Release and Reception
In March 1966, "Kicks" entered the U.S. Billboard Hot 100 chart at number 62. The song peaked at number four in May, and spent 14 weeks on the chart. Within two months of its release, the single had sold 500,000 copies. It was the highest-charting U.S. hit to that date for Paul Revere & the Raiders, later eclipsed only by 1971's "Indian Reservation (The Lament of the Cherokee Reservation Indian)," which peaked at number one. "Kicks" became the band's first Canadian number one single when it topped the Canadian Singles Chart in May 1966.
The song is considered the first with an anti-drug message to become a U.S. hit single. With the passage of the Communications Act of 1934, the Federal Communications Commission was chartered to monitor the radio and TV industries, meaning broadcasts were subject to censorship. Some censors, based on the song title alone, mistakenly believed "Kicks" to glorify drug use. Despite the song's commercial success, its lyrics were soon perceived as outdated by young people, as they increasingly experimented with marijuana and LSD. Meanwhile, songs emerged from popular artists who praised, sometimes cryptically and sometimes overtly, the use of psychedelic drugs. These acts included the Beatles, The Rolling Stones, the Grateful Dead, Jefferson Airplane and the Byrds. The messages contained within hit songs such as "White Rabbit," "Along Comes Mary" and "Eight Miles High" were antithetical to that of "Kicks," which contributed to a perception by members of the burgeoning youth counterculture that Paul Revere & the Raiders were part of the Establishment. Singer–songwriter David Crosby, then a member of the Byrds, was upset with the success of the song, particularly as it came just after his group's "Eight Miles High" had been boycotted by many U.S. radio stations. Crosby described "Kicks" as "a dumb anti-drug song" that took "a falsely adopted stance. With 'Eight Miles High,' we were talking about something very near and dear to our hearts."
On the other hand, Beach Boys founder Brian Wilson singled out "Kicks" as one his favorites of Terry Melcher's works. Music critic Chris Brown of Crawdaddy! praised the song's vocal, saying "the use of harmony is well-timed and wonderfully executed; and the power in the vocal as the last word of each verse stretches into the chorus is undoubtedly what sells the song." Bruce Eder of Allmusic called it "a great song that managed to be cool and anti-drug." In his 2009 book, Everybody Must Get Stoned, author R. U. Sirius named "Kicks" the number one rock song against drugs. Sirius said, "With clear and concise lyrics by the famous Mann-Weil songwriting team, there's no cheese on rock's first anti-drug platter." The song was ranked number 400 on Rolling Stone's 2004 list of The 500 Greatest Songs of All Time.
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