Oh girl, you really got me now/
You got me so I can’t sleep at night.
The Kinks’ “You Really Got Me” came out in 1964. At the time, the only genre of music that was producing great lyrics was folk and blues. These lyrics slightly advanced the basic rock themes of The Beatles and The Stones of that time. The Beatles were still playing “I Want to Hold Your Hand”. When The Kinks talked about a girl that had him so messed up he couldn’t sleep at night, that was quite a bit more risqué. Within the next two years rock lyrics would explode with themes of every variety.
But the real advancement from The Kinks’ “You Really Got Me” isn’t in the lyrics it is in the sound. Listen to the guitar. The Kinks are playing power chords with slight distortion coupled with raw vocals. Heavy metal would adopt this technique almost exclusively. I believe this is the first time anything like this had been done. This would also influence punk music. This list isn’t about influence: this is a genuinely great song.
Check out the guitar solo, it has to be top 10 all-time guitar solo. It comes out of nowhere and just sounds like they are trying to jam two solos worth of music into one song…and it works amazingly. All you can think is “what did I just hear”? And play it back and listen again.
You Really Got Me Lyrics
Girl, you really got me goin’
You got me so I don’t know what I’m doin’ now
Yeah, you really got me now
You got me so I can’t sleep at night
Yeah, you really got me now
You got me so I don’t know what I’m doin’ now
Oh yeah, you really got me now
You got me so I can’t sleep at night
You really got me
You really got me
You really got me
See, don’t ever set me free
I always want to be by your side
Girl, you really got me now
You got me so I can’t sleep at night
Yeah, you really got me now
You got me so I don’t know what I’m doin’ now
Oh yeah, you really got me now
You got me so I can’t sleep at night
You really got me
You really got me
You really got me
Oh no
See, don’t ever set me free
I always want to be by your side
Girl, you really got me now
You got me so I can’t sleep at night
Yeah, you really got me now
You got me so I don’t know what I’m doin’ now
Oh yeah, you really got me now
You got me so I can’t sleep at night
You really got me
You really got me
You really got me
written by Ray Davies