Song by the Kinks
from the album The Kinks Are the Village Green Preservation Society
Released22 November 1968 (1968-11-22)
RecordedMarch 1968
StudioPye, London
GenrePop
Length2:57
LabelPye
Songwriter(s)Ray Davies
Producer(s)Ray Davies
Official audio
"Animal Farm" on YouTube

"Animal Farm" is a song by the English rock band the Kinks from their sixth studio album, The Kinks Are the Village Green Preservation Society (1968). Written and sung by Ray Davies, the song was recorded in March 1968. Musically an example of pop, the song features a noticeably larger sound than the others on Village Green, accomplished through it being recorded in a larger studio space as well as heavy reverb added to its drums, percussion and tack piano. The song is one of the few Kinks recordings from the late 1960s to possibly feature real strings, as arranged by David Whitaker.

While the song's title references George Orwell's 1945 novella of the same name, the lyrics are unrelated to the book's dystopic themes and instead express feelings of pastoral bliss in recollecting life on a small farm. Pete Quaife later described the song as his favourite Davies composition and recalled relating to its themes as soon as Davies presented it to the band. Retrospective critics and commentators have similarly described the song in favourable terms, often counting it as among the best songs on Village Green. The song was covered by the Judybats in 1992.