| "See My Friends" | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 Danish picture sleeve | ||||
| Single by the Kinks | ||||
| B-side | "Never Met a Girl Like You Before" | |||
| Released | 30 July 1965 | |||
| Recorded | 3 May 1965 | |||
| Studio | Pye, London | |||
| Genre | ||||
| Length | 2:44 | |||
| Label | ||||
| Songwriter(s) | Ray Davies | |||
| Producer(s) | Shel Talmy | |||
| The Kinks UK singles chronology | ||||
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| The Kinks US singles chronology | ||||
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"See My Friends" (sometimes titled "See My Friend")[5][nb 1] is a song by the English rock band the Kinks, written by the group's singer and guitarist, Ray Davies. Released in July 1965, it reached number 10 on the Record Retailer chart. The song incorporates a drone-effect played on guitar, evoking a sound reminiscent of the Indian tambura.[8]
"See My Friends" is one of the key early works in the style known as raga rock.[9] Music historian Jonathan Bellman sees it as the first Western rock song to integrate Indian raga sounds, citing its release four months ahead of the Beatles' "Norwegian Wood (This Bird Has Flown)", which includes a sitar part.[9] However, Davies biographer Johnny Rogan comments that a preceding single release ("Heart Full of Soul" by the Yardbirds) was "pre-empting Davies's innovative use of Indian music".[10]
- ^ Kitts 2008, p. 101: "from the raga rock of 'See My Friends,' a 1965 UK hit ..."
- ^ Lavezzoli 2006, p. 155: "Without the use of Indian instruments, 'See My Friends' was the first pop song to evoke an Indian feel."
- ^ Kitts 2002, p. 11: "'See My Friends,' one of the first rock songs (possibly the first song recorded) to feature an 'Indian sitar sound,' ..."
- ^ Johnson, Derek (30 July 1965). "Singles: Kinks Have Certain Hit" (PDF). New Musical Express. p. 4 – via WorldRadioHistory.com.
- ^ Jovanovic 2013, p. 102.
- ^ "Kassner Music: Kassner Associated Publishers". Kassnermusic.com. Retrieved 9 October 2018.
- ^ "Kassner Associated Publishers Ltd". Kassnermusic.com. Retrieved 9 October 2018.
- ^ Lavezzoli 2006, pp. 154–55.
- ^ a b Bellman 1998, pp. 294–95.
- ^ Rogan 2015, p. 221: "... at the beginning of June. The Kink's latest rivals, the Yardbirds, had just released their follow-up to the chart-topping 'For Your Love'. 'Heart Full of Soul' was another thrilling record, this time pre-empting Davies's innovative use of Indian music. Only a month before, he had recorded a new composition, 'See My Friend', which had an unusual raga effect, but the Yardbirds had got there first."
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