Formed in 1963 in Muswell Hill, North London, they first gained prominence on the heels of the well-received and highly influential single "You Really Got Me" (1964). The group originally consisted of lead singer/guitarist Ray Davies, his brother lead guitarist Dave Davies, drummer Mick Avory, and bassist Pete Quaife. Quaife left (twice) in the late 1960s, and Avory finally left in 1984 as the result of a long-running dispute with Dave Davies, leaving only the Davies brothers as the core of the original group.
With Ray Davies' songwriting skills and unabashedly English voices, Dave Davies' impressive guitar work, and Avory's tight and steady drumming, the band became one of the best and most influential groups of British pop and the "British Invasion" of the U.S.A., lasting longer than any of their competitors, apart from the Rolling Stones, as they broke up in 1996. Their catalogue of songs has been covered by Van Halen, The Pretenders, The Black Keys, The Stranglers, Queens of the Stone Age , and many more.
Members:
Ray Davies – vocals, rhythm guitar (1963–1996)
Dave Davies – lead guitar, vocals (1963–1996)
Pete Quaife – bass guitar (1963–1969)
John Dalton – bass guitar (1969–1976)
Andy Pyle – bass guitar (1976–1978)
Jim Rodford – bass guitar (1978–1996)
Mick Avory – drums (1963–1984)
Bob Henrit – drums (1984–1996)
John Gosling – keyboards, piano (1970–1978)
Gordon Edwards – keyboards, piano (1978–1979)
Ian Gibbons – keyboards, piano (1979–1989, 1993–1996)
Mark Haley – keyboards, piano (1989–1993)
Only A Dream
The Kinks Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Feeling gloomy and down
Waiting for the flashing light
To lift me up from the ground
Then the elevator opened
And I saw her standing there
She had to be a young executive
And I thought I'd seen her somewhere before
On the cover of a magazine
I didn't think she'd even look at me
Or bother to glance my way
But she actually smiled at me and said
Hi-ya handsome, have a good day
[Chorus]
I must be dreaming if she looks at me
I gotta be dreaming, is it a fantasy
Now I've got positive emotions
Buzzing 'round every molecule in me
I gotta be dreaming, is it reality
But over and over I live that memory
Was it real or only a dream
La la la la
Was it my imagination playing tricks on me
When she looked my way
Maybe she took me for somebody else
Whatever it was, it made my day, hey hey
I wake up in the morning
Smiling with anticipation
Suddenly I feel alive
Face the world with expectation
I must be dreaming this world is a better place
Was my imagination playing tricks on me
Was it real or only a dream?
I see a great big sunset
Where only clouds used to be
Was it all an illusion, is it fantasy
If it's just a dream
It's good enough for me, yeah yeah
Waiting by the elevator
Feeling optimistic and keen
Waiting for my executive goddess
To appear as if in a dream
Then the elevator opened
She was talking to another guy
And I tried to say hello to her
But I failed to even catch her eye
Then everybody crowded inside
And I sadly stood my ground
Thinking life's just like that elevator
It takes you up and brings you down
[Chorus]
Was it only an illusion
Was it real or only a dream
[Chorus]
The Kinks’ song “Only A Dream” is a narrative about a person standing near an elevator and waiting for it to arrive to lift him up from his gloomy and downcast state. When the elevator arrives, the singer saw a young executive and thought he knew her from the cover of a magazine. She smiled at him and greeted him kindly, and he felt a sense of exhilaration from the encounter. However, when he meets her next time, she was talking to another guy, and he failed to even catch her eye.
The song is about the dual nature of reality and fantasy. The singer is wondering if the encounter was real or merely his imagination playing tricks on him. He wakes up smiling with expectancy and a positive outlook, thinking that he must be dreaming that the world is a better place. However, when he fails to catch the attention of the young executive, he became sad and thought that life is only like an elevator that takes you up and brings you back down. The song is an invitation to ponder the nature of reality and the transitory state of existence.
Line by Line Meaning
Standing by the elevator
Waiting by the elevator
Feeling gloomy and down
Feeling sad and depressed
Waiting for the flashing light
Waiting for the elevator indicator to change
To lift me up from the ground
To take me up to my destination
Then the elevator opened
The elevator doors opened
And I saw her standing there
I saw a woman standing in the elevator
She had to be a young executive
I assumed she was a young executive
She looked so corporate and clean
She looked very professional
And I thought I'd seen her somewhere before
I felt like I had seen her before
On the cover of a magazine
I thought I recognized her from a magazine cover
I didn't think she'd even look at me
I didn't expect her to even notice me
Or bother to glance my way
Or to give me a brief look
But she actually smiled at me and said
But she surprised me by smiling and greeting me
Hi-ya handsome, have a good day
She greeted me with 'Hi handsome, have a nice day'
[Chorus]
The chorus of the song repeats throughout as a refrain
I must be dreaming if she looks at me
I couldn't believe it when she smiled at me
I gotta be dreaming, is it a fantasy
I felt like I might be dreaming or imagining things
Now I've got positive emotions
Now I feel good and positive
Buzzing 'round every molecule in me
My entire body and being is filled with this energy
I gotta be dreaming, is it reality
I wondered if this could actually be happening to me
But over and over I live that memory
I keep replaying that moment in my head
Was it real or only a dream
I wondered if it was really happening or if I was dreaming
Was it my imagination playing tricks on me
I wondered if my mind was tricking me
When she looked my way
When she gave me a look
Maybe she took me for somebody else
Maybe she mistook me for someone else
Whatever it was, it made my day, hey hey
Whatever it was, it brightened up my day
I wake up in the morning
I woke up the next day
Smiling with anticipation
Excited and happy about what the day might bring
Suddenly I feel alive
I started to feel more energized and happy
Face the world with expectation
Approaching the world with a positive outlook
I must be dreaming this world is a better place
I wish that the world were a better place and this felt like a dream
I see a great big sunset
I see a beautiful sunset
Where only clouds used to be
The sunset transformed the sky from cloudy to beautiful
Was it all an illusion, is it fantasy
I wondered if what I was experiencing was really happening or just in my head
If it's just a dream
If this is all just a dream
It's good enough for me, yeah yeah
And it's still good enough for me
Waiting by the elevator
I waited again by the elevator
Feeling optimistic and keen
Feeling positive and enthusiastic
Waiting for my executive goddess
Hoping to see the woman again
To appear as if in a dream
To show up and make me feel like I'm dreaming again
She was talking to another guy
But when the elevator opened, she was already talking to someone else
And I tried to say hello to her
I tried to greet her again
But I failed to even catch her eye
But she didn't even look at me this time
Then everybody crowded inside
Then a lot of people entered the elevator
And I sadly stood my ground
And I remained where I was, feeling disappointed
Thinking life's just like that elevator
Thinking that life is like an elevator, full of ups and downs
[Chorus]
The refrain repeats again
Was it only an illusion
Was it all just in my head?
Was it real or only a dream
Was it something that actually happened or just a figment of my imagination?
[Chorus]
Lastly, the refrain repeats again
Lyrics © Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC
Written by: Ray Davies
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
andrew james Bunting
Lyrics
Standing by the elevator
Feeling gloomy and down
Waiting for the flashing light
To lift me up from the ground
Then the elevator opened
And I saw her standing there
She had to be a young executive
She looked so corporate and clean
And I thought I'd seen her somewhere before
On the cover of a magazine
I didn't think she'd even look at me
Or bother to glance my way
But she actually smiled at me and said
Hi-ya handsome, have a good day
I must be dreaming if she looks at me
I gotta be dreaming, is it a fantasy
Now I've got positive emotions
Buzzing 'round every molecule in me
I gotta be dreaming, is it reality
But over and over I live that memory
Was it real or only a dream
La la la la
Was it my imagination playing tricks on me
When she looked my way
Maybe she took me for somebody else
Whatever it was, it made my day, hey hey
I wake up in the morning
Smiling with anticipation
Suddenly I feel alive
Face the world with expectation
I must be dreaming this world is a better place
Was my imagination playing tricks on me
Was it real or only a dream?
I see a great big sunset
Where only clouds used to be
Was it all an illusion, is it fantasy
If it's just a dream
It's good enough for me, yeah yeah
Waiting by the elevator
Feeling optimistic and keen
Waiting for my executive goddess
To appear as if in a dream
Then the elevator opened
She was talking to another guy
And I tried to say hello to her
But I failed to even catch her eye
Then everybody crowded inside
And I sadly stood my ground
Thinking life's just like that elevator
It takes you up and brings you down
I must be dreaming if she looks at me
I gotta be dreaming, is it a fantasy
Now I've got positive emotions
Buzzing 'round every molecule in me
I gotta be dreaming, is it reality
But over and over I live that memory
Was it real or only a dream
La la la la
Was it only an illusion
Was it real or only a dream
I must be dreaming if she looks at me
I gotta be dreaming, is it a fantasy
Now I've got positive emotions
Buzzing 'round every molecule in me
I gotta be dreaming, is it reality
But over and over I live that memory
Was it real or only a dream
La la la la
Randy.
I loved this Kinks album. This song, over the edge and Scattered are my particular favorites. I feel for Rock fans that never got to see them. I was fortunate to see them twice.Great energetic act.
philip norris
One of my all time favorite KinKs videos not just for the song BUT because Dave has that channeled Roy Orbison/Johnny Cash look going for him.
William Pick
This song lifts my spirits. Thanks Kinks.
Marlene Sullivan
ONE OF MY ALL-TIME FAVORITES🕺❤🎧
Gabriel Moreno
The lyrics are so touching. I don't think Ray really suffered with that, but he gives voice to a common feeling. I like how this mixes pessimism and optimism. He feels gloomy and not worthy of a woman's look, but he still believes she did it. But then he questions it and feel gloomy again. Beautiful. But the reality is that he was a good looking guy, even in his late 40s, and a rock star, maybe he was just imagining the situation. Either way, brilliant.
kduros
Lovely music by a great musician !
Terri Miller
I love the Kinks 💕 very unique and talented ✌️💚🙃
Fay Mc
I'm singing this song all day , What a tune !!!
Wayne Dunn
The kinks have so many underated songs never heard this one very good song
Marlene Sullivan
LOVE THIS SONG..❤