Ray Davies
Encyclopedia
Ray Davies, CBE
(icon ; born 21 June 1944) is an English
rock musician. He is best known as lead singer and songwriter for the Kinks
, which he led with his younger brother, Dave
. He has also acted, directed and produced shows for theatre and television.
Since the dissolution of the Kinks in 1996, Ray Davies has embarked on a solo career as a singer-songwriter.
in Muswell Hill
, North London
, England
. He is the seventh of eight children born to Fred and Anne Davies, including six older sisters and younger brother Dave Davies. He went to William Grimshaw Secondary Modern School (now called Fortismere School
).
Davies was an art student at Hornsey College of Art
in London in 1962–1963, when the Kinks developed into a professional performing band. After the Kinks obtained a recording contract in early 1964, Davies emerged as the chief songwriter and de facto leader of the band, especially after the band's breakthrough success with his early composition "You Really Got Me
", which was released as the band's third single in August of that year.
Davies led the Kinks through a period of musical experimentation between 1966 and 1975, with notable artistic achievements and commercial success. Between 1976 and their break-up twenty years later, Davies and the group reverted to their earlier mainstream rock format and enjoyed a second peak of success, with other hit songs, like "Destroyer
", "Come Dancing
" and "Do It Again
". The Kinks disbanded in 1996, and Ray Davies has performed solo since then.
Davies has had a tempestuous relationship with younger brother Dave (the band's lead guitarist) that dominated the Kinks' career as a band. He has been married three times and has four daughters: Louisa, Victoria, Natalie and Eva. Davies was romantically involved with Chrissie Hynde
of the Pretenders during the 1980s, and Natalie is a product of that relationship.
In 1990, Davies was inducted, with the Kinks, into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame
and, in 2005, into the UK Music Hall of Fame
.
On 4 January 2004, Davies was shot in the leg while chasing thieves who had snatched the purse of his companion as they walked in the French Quarter
of New Orleans, Louisiana
. The shooting came less than a week after Davies was named a Commander of the Order of the British Empire
by Queen Elizabeth II.
("Tired of Waiting for You
", "Set Me Free
") to the more distinctive and influential proto-metal, protopunk
, power chord
-based rock and roll
which first brought the band to prominence ("You Really Got Me
", "All Day and All of the Night
", "I Need You
", "Till the End of the Day
").
However, after mid-1965, this raucous early sound gradually gave way to more sensitive, introspective and complex songs like "Where Have All the Good Times Gone
" and "Too Much on My Mind
"; and with the raga
-inspired songs "See My Friends
" and "Fancy
", Davies began to show signs of expanding and diversifying his stylistic palette. Indeed, the Kinks' brief but notable foray into the then-nascent genre of raga rock
also paralleled the Beatles
' growing interest in Indian music and spirituality during the mid-1960s.
in late 1966—the first Kinks album to be comprised exclusively of original material—Davies' songwriting matured considerably and his lyrics began to take on elements of social commentary about the aspirations and frustrations of common working class and middle class people. In a 2008 Rolling Stone profile, journalist Charles M. Young described Davies as "an anthropologist with a guitar", due to his great awareness and insight regarding the psychological effects of the British class system. Prime examples of Davies' observational songwriting include "A Well Respected Man
" (recorded in the summer of 1965), "Situation Vacant
" and "Shangri-La"—all of which evince the class-bred insecurity and desperation underlying the materialism and conservativism of English middle-class respectability. In a similar vein, "Dedicated Follower of Fashion
" wittily satirises the hype and vacuity surrounding the Carnaby Street
-based 'Swinging London
' scene of the mid-60s, while "David Watts" humorously conveys the wounded feelings of a plain schoolboy who envies the grace and privileges enjoyed by a charismatic upper-class student.
Other notable compositions—from this period and after—take aim at the corrupt motives of greedy businessmen and self-serving politicians ("King Kong
", "The Moneygoround
", "Powerman
", "Mr. Big Man
", "Sold Me Out
", and the Preservation Act 1 and Act 2
albums), the heedless ostentation of nouveaux riches soon to get their comeuppance ("Most Exclusive Residence For Sale
", "Mister Pleasant
"), and the complacency and indolence of wealthy playboys and the English upper class ("A House in the Country
", "Sunny Afternoon
"). He likewise describes the bleakness of life at the other end of the social spectrum—in November 1966, he offered up two grim, neo-Dickensian sketches of desperate poverty among the working class: "Dead End Street
" and "Big Black Smoke
"; and in 1970, he recorded the similarly poignant "Get Back in Line
".
The Kinks have been called "the most adamantly British of the Brit Invasion bands" on account of Ray Davies' fascination with England's imperial past and his tender, bittersweet evocations of "a vanishing, romanticized world of village greens, pubs and public schools". During the group's mid-period, he wrote many cheerfully eccentric—and often ironic—celebrations of traditional English culture and living, including "Afternoon Tea
", "Autumn Almanac
", "The Village Green Preservation Society", "The Last of the Steam Powered Trains
", "Victoria
", "Have a Cuppa Tea
" and "Cricket". It was also during this time that Davies began composing songs in the self-consciously quaint, old-fashioned style of British music hall
, vaudeville
and trad jazz
; these include "Dandy
", "Little Miss Queen of Darkness
", "Mister Pleasant
", "End of the Season
", "All of My Friends Were There
", "She's Bought a Hat Like Princess Marina
", "Acute Schizophrenia Paranoia Blues
", "Look a Little on the Sunny Side
" and "Holiday Romance
". And he occasionally varied the group's sound by delving into more exotic musical idioms, such as bossa nova
("No Return
") and calypso
("Monica
", "Apeman
", "Supersonic Rocket Ship
").
Davies is often as his most poignant and personal when he sings of giving up worldly ambition for the simple rewards of love, domesticity and/or close family relations ("This is Where I Belong
", "Two Sisters
", "The Way Love Used to Be
", "Sweet Lady Genevieve", "You Make It All Worthwhile
"); or when he extols the consolations of memory ("Days
", "Do You Remember Walter?
", "Picture Book
", "Young and Innocent Days
", "Moments
", "Schooldays
"). Yet another perennial Ray Davies theme is the championing of individualistic personalities and lifestyles ("I'm Not Like Everybody Else
", "Johnny Thunder
", "Lola
", "Celluloid Heroes
", "Where Are They Now?", "Sitting in the Midday Sun
"); and on his 1967 masterpiece "Waterloo Sunset
", the singer expresses a profound sense of contentment in the midst of drabness and solitude.
Davies' mid-period work for the Kinks also showed signs of an emerging social conscience. For example, "Holiday in Waikiki
" deplored the vulgar commercialisation of a once unspoiled indigenous culture. Similarly, "God's Children
", and songs on the albums The Kinks are the Village Green Preservation Society
and Muswell Hillbillies
, passionately decried industrialisation
and bureaucracy
in favour of simple pastoral
living. In particular, his songs on Village Green gave an affectionate embrace to "Merry England
" nostalgia, and advocated for the preservation of traditional English country village and hamlet
life, long before such themes and attitudes were even heard of in British pop music
.
A definitive testament to Ray Davies' reputation as a songwriter of insight, empathy and wit can be heard on the Kinks' 1969 album Arthur (or the Decline and Fall of the British Empire)
, which affectionately chronicles the trials and tribulations of a working class everyman
and his family from the very end of the Victorian era
through World War I
and World War II
, the postwar austerity years, and up to the 1960s. The theme of the album was partly inspired by the life of Ray and Dave Davies' brother-in-law, Arthur Anning, who had married their older sister, Rose (herself the subject of an earlier Kinks song, "Rosie Won't You Please Come Home
"), and had emigrated to Australia after the war. Over the course of a dozen evocative songs, the album fulfils its ambitious subtitle as Davies embellishes an intimate family chronicle with satirical and often poignant observations about the shifting mores of English public life in response to the declining fortunes of the British Empire
.
to Arista in 1976, Davies abandoned his previous propensity for ambitious, rambling concept albums—a tendency which had reached its height during the RCA era (1971-75) with the release of Preservation Act 1 and Act 2
, Soap Opera
and Schoolboys in Disgrace
. With the switch to a new record label, followed by some personnel changes within the band two years later, Davies began to distill elements from his previous styles and themes into more straightforward compositions; and he likewise employed newer production techniques to achieve a more mainstream "arena rock
" sound. This canny approach briefly lead to a revival of the band's commercial fortunes during the late 70s and early 80s, as Davies presented the public with philosophical anthems ("Life on the Road
", "Juke Box Music
"), pensive ballads ("A Rock & Roll Fantasy
", "Misfits
"), a flirtation with disco
("Wish I Could Fly Like Superman
"), wistful pop ("Better Things", "Come Dancing
", "Don't Forget to Dance
"), and a return to heavy-riff
ing hard rock
("Catch Me Now I'm Falling
", "Destroyer
", "Do It Again
").
(which accompanied a television film he wrote and directed), the 1998 release The Storyteller, Other People's Lives
in early 2006, Working Man's Café
in October 2007 and The Kinks Choral Collection
in June 2009. Other People's Lives was his first top 40 album in the UK since the 1960s, when he worked with the Kinks.
The release of Working Man's Café was followed on 28 October 2007 with a performance at the BBC
's Electric Proms series, at The Roundhouse, Camden
, accompanied by the Crouch End Festival Chorus
. The concert was broadcast the same evening on BBC Two
. An edited version of Working Man's Café, excluding two bonus tracks and liner notes
, was given away with 1.5 million copies of the Sunday Times on 21 October.
Since the Kinks ceased performing in 1996, Davies has toured independently. Initially, he toured with the mainly acoustic 20th Century Man, An Evening With Ray Davies and Storyteller shows, accompanied by guitarist Pete Mathison. He has toured with a full band consisting of, among others, Toby Baron (drums), Geoff Dugmore (drums), Dick Nolan (bass), Gunnar Frick (keyboards), Ian Gibbons
(keyboards), Scott Donaldson (guitar), Mark Johns (guitar), Milton McDonald
(guitar), Bill Shanley (guitar), and Damon Wilson (drums).
In 2005, Davies released The Tourist, a four-song EP
, in the UK; and Thanksgiving Day, a five-song EP, in the US.
Davies published his "unauthorised autobiography", X-Ray, in 1994. In 1997, he published a book of short stories
entitled Waterloo Sunset
, described as "a concept album
set on paper." He has made three films, Return to Waterloo in 1985, Weird Nightmare in 1991, a documentary about Charles Mingus
and Americana (subtitled "A Work In Progress") which was included on DVD with the Working Man's Cafe disc release in 2008.
A choral album, The Kinks Choral Collection
, on which Davies has been collaborating with the Crouch End Festival Chorus
since 2007, was released in the UK in June 2009 and in the US in November 2009. The album was re-released as a special extended edition including Davies' charity Christmas single "Postcard From London" featuring Davies' former girlfriend and leader of The Pretenders
, Chrissie Hynde
. The video for the single was directed by Julien Temple
and features London landmarks including Waterloo Bridge
, Carnaby Street
, The Statue of Eros steps and the Charlie Chaplin
statue in Leicester Square
. The duet was originally recorded with Kate Nash
. His first choice had been Dame Vera Lynn.
In October 2009, Davies performed "All Day and All of the Night
" with Metallica
at the 25th Anniversary Rock & Roll Hall of Fame Concert.
Davies was also a judge for the 3rd and 7th annual Independent Music Awards
to support independent artists' careers.
Davies played at Glastonbury Festival 2010
where he dedicated several songs to the late Kinks' bassist, Pete Quaife
. Davies is seen to visibly almost break down in tears while singing an a cappella
intro to the song "Days
".
A collaborations album, See My Friends
, was released in November 2010 with a US release to follow in early 2011.
Davies performed with Mando Diao
in their MTV Unplugged
live show.
In 2011 Davies was "grounded" for six months following discovery of blood clots in his lungs. After the malady Davies programmed the line-up for the upcoming Meltdown Festival in London. At the festival he is scheduled to perform rendition of the Kinks' Village Green Preservation Society album with the London Philharmonic and a local chorus. He was working on his second book: a memoir that Davies described as "kind of fictionalized". His first book X-Ray was released in 1995.
2011 also marked Davies' return to New Orleans, Louisiana
to play the Voodoo Experience
Music festival. Davies' setlist included material by the Kinks and solo material.
In Fall 2011, Davies toured with The 88
as his backing band.
, which opened at the Theatre Royal Stratford East
, London, starring Marc Sinden
and also had a supporting cast of Michael Elphick
, Anita Dobson
, Kate Williams and Charlotte Cornwell
. Directed by Adrian Shergold, the choreography
was by Charles Augins
and Jim Rodford
played bass with the theatre's "house band".
Davies wrote songs for a musical version of Jules Verne
's Around the World in Eighty Days; the show, 80 Days, had a book by playwright Snoo Wilson
. It was directed by Des McAnuff
and ran at the La Jolla Playhouse
's Mandell Weiss Theatre in San Diego from 23 August to 9 October 1988. The musical received mixed responses from the critics. Davies' multi-faceted music, McAnuff's directing, and the acting, however, were well received, with the show winning the "Best Musical" award from the San Diego Theatre Critics Circle.
Davies' musical Come Dancing, based partly on his 1983 hit single
with twenty new songs, ran at the Theatre Royal Stratford East, London in September–November 2008.
for hits by The Kinks.)
Order of the British Empire
The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is an order of chivalry established on 4 June 1917 by George V of the United Kingdom. The Order comprises five classes in civil and military divisions...
(icon ; born 21 June 1944) is an English
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
rock musician. He is best known as lead singer and songwriter for the Kinks
The Kinks
The Kinks were an English rock band formed in Muswell Hill, North London, by brothers Ray and Dave Davies in 1964. Categorised in the United States as a British Invasion band, The Kinks are recognised as one of the most important and influential rock acts of the era. Their music was influenced by a...
, which he led with his younger brother, Dave
Dave Davies
David Russell Gordon "Dave" Davies is an English rock musician best known for his role as lead guitarist and vocalist for the English rock band The Kinks....
. He has also acted, directed and produced shows for theatre and television.
Since the dissolution of the Kinks in 1996, Ray Davies has embarked on a solo career as a singer-songwriter.
Biography
Raymond Douglas Davies was born at 6 Denmark Terrace, Fortis GreenFortis Green
Fortis Green is a ward in the extreme north-western corner of the Borough of Haringey, North London. It is also the name of the road that runs between Muswell Hill and East Finchley which forms part of the A504....
in Muswell Hill
Muswell Hill
Muswell Hill is a suburb of north London, mostly in the London Borough of Haringey. It is situated about north of Charing Cross and around from the City of London. Muswell Hill is in the N10 postal district and mostly in the Hornsey and Wood Green parliamentary constituency.- History :The...
, North London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
, England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
. He is the seventh of eight children born to Fred and Anne Davies, including six older sisters and younger brother Dave Davies. He went to William Grimshaw Secondary Modern School (now called Fortismere School
Fortismere School
Fortismere School is a mixed, community foundation secondary school in Muswell Hill, London, United Kingdom.-Admissions:It falls under the London Borough of Haringey Local Education Authority...
).
Davies was an art student at Hornsey College of Art
Hornsey College of Art
Hornsey College of Art is a former college centred in Crouch End, London, England. Since 2008, the building has been a part of Coleridge Primary School, upon its expansion to four form entry...
in London in 1962–1963, when the Kinks developed into a professional performing band. After the Kinks obtained a recording contract in early 1964, Davies emerged as the chief songwriter and de facto leader of the band, especially after the band's breakthrough success with his early composition "You Really Got Me
You Really Got Me
"You Really Got Me" is a rock song written by Ray Davies and performed by his band, The Kinks. It was released on 4th August 1964 as the group's third single, and reached Number 1 on the UK singles chart the next month, remaining for two weeks...
", which was released as the band's third single in August of that year.
Davies led the Kinks through a period of musical experimentation between 1966 and 1975, with notable artistic achievements and commercial success. Between 1976 and their break-up twenty years later, Davies and the group reverted to their earlier mainstream rock format and enjoyed a second peak of success, with other hit songs, like "Destroyer
Destroyer (The Kinks song)
"Destroyer" is a song by British rock band The Kinks, written by Ray Davies. It was released as a track on the group's nineteenth album, Give the People What They Want, in August 1981, and was the album's lead single in the US...
", "Come Dancing
Come Dancing (song)
"Come Dancing" is a 1982 recording by British rock group The Kinks; a 1983 hit single in both the US and the UK, the track was included on the album State of Confusion.-Song themes and meaning:...
" and "Do It Again
Word of Mouth (The Kinks album)
Word of Mouth is a 1984 album by the English rock group, The Kinks.-Track listing:-Personnel:*Ray Davies - guitar, keyboards, harmonica, vocals*Dave Davies - guitar, background vocals*Jim Rodford - bass, background vocals*Mick Avory - drums...
". The Kinks disbanded in 1996, and Ray Davies has performed solo since then.
Davies has had a tempestuous relationship with younger brother Dave (the band's lead guitarist) that dominated the Kinks' career as a band. He has been married three times and has four daughters: Louisa, Victoria, Natalie and Eva. Davies was romantically involved with Chrissie Hynde
Chrissie Hynde
Christine Ellen "Chrissie" Hynde is an US musician best known as the leader of the rock/new wave band the Pretenders. She is a singer, songwriter, and guitarist, and has been the only constant member of the band throughout its history.-Early life and career:Hynde is the daughter of a part-time...
of the Pretenders during the 1980s, and Natalie is a product of that relationship.
In 1990, Davies was inducted, with the Kinks, into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame
Rock and Roll Hall of Fame
The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and Museum is a museum located on the shore of Lake Erie in downtown Cleveland, Ohio, United States. It is dedicated to archiving the history of some of the best-known and most influential artists, producers, engineers and others who have, in some major way,...
and, in 2005, into the UK Music Hall of Fame
UK Music Hall of Fame
The UK Music Hall of Fame was an awards ceremony to honour musicians, of any nationality, for their lifetime contributions to music in the United Kingdom. The Hall of Fame started in 2004 with the induction of five founder members and five more members selected by a public televote, two from each...
.
On 4 January 2004, Davies was shot in the leg while chasing thieves who had snatched the purse of his companion as they walked in the French Quarter
French Quarter
The French Quarter, also known as Vieux Carré, is the oldest neighborhood in the city of New Orleans. When New Orleans was founded in 1718 by Jean-Baptiste Le Moyne de Bienville, the city was originally centered on the French Quarter, or the Vieux Carré as it was known then...
of New Orleans, Louisiana
Louisiana
Louisiana is a state located in the southern region of the United States of America. Its capital is Baton Rouge and largest city is New Orleans. Louisiana is the only state in the U.S. with political subdivisions termed parishes, which are local governments equivalent to counties...
. The shooting came less than a week after Davies was named a Commander of the Order of the British Empire
Order of the British Empire
The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is an order of chivalry established on 4 June 1917 by George V of the United Kingdom. The Order comprises five classes in civil and military divisions...
by Queen Elizabeth II.
Early style (1964-66)
Ray Davies' compositions for the Kinks' early recordings of 1964-65 ranged from the chiming, melodic beat musicBeat music
Beat music, British beat, or Merseybeat is a pop and rock music genre that developed in the United Kingdom in the early 1960s. Beat music is a fusion of rock and roll, doo wop, skiffle, R&B and soul...
("Tired of Waiting for You
Tired of Waiting for You
"Tired of Waiting for You" was a hit 1965 rock song by the English band The Kinks. It reached #1 on the UK Singles Chart and #6 in the USA. It was recorded late August 1964 at Pye Studios , London, with additional guitar overdub at IBC Studios, London on 29 December 1964. "Come On Now" was recorded...
", "Set Me Free
Set Me Free (The Kinks song)
"Set Me Free" is a song by Ray Davies, released first by The Kinks in 1965. Along with "Tired of Waiting for You", it is one of band's first attempts at a softer, more introspective sound...
") to the more distinctive and influential proto-metal, protopunk
Protopunk
Protopunk is a term used retrospectively to describe a number of musicians who were important precursors of punk rock in the late 1960s to mid-1970s, or who have been cited by early punk musicians as influential...
, power chord
Power chord
In music, a power chord is a chord consisting of only the root note of the chord and the fifth interval, usually played on electric guitar, and typically through an amplification process that imparts distortion...
-based rock and roll
Rock and roll
Rock and roll is a genre of popular music that originated and evolved in the United States during the late 1940s and early 1950s, primarily from a combination of African American blues, country, jazz, and gospel music...
which first brought the band to prominence ("You Really Got Me
You Really Got Me
"You Really Got Me" is a rock song written by Ray Davies and performed by his band, The Kinks. It was released on 4th August 1964 as the group's third single, and reached Number 1 on the UK singles chart the next month, remaining for two weeks...
", "All Day and All of the Night
All Day and All of the Night
"All Day and All of the Night" is a song by the British band The Kinks from 1964. It can be found on their debut album "Kinks". It reached #2 on the UK Singles Chart and #7 on Billboards United States chart in 1965....
", "I Need You
Set Me Free (The Kinks song)
"Set Me Free" is a song by Ray Davies, released first by The Kinks in 1965. Along with "Tired of Waiting for You", it is one of band's first attempts at a softer, more introspective sound...
", "Till the End of the Day
Till the End of the Day
"Till the End of the Day" is a song by The Kinks, written by Ray Davies and released as a single in 1965 and later on their album The Kink Kontroversy. It centres around a power chord, like many of the group's early hits, and was similarly successful, reaching no. 8 in the UK and no...
").
However, after mid-1965, this raucous early sound gradually gave way to more sensitive, introspective and complex songs like "Where Have All the Good Times Gone
Where Have All The Good Times Gone
"Where Have All the Good Times Gone" is a song written by Ray Davies and performed with The Kinks. It was first released as the B-side to "Till the End of the Day," and was then included on their album The Kink Kontroversy in 1965 ....
" and "Too Much on My Mind
Face to Face (The Kinks album)
Face to Face, released in 1966 on Pye Records in the United Kingdom and on Reprise Records in the United States, is the fourth UK studio album by The Kinks. A major artistic breakthrough for Kinks' songwriter Ray Davies, the LP represents the first full flowering of Davies' use of narrative,...
"; and with the raga
Raga
A raga is one of the melodic modes used in Indian classical music.It is a series of five or more musical notes upon which a melody is made...
-inspired songs "See My Friends
See My Friends
"See My Friends" is a song by The Kinks, written by the group's singer and guitarist, Ray Davies. Released in 1965, it reached #10 on the UK Singles Chart...
" and "Fancy
Face to Face (The Kinks album)
Face to Face, released in 1966 on Pye Records in the United Kingdom and on Reprise Records in the United States, is the fourth UK studio album by The Kinks. A major artistic breakthrough for Kinks' songwriter Ray Davies, the LP represents the first full flowering of Davies' use of narrative,...
", Davies began to show signs of expanding and diversifying his stylistic palette. Indeed, the Kinks' brief but notable foray into the then-nascent genre of raga rock
Raga rock
Raga rock is a term used to describe rock or pop music with a heavy Indian influence, either in its construction, its timbre, or its use of instrumentation, such as the sitar and tabla...
also paralleled the Beatles
The Beatles
The Beatles were an English rock band, active throughout the 1960s and one of the most commercially successful and critically acclaimed acts in the history of popular music. Formed in Liverpool, by 1962 the group consisted of John Lennon , Paul McCartney , George Harrison and Ringo Starr...
' growing interest in Indian music and spirituality during the mid-1960s.
The classic mid-period (1966-75)
With the release of Face to FaceFace to Face (The Kinks album)
Face to Face, released in 1966 on Pye Records in the United Kingdom and on Reprise Records in the United States, is the fourth UK studio album by The Kinks. A major artistic breakthrough for Kinks' songwriter Ray Davies, the LP represents the first full flowering of Davies' use of narrative,...
in late 1966—the first Kinks album to be comprised exclusively of original material—Davies' songwriting matured considerably and his lyrics began to take on elements of social commentary about the aspirations and frustrations of common working class and middle class people. In a 2008 Rolling Stone profile, journalist Charles M. Young described Davies as "an anthropologist with a guitar", due to his great awareness and insight regarding the psychological effects of the British class system. Prime examples of Davies' observational songwriting include "A Well Respected Man
A Well Respected Man
"A Well Respected Man" is a song by the British band The Kinks, written by the group's lead singer and rhythm guitarist Ray Davies, and originally released on the U.K. EP Kwyet Kinks in September 1965 . It was released as a single in the U.S. during October of that same year and reached #13...
" (recorded in the summer of 1965), "Situation Vacant
Something Else by the Kinks
Something Else by The Kinks, often referred to as just Something Else, is the fifth UK studio album by English rock group The Kinks, released in September 1967. The album marks the final involvement of American producer Shel Talmy in The Kinks' 1960s studio recordings; henceforth Ray Davies would...
" and "Shangri-La"—all of which evince the class-bred insecurity and desperation underlying the materialism and conservativism of English middle-class respectability. In a similar vein, "Dedicated Follower of Fashion
Dedicated Follower of Fashion
"Dedicated Follower of Fashion" is a 1966 single by British band The Kinks. It lampoons the contemporary British fashion scene and mod culture in general...
" wittily satirises the hype and vacuity surrounding the Carnaby Street
Carnaby Street
Carnaby Street is a pedestrianised shopping street in London, United Kingdom, located in the Soho district, near Oxford Street and Regent Street. It is home to numerous fashion and lifestyle retailers, including a large number of independent fashion boutiques...
-based 'Swinging London
Swinging London
Swinging London is a catch-all term applied to the fashion and cultural scene that flourished in London, in the 1960s.It was a youth-oriented phenomenon that emphasised the new and modern. It was a period of optimism and hedonism, and a cultural revolution. One catalyst was the recovery of the...
' scene of the mid-60s, while "David Watts" humorously conveys the wounded feelings of a plain schoolboy who envies the grace and privileges enjoyed by a charismatic upper-class student.
Other notable compositions—from this period and after—take aim at the corrupt motives of greedy businessmen and self-serving politicians ("King Kong
The Kink Kronikles
The Kink Kronikles is a USA compilation double album of singles, B-sides, album tracks and previously unreleased tracks recorded by The Kinks between 1966 and 1970...
", "The Moneygoround
Lola versus Powerman and the Moneygoround, Part One
Lola Versus Powerman and the Moneygoround, Part OneAlternatively titled Kinks Part One: Lola Versus Powerman and the Moneygoround; commonly abbreviated to Lola Versus Powerman is the eighth studio album by British rock band The Kinks, recorded and released in 1970...
", "Powerman
Lola versus Powerman and the Moneygoround, Part One
Lola Versus Powerman and the Moneygoround, Part OneAlternatively titled Kinks Part One: Lola Versus Powerman and the Moneygoround; commonly abbreviated to Lola Versus Powerman is the eighth studio album by British rock band The Kinks, recorded and released in 1970...
", "Mr. Big Man
Sleepwalker (The Kinks album)
Sleepwalker is a 1977 album by the English rock group, The Kinks. It marked a return to straight-ahead, self-contained rock songs after several years of concept albums. It is the first album in what critics usually call the "arena rock" phase of the group, in which more commercial and mainstream...
", "Sold Me Out
Word of Mouth (The Kinks album)
Word of Mouth is a 1984 album by the English rock group, The Kinks.-Track listing:-Personnel:*Ray Davies - guitar, keyboards, harmonica, vocals*Dave Davies - guitar, background vocals*Jim Rodford - bass, background vocals*Mick Avory - drums...
", and the Preservation Act 1 and Act 2
Preservation Act 2
Preservation Act 2 is a 1974 concept album by British rock band The Kinks. It was not well-received by critics and sold poorly , though the live performances of the material were much better received...
albums), the heedless ostentation of nouveaux riches soon to get their comeuppance ("Most Exclusive Residence For Sale
Face to Face (The Kinks album)
Face to Face, released in 1966 on Pye Records in the United Kingdom and on Reprise Records in the United States, is the fourth UK studio album by The Kinks. A major artistic breakthrough for Kinks' songwriter Ray Davies, the LP represents the first full flowering of Davies' use of narrative,...
", "Mister Pleasant
Mister Pleasant
"Mister Pleasant" is a song recorded by British rock group The Kinks in 1967, written by Ray Davies. It was released as a single in the US and mainland Europe but not in the UK. It was released in the UK six months later as the B-side to "Autumn Almanac"...
"), and the complacency and indolence of wealthy playboys and the English upper class ("A House in the Country
Face to Face (The Kinks album)
Face to Face, released in 1966 on Pye Records in the United Kingdom and on Reprise Records in the United States, is the fourth UK studio album by The Kinks. A major artistic breakthrough for Kinks' songwriter Ray Davies, the LP represents the first full flowering of Davies' use of narrative,...
", "Sunny Afternoon
Sunny Afternoon
"Sunny Afternoon" is a song by The Kinks, written by chief songwriter Ray Davies. Like its contemporary "Taxman" by The Beatles, the song references the high levels of progressive tax taken by the British Labour government of Harold Wilson. The track later featured on the Face to Face album as well...
"). He likewise describes the bleakness of life at the other end of the social spectrum—in November 1966, he offered up two grim, neo-Dickensian sketches of desperate poverty among the working class: "Dead End Street
Dead End Street (song)
"Dead End Street" is a song by the British band The Kinks from 1966, written by main songwriter Ray Davies. Like many other songs written by Davies, it is slightly influenced by British Music Hall. It was originally released as a non-album single, but has since been included as one of several bonus...
" and "Big Black Smoke
Big Black Smoke
"Big Black Smoke" is the B-side to The Kinks' single "Dead End Street", written by Ray Davies. The song wasn't originally included on any album, but has since appeared as a track on the popular 1972 Kink Kronikles compilation and as a bonus track on the CD reissue of Face to Face.-External links:***...
"; and in 1970, he recorded the similarly poignant "Get Back in Line
Lola versus Powerman and the Moneygoround, Part One
Lola Versus Powerman and the Moneygoround, Part OneAlternatively titled Kinks Part One: Lola Versus Powerman and the Moneygoround; commonly abbreviated to Lola Versus Powerman is the eighth studio album by British rock band The Kinks, recorded and released in 1970...
".
The Kinks have been called "the most adamantly British of the Brit Invasion bands" on account of Ray Davies' fascination with England's imperial past and his tender, bittersweet evocations of "a vanishing, romanticized world of village greens, pubs and public schools". During the group's mid-period, he wrote many cheerfully eccentric—and often ironic—celebrations of traditional English culture and living, including "Afternoon Tea
Something Else by the Kinks
Something Else by The Kinks, often referred to as just Something Else, is the fifth UK studio album by English rock group The Kinks, released in September 1967. The album marks the final involvement of American producer Shel Talmy in The Kinks' 1960s studio recordings; henceforth Ray Davies would...
", "Autumn Almanac
Autumn Almanac
"Autumn Almanac" is a pop song, written by Ray Davies and recorded by the musical group The Kinks in 1967. "Autumn Almanac" has since been noted for being an "absolute classic", "a finely observed slice of English custom", a "weird character study" and for its "mellow, melodic sound that was to...
", "The Village Green Preservation Society", "The Last of the Steam Powered Trains
The Kinks Are the Village Green Preservation Society
The Kinks Are the Village Green Preservation Society is the sixth studio album by the English rock group The Kinks, released in November 1968. It was the last album by the original quartet, as bassist Pete Quaife left the group in early 1969...
", "Victoria
Victoria (song)
"Victoria" is a song written by Ray Davies of The Kinks. It is the opening track on the band's 1969 concept album Arthur ....
", "Have a Cuppa Tea
Have a Cuppa Tea
"Have a Cuppa Tea" is a song written by Ray Davies and performed by The Kinks on their 1971 album Muswell Hillbillies.Like many Kinks songs, it is stylistically influenced by the British Music Hall...
" and "Cricket". It was also during this time that Davies began composing songs in the self-consciously quaint, old-fashioned style of British music hall
Music hall
Music Hall is a type of British theatrical entertainment which was popular between 1850 and 1960. The term can refer to:# A particular form of variety entertainment involving a mixture of popular song, comedy and speciality acts...
, vaudeville
Musical theatre
Musical theatre is a form of theatre combining songs, spoken dialogue, acting, and dance. The emotional content of the piece – humor, pathos, love, anger – as well as the story itself, is communicated through the words, music, movement and technical aspects of the entertainment as an...
and trad jazz
Trad jazz
Trad jazz - short for "traditional jazz" - refers to the Dixieland and Ragtime jazz styles of the early 20th century in contrast to any more modern style....
; these include "Dandy
Dandy (song)
"Dandy" is a 1966 song from The Kinks, appearing on their Face to Face album. It was released as a single in Continental Europe only, where it charted, reaching #1 in Germany, #2 in Belgium and #3 in the Netherlands...
", "Little Miss Queen of Darkness
Face to Face (The Kinks album)
Face to Face, released in 1966 on Pye Records in the United Kingdom and on Reprise Records in the United States, is the fourth UK studio album by The Kinks. A major artistic breakthrough for Kinks' songwriter Ray Davies, the LP represents the first full flowering of Davies' use of narrative,...
", "Mister Pleasant
Mister Pleasant
"Mister Pleasant" is a song recorded by British rock group The Kinks in 1967, written by Ray Davies. It was released as a single in the US and mainland Europe but not in the UK. It was released in the UK six months later as the B-side to "Autumn Almanac"...
", "End of the Season
Something Else by the Kinks
Something Else by The Kinks, often referred to as just Something Else, is the fifth UK studio album by English rock group The Kinks, released in September 1967. The album marks the final involvement of American producer Shel Talmy in The Kinks' 1960s studio recordings; henceforth Ray Davies would...
", "All of My Friends Were There
The Kinks Are the Village Green Preservation Society
The Kinks Are the Village Green Preservation Society is the sixth studio album by the English rock group The Kinks, released in November 1968. It was the last album by the original quartet, as bassist Pete Quaife left the group in early 1969...
", "She's Bought a Hat Like Princess Marina
Arthur (Or the Decline and Fall of the British Empire)
Arthur is the seventh studio album by English rock band The Kinks, released in October 1969. Kinks frontman Ray Davies constructed the concept album as the soundtrack to a Granada Television play and developed the storyline with novelist Julian Mitchell; however, the television programme was...
", "Acute Schizophrenia Paranoia Blues
Muswell Hillbillies
Muswell Hillbillies is the ninth studio album by the English rock group The Kinks, released in November 1971. The album is named after the Muswell Hill area of North London, where band leader Ray Davies and guitarist Dave Davies grew up and the band formed in the early 1960s.The album centred on...
", "Look a Little on the Sunny Side
Everybody's in Show-Biz
Everybody's in Show-Biz is the tenth studio album released by English rock group The Kinks, released in 1972. A double album, the first disc features studio recordings, while the second disc documents a two-night Carnegie Hall stand....
" and "Holiday Romance
Soap Opera (album)
Soap Opera or The Kinks Present a Soap Opera is a 1975 concept album by The Kinks.It tells the story of a musician named Starmaker who changes places with an "ordinary man" named Norman in order to better understand life. The album is the third concept album in the band's "theatrical period"...
". And he occasionally varied the group's sound by delving into more exotic musical idioms, such as bossa nova
Bossa nova
Bossa nova is a style of Brazilian music. Bossa nova acquired a large following in the 1960s, initially consisting of young musicians and college students...
("No Return
Something Else by the Kinks
Something Else by The Kinks, often referred to as just Something Else, is the fifth UK studio album by English rock group The Kinks, released in September 1967. The album marks the final involvement of American producer Shel Talmy in The Kinks' 1960s studio recordings; henceforth Ray Davies would...
") and calypso
Calypso
Calypso is the name of one of the Nereids in Greek mythology. The word may also refer to:- In fiction :*Calypso , songs from The Books of Bokonon from Kurt Vonnegut's novel Cat's Cradle...
("Monica
The Kinks Are the Village Green Preservation Society
The Kinks Are the Village Green Preservation Society is the sixth studio album by the English rock group The Kinks, released in November 1968. It was the last album by the original quartet, as bassist Pete Quaife left the group in early 1969...
", "Apeman
Apeman (song)
"Apeman" is a song by the British rock band The Kinks. It was written by Ray Davies and appears on the album Lola versus Powerman and the Moneygoround, Part One. It is 3:54 in length.-Themes:...
", "Supersonic Rocket Ship
Supersonic Rocket Ship
Supersonic Rocket Ship is a single recorded by British rock band The Kinks, written by Ray Davies. It was released on May 5, 1972, in the UK, and in September of that year for its US release. 'Supersonic Rocket Ship' was also included as a track on the double LP Everybody's in Show-Biz, which was...
").
Davies is often as his most poignant and personal when he sings of giving up worldly ambition for the simple rewards of love, domesticity and/or close family relations ("This is Where I Belong
The Kink Kronikles
The Kink Kronikles is a USA compilation double album of singles, B-sides, album tracks and previously unreleased tracks recorded by The Kinks between 1966 and 1970...
", "Two Sisters
Something Else by the Kinks
Something Else by The Kinks, often referred to as just Something Else, is the fifth UK studio album by English rock group The Kinks, released in September 1967. The album marks the final involvement of American producer Shel Talmy in The Kinks' 1960s studio recordings; henceforth Ray Davies would...
", "The Way Love Used to Be
Percy (soundtrack)
Percy is a 1971 film soundtrack for the British comedy film Percy performed by English rock group the Kinks with additional orchestral arrangements conducted by Stanley Myers. The songs were written by Ray Davies and include both standard pop songs and instrumental numbers.-Release and...
", "Sweet Lady Genevieve", "You Make It All Worthwhile
Soap Opera (album)
Soap Opera or The Kinks Present a Soap Opera is a 1975 concept album by The Kinks.It tells the story of a musician named Starmaker who changes places with an "ordinary man" named Norman in order to better understand life. The album is the third concept album in the band's "theatrical period"...
"); or when he extols the consolations of memory ("Days
Days (The Kinks song)
Kirsty MacColl covered "Days" on her 1989 album Kite. It was released as a single and reached #12 on the UK singles chart, the same position achieved by The Kinks in 1969. It was re-released in 1995, charting much lower, only reaching #42 in the UK...
", "Do You Remember Walter?
The Kinks Are the Village Green Preservation Society
The Kinks Are the Village Green Preservation Society is the sixth studio album by the English rock group The Kinks, released in November 1968. It was the last album by the original quartet, as bassist Pete Quaife left the group in early 1969...
", "Picture Book
The Kinks Are the Village Green Preservation Society
The Kinks Are the Village Green Preservation Society is the sixth studio album by the English rock group The Kinks, released in November 1968. It was the last album by the original quartet, as bassist Pete Quaife left the group in early 1969...
", "Young and Innocent Days
Arthur (Or the Decline and Fall of the British Empire)
Arthur is the seventh studio album by English rock band The Kinks, released in October 1969. Kinks frontman Ray Davies constructed the concept album as the soundtrack to a Granada Television play and developed the storyline with novelist Julian Mitchell; however, the television programme was...
", "Moments
Percy (soundtrack)
Percy is a 1971 film soundtrack for the British comedy film Percy performed by English rock group the Kinks with additional orchestral arrangements conducted by Stanley Myers. The songs were written by Ray Davies and include both standard pop songs and instrumental numbers.-Release and...
", "Schooldays
Schoolboys in Disgrace
Schoolboys in Disgrace or The Kinks Present Schoolboys in Disgrace is a 1975 album by English rock group The Kinks.According to the back cover liner notes, the story which the album presents is as follows:...
"). Yet another perennial Ray Davies theme is the championing of individualistic personalities and lifestyles ("I'm Not Like Everybody Else
I'm Not Like Everybody Else
"I'm Not Like Everybody Else" is a song written by Ray Davies and first recorded by The Kinks in 1966.-History:Davies had written the song for The Animals, but it was turned down, so the Kinks released their own version with guitarist Dave Davies on lead vocals...
", "Johnny Thunder
The Kinks Are the Village Green Preservation Society
The Kinks Are the Village Green Preservation Society is the sixth studio album by the English rock group The Kinks, released in November 1968. It was the last album by the original quartet, as bassist Pete Quaife left the group in early 1969...
", "Lola
Lola (song)
"Lola" is a song written by Ray Davies and performed by The Kinks which details a romantic encounter between a young man and a transvestite he meets in a club in Soho, London....
", "Celluloid Heroes
Celluloid Heroes
"Celluloid Heroes" is a song performed by The Kinks and written by their lead vocalist and principal songwriter, Ray Davies. It debuted on their 1972 album Everybody's in Show-Biz.-Lyrical themes:...
", "Where Are They Now?", "Sitting in the Midday Sun
Sitting in the Midday Sun
"Sitting in the Midday Sun" is a song by British rock band The Kinks, written by their frontman and main songwriter Ray Davies. It was recorded in June 1973 and released as a single in the US and UK the same year. Reviews were generally positive, but it failed to chart. "Sitting in the Midday Sun"...
"); and on his 1967 masterpiece "Waterloo Sunset
Waterloo Sunset
Waterloo Sunset is a song by British rock band The Kinks. It was released as a single in 1967, and featured on their album Something Else by The Kinks...
", the singer expresses a profound sense of contentment in the midst of drabness and solitude.
Davies' mid-period work for the Kinks also showed signs of an emerging social conscience. For example, "Holiday in Waikiki
Face to Face (The Kinks album)
Face to Face, released in 1966 on Pye Records in the United Kingdom and on Reprise Records in the United States, is the fourth UK studio album by The Kinks. A major artistic breakthrough for Kinks' songwriter Ray Davies, the LP represents the first full flowering of Davies' use of narrative,...
" deplored the vulgar commercialisation of a once unspoiled indigenous culture. Similarly, "God's Children
Percy (soundtrack)
Percy is a 1971 film soundtrack for the British comedy film Percy performed by English rock group the Kinks with additional orchestral arrangements conducted by Stanley Myers. The songs were written by Ray Davies and include both standard pop songs and instrumental numbers.-Release and...
", and songs on the albums The Kinks are the Village Green Preservation Society
The Kinks Are the Village Green Preservation Society
The Kinks Are the Village Green Preservation Society is the sixth studio album by the English rock group The Kinks, released in November 1968. It was the last album by the original quartet, as bassist Pete Quaife left the group in early 1969...
and Muswell Hillbillies
Muswell Hillbillies
Muswell Hillbillies is the ninth studio album by the English rock group The Kinks, released in November 1971. The album is named after the Muswell Hill area of North London, where band leader Ray Davies and guitarist Dave Davies grew up and the band formed in the early 1960s.The album centred on...
, passionately decried industrialisation
Industrialisation
Industrialization is the process of social and economic change that transforms a human group from an agrarian society into an industrial one...
and bureaucracy
Bureaucracy
A bureaucracy is an organization of non-elected officials of a governmental or organization who implement the rules, laws, and functions of their institution, and are occasionally characterized by officialism and red tape.-Weberian bureaucracy:...
in favour of simple pastoral
Pastoral
The adjective pastoral refers to the lifestyle of pastoralists, such as shepherds herding livestock around open areas of land according to seasons and the changing availability of water and pasturage. It also refers to a genre in literature, art or music that depicts such shepherd life in an...
living. In particular, his songs on Village Green gave an affectionate embrace to "Merry England
Merry England
"Merry England", or in more jocular, archaic spelling "Merrie England", refers to an English autostereotype, a utopian conception of English society and culture based on an idyllic pastoral way of life that was allegedly prevalent at some time between the Middle Ages and the onset of the Industrial...
" nostalgia, and advocated for the preservation of traditional English country village and hamlet
Hamlet (place)
A hamlet is usually a rural settlement which is too small to be considered a village, though sometimes the word is used for a different sort of community. Historically, when a hamlet became large enough to justify building a church, it was then classified as a village...
life, long before such themes and attitudes were even heard of in British pop music
British pop music
While various forms of commercially produced popular music had existed in Great Britain for several centuries, what is now understood as British pop music emerged in the mid-to late 1950s as a softer alternative to rock 'n' roll and later to rock music...
.
A definitive testament to Ray Davies' reputation as a songwriter of insight, empathy and wit can be heard on the Kinks' 1969 album Arthur (or the Decline and Fall of the British Empire)
Arthur (Or the Decline and Fall of the British Empire)
Arthur is the seventh studio album by English rock band The Kinks, released in October 1969. Kinks frontman Ray Davies constructed the concept album as the soundtrack to a Granada Television play and developed the storyline with novelist Julian Mitchell; however, the television programme was...
, which affectionately chronicles the trials and tribulations of a working class everyman
Everyman
In literature and drama, the term everyman has come to mean an ordinary individual, with whom the audience or reader is supposed to be able to identify easily, and who is often placed in extraordinary circumstances...
and his family from the very end of the Victorian era
Victorian era
The Victorian era of British history was the period of Queen Victoria's reign from 20 June 1837 until her death on 22 January 1901. It was a long period of peace, prosperity, refined sensibilities and national self-confidence...
through World War I
World War I
World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
and World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
, the postwar austerity years, and up to the 1960s. The theme of the album was partly inspired by the life of Ray and Dave Davies' brother-in-law, Arthur Anning, who had married their older sister, Rose (herself the subject of an earlier Kinks song, "Rosie Won't You Please Come Home
Face to Face (The Kinks album)
Face to Face, released in 1966 on Pye Records in the United Kingdom and on Reprise Records in the United States, is the fourth UK studio album by The Kinks. A major artistic breakthrough for Kinks' songwriter Ray Davies, the LP represents the first full flowering of Davies' use of narrative,...
"), and had emigrated to Australia after the war. Over the course of a dozen evocative songs, the album fulfils its ambitious subtitle as Davies embellishes an intimate family chronicle with satirical and often poignant observations about the shifting mores of English public life in response to the declining fortunes of the British Empire
British Empire
The British Empire comprised the dominions, colonies, protectorates, mandates and other territories ruled or administered by the United Kingdom. It originated with the overseas colonies and trading posts established by England in the late 16th and early 17th centuries. At its height, it was the...
.
Later commercial sound (1976-84)
When the Kinks changed record labels from RCARCA
RCA Corporation, founded as the Radio Corporation of America, was an American electronics company in existence from 1919 to 1986. The RCA trademark is currently owned by the French conglomerate Technicolor SA through RCA Trademark Management S.A., a company owned by Technicolor...
to Arista in 1976, Davies abandoned his previous propensity for ambitious, rambling concept albums—a tendency which had reached its height during the RCA era (1971-75) with the release of Preservation Act 1 and Act 2
Preservation Act 2
Preservation Act 2 is a 1974 concept album by British rock band The Kinks. It was not well-received by critics and sold poorly , though the live performances of the material were much better received...
, Soap Opera
Soap Opera (album)
Soap Opera or The Kinks Present a Soap Opera is a 1975 concept album by The Kinks.It tells the story of a musician named Starmaker who changes places with an "ordinary man" named Norman in order to better understand life. The album is the third concept album in the band's "theatrical period"...
and Schoolboys in Disgrace
Schoolboys in Disgrace
Schoolboys in Disgrace or The Kinks Present Schoolboys in Disgrace is a 1975 album by English rock group The Kinks.According to the back cover liner notes, the story which the album presents is as follows:...
. With the switch to a new record label, followed by some personnel changes within the band two years later, Davies began to distill elements from his previous styles and themes into more straightforward compositions; and he likewise employed newer production techniques to achieve a more mainstream "arena rock
Arena rock
Arena rock is a term used to describe rock music that utilised large arena venues, particularly sports venues, for concerts or series of concerts linked in tours...
" sound. This canny approach briefly lead to a revival of the band's commercial fortunes during the late 70s and early 80s, as Davies presented the public with philosophical anthems ("Life on the Road
Sleepwalker (The Kinks album)
Sleepwalker is a 1977 album by the English rock group, The Kinks. It marked a return to straight-ahead, self-contained rock songs after several years of concept albums. It is the first album in what critics usually call the "arena rock" phase of the group, in which more commercial and mainstream...
", "Juke Box Music
Sleepwalker (The Kinks album)
Sleepwalker is a 1977 album by the English rock group, The Kinks. It marked a return to straight-ahead, self-contained rock songs after several years of concept albums. It is the first album in what critics usually call the "arena rock" phase of the group, in which more commercial and mainstream...
"), pensive ballads ("A Rock & Roll Fantasy
Misfits (The Kinks album)
Misfits is a 1978 album by the English rock group The Kinks.-Track listing:On the UK version of the LP, a longer version of "Live Life" switches places with "Black Messiah". Remastered CD releases have the UK LP track order and include the shorter "Live Life" as a bonus track...
", "Misfits
Misfits (The Kinks album)
Misfits is a 1978 album by the English rock group The Kinks.-Track listing:On the UK version of the LP, a longer version of "Live Life" switches places with "Black Messiah". Remastered CD releases have the UK LP track order and include the shorter "Live Life" as a bonus track...
"), a flirtation with disco
Disco
Disco is a genre of dance music. Disco acts charted high during the mid-1970s, and the genre's popularity peaked during the late 1970s. It had its roots in clubs that catered to African American, gay, psychedelic, and other communities in New York City and Philadelphia during the late 1960s and...
("Wish I Could Fly Like Superman
Low Budget (album)
Low Budget is a 1979 album by the English rock group, The Kinks. It was a great success for the group, becoming their best-selling non-compilation album, peaking at #11 on the US album charts.-Track listing:-Personnel:...
"), wistful pop ("Better Things", "Come Dancing
Come Dancing (song)
"Come Dancing" is a 1982 recording by British rock group The Kinks; a 1983 hit single in both the US and the UK, the track was included on the album State of Confusion.-Song themes and meaning:...
", "Don't Forget to Dance
Don't Forget to Dance
"Don't Forget to Dance" is a 1983 song performed by British rock group The Kinks, released as a single in that year and included on their album State of Confusion.-Production:...
"), and a return to heavy-riff
RIFF
The Resource Interchange File Format is a generic file container format for storing data in tagged chunks. It is primarily used to store multimedia such as sound and video, though it may also be used to store any arbitrary data....
ing hard rock
Hard rock
Hard rock is a loosely defined genre of rock music which has its earliest roots in mid-1960s garage rock, blues rock and psychedelic rock...
("Catch Me Now I'm Falling
Low Budget (album)
Low Budget is a 1979 album by the English rock group, The Kinks. It was a great success for the group, becoming their best-selling non-compilation album, peaking at #11 on the US album charts.-Track listing:-Personnel:...
", "Destroyer
Destroyer (The Kinks song)
"Destroyer" is a song by British rock band The Kinks, written by Ray Davies. It was released as a track on the group's nineteenth album, Give the People What They Want, in August 1981, and was the album's lead single in the US...
", "Do It Again
Word of Mouth (The Kinks album)
Word of Mouth is a 1984 album by the English rock group, The Kinks.-Track listing:-Personnel:*Ray Davies - guitar, keyboards, harmonica, vocals*Dave Davies - guitar, background vocals*Jim Rodford - bass, background vocals*Mick Avory - drums...
").
Solo work: 1985-present
Aside from the lengthy Kinks discography, Davies has released five solo albums: the 1985 release Return to WaterlooReturn to Waterloo
Return to Waterloo is an album and hour-long film by Kinks' leader and chief songwriter Ray Davies. Several of the tracks on the album release were also available in near-identical form on The Kinks 1984 release Word of Mouth...
(which accompanied a television film he wrote and directed), the 1998 release The Storyteller, Other People's Lives
Other People's Lives
Other People's Lives is an album by Kinks' leader and chief songwriter Ray Davies. It reached the top 40 in the UK charts in February 2006, and 122 in the USA top 200...
in early 2006, Working Man's Café
Working Man's Café
Working Man's Café is a solo album released 22 October 2007 in the UK by Ray Davies, formerly lead singer and songwriter of The Kinks. A day earlier, on 21 October 2007, a 10 track promotional copy of the album was 'given away' with the Sunday Times newspaper in the UK...
in October 2007 and The Kinks Choral Collection
The Kinks Choral Collection
The Kinks Choral Collection is an album, released 15 June 2009 in the UK and 10 November 2009 in the US, by Ray Davies and the Crouch End Festival Chorus...
in June 2009. Other People's Lives was his first top 40 album in the UK since the 1960s, when he worked with the Kinks.
The release of Working Man's Café was followed on 28 October 2007 with a performance at the BBC
BBC
The British Broadcasting Corporation is a British public service broadcaster. Its headquarters is at Broadcasting House in the City of Westminster, London. It is the largest broadcaster in the world, with about 23,000 staff...
's Electric Proms series, at The Roundhouse, Camden
Camden Town
-Economy:In recent years, entertainment-related businesses and a Holiday Inn have moved into the area. A number of retail and food chain outlets have replaced independent shops driven out by high rents and redevelopment. Restaurants have thrived, with the variety of culinary traditions found in...
, accompanied by the Crouch End Festival Chorus
Crouch End Festival Chorus
Crouch End Festival Chorus is a symphonic choir based in Crouch End, a northern suburb of London. CEFC was formed in 1984 by John Gregson and David Temple, who remains the choir's conductor...
. The concert was broadcast the same evening on BBC Two
BBC Two
BBC Two is the second television channel operated by the British Broadcasting Corporation in the United Kingdom. It covers a wide range of subject matter, but tending towards more 'highbrow' programmes than the more mainstream and popular BBC One. Like the BBC's other domestic TV and radio...
. An edited version of Working Man's Café, excluding two bonus tracks and liner notes
Liner notes
Liner notes are the writings found in booklets which come inserted into the compact disc jewel case or the equivalent packaging for vinyl records and cassettes.-Origin:...
, was given away with 1.5 million copies of the Sunday Times on 21 October.
Since the Kinks ceased performing in 1996, Davies has toured independently. Initially, he toured with the mainly acoustic 20th Century Man, An Evening With Ray Davies and Storyteller shows, accompanied by guitarist Pete Mathison. He has toured with a full band consisting of, among others, Toby Baron (drums), Geoff Dugmore (drums), Dick Nolan (bass), Gunnar Frick (keyboards), Ian Gibbons
Ian Gibbons
Ian Gibbons is an English keyboardist, most notable for playing with The Kinks.Gibbons began playing the accordion at the age 9, playing in the school band, and solo at music festivals, competitions and charity events. At the age of 14, he started a school rock band, playing guitar and singing...
(keyboards), Scott Donaldson (guitar), Mark Johns (guitar), Milton McDonald
Milton McDonald
Mike "Milton" McDonald is a session guitarist. He has played with Patricia Kaas, Anderson Bruford Wakeman Howe, The Spice Girls, S Club 7, Ray Davies, Take That, Robert Palmer, M People, Louise, Mick Jagger, Tina Turner, Atomic Kitten, Hear'Say, Mylène Farmer, and Girls Aloud.McDonald also played...
(guitar), Bill Shanley (guitar), and Damon Wilson (drums).
In 2005, Davies released The Tourist, a four-song EP
Extended play
An EP is a musical recording which contains more music than a single, but is too short to qualify as a full album or LP. The term EP originally referred only to specific types of vinyl records other than 78 rpm standard play records and LP records, but it is now applied to mid-length Compact...
, in the UK; and Thanksgiving Day, a five-song EP, in the US.
Short story
A short story is a work of fiction that is usually written in prose, often in narrative format. This format tends to be more pointed than longer works of fiction, such as novellas and novels. Short story definitions based on length differ somewhat, even among professional writers, in part because...
entitled Waterloo Sunset
Waterloo Sunset
Waterloo Sunset is a song by British rock band The Kinks. It was released as a single in 1967, and featured on their album Something Else by The Kinks...
, described as "a concept album
Concept album
In music, a concept album is an album that is "unified by a theme, which can be instrumental, compositional, narrative, or lyrical." Commonly, concept albums tend to incorporate preconceived musical or lyrical ideas rather than being improvised or composed in the studio, with all songs contributing...
set on paper." He has made three films, Return to Waterloo in 1985, Weird Nightmare in 1991, a documentary about Charles Mingus
Charles Mingus
Charles Mingus Jr. was an American jazz musician, composer, bandleader, and civil rights activist.Mingus's compositions retained the hot and soulful feel of hard bop and drew heavily from black gospel music while sometimes drawing on elements of Third stream, free jazz, and classical music...
and Americana (subtitled "A Work In Progress") which was included on DVD with the Working Man's Cafe disc release in 2008.
A choral album, The Kinks Choral Collection
The Kinks Choral Collection
The Kinks Choral Collection is an album, released 15 June 2009 in the UK and 10 November 2009 in the US, by Ray Davies and the Crouch End Festival Chorus...
, on which Davies has been collaborating with the Crouch End Festival Chorus
Crouch End Festival Chorus
Crouch End Festival Chorus is a symphonic choir based in Crouch End, a northern suburb of London. CEFC was formed in 1984 by John Gregson and David Temple, who remains the choir's conductor...
since 2007, was released in the UK in June 2009 and in the US in November 2009. The album was re-released as a special extended edition including Davies' charity Christmas single "Postcard From London" featuring Davies' former girlfriend and leader of The Pretenders
The Pretenders
The Pretenders are an English rock band formed in Hereford, England in March 1978. The original band consisted of initiator and main songwriter Chrissie Hynde , James Honeyman-Scott , Pete Farndon , and Martin Chambers...
, Chrissie Hynde
Chrissie Hynde
Christine Ellen "Chrissie" Hynde is an US musician best known as the leader of the rock/new wave band the Pretenders. She is a singer, songwriter, and guitarist, and has been the only constant member of the band throughout its history.-Early life and career:Hynde is the daughter of a part-time...
. The video for the single was directed by Julien Temple
Julien Temple
Julien Temple is an English film, documentary and music video director. He began his career with short films featuring the Sex Pistols, and has continued with various off-beat projects, including The Great Rock And Roll Swindle, Absolute Beginners and a documentary film about Glastonbury.-Temple...
and features London landmarks including Waterloo Bridge
Waterloo Bridge
Waterloo Bridge is a road and foot traffic bridge crossing the River Thames in London, England between Blackfriars Bridge and Hungerford Bridge. The name of the bridge is in memory of the British victory at the Battle of Waterloo in 1815...
, Carnaby Street
Carnaby Street
Carnaby Street is a pedestrianised shopping street in London, United Kingdom, located in the Soho district, near Oxford Street and Regent Street. It is home to numerous fashion and lifestyle retailers, including a large number of independent fashion boutiques...
, The Statue of Eros steps and the Charlie Chaplin
Charlie Chaplin
Sir Charles Spencer "Charlie" Chaplin, KBE was an English comic actor, film director and composer best known for his work during the silent film era. He became the most famous film star in the world before the end of World War I...
statue in Leicester Square
Leicester Square
Leicester Square is a pedestrianised square in the West End of London, England. The Square lies within an area bound by Lisle Street, to the north; Charing Cross Road, to the east; Orange Street, to the south; and Whitcomb Street, to the west...
. The duet was originally recorded with Kate Nash
Kate Nash
Kate Marie Nash is an English singer, songwriter, and musician. She had a UK no. 2 hit "Foundations" in 2007, followed by the platinum selling UK number 1 album Made of Bricks. She was named Best Female Artist at the 2008 BRIT Awards....
. His first choice had been Dame Vera Lynn.
In October 2009, Davies performed "All Day and All of the Night
All Day and All of the Night
"All Day and All of the Night" is a song by the British band The Kinks from 1964. It can be found on their debut album "Kinks". It reached #2 on the UK Singles Chart and #7 on Billboards United States chart in 1965....
" with Metallica
Metallica
Metallica is an American heavy metal band from Los Angeles, California. Formed in 1981 when James Hetfield responded to an advertisement that drummer Lars Ulrich had posted in a local newspaper. The current line-up features long-time lead guitarist Kirk Hammett and bassist Robert Trujillo ...
at the 25th Anniversary Rock & Roll Hall of Fame Concert.
Davies was also a judge for the 3rd and 7th annual Independent Music Awards
The Independent Music Awards
The Independent Music Awards is an international program that honors top-ranked independent artists and releases in more than 50 Album, Song, Music Video and Design categories....
to support independent artists' careers.
Davies played at Glastonbury Festival 2010
Glastonbury Festival 2010
The 2010 Glastonbury Festival of Contemporary Performing Arts took place in Pilton, Somerset, England in June 2010.The festival was headlined by Gorillaz, Muse, and Stevie Wonder. U2 were initially announced as headliners, but withdrew on 25 May 2010 citing Bono's recent back surgery...
where he dedicated several songs to the late Kinks' bassist, Pete Quaife
Pete Quaife
Peter Alexander Greenlaw "Pete" Quaife was an English musician, artist and author. He was a founding member and the original bass guitarist for The Kinks, from 1963 until 1969....
. Davies is seen to visibly almost break down in tears while singing an a cappella
A cappella
A cappella music is specifically solo or group singing without instrumental sound, or a piece intended to be performed in this way. It is the opposite of cantata, which is accompanied singing. A cappella was originally intended to differentiate between Renaissance polyphony and Baroque concertato...
intro to the song "Days
Days (The Kinks song)
Kirsty MacColl covered "Days" on her 1989 album Kite. It was released as a single and reached #12 on the UK singles chart, the same position achieved by The Kinks in 1969. It was re-released in 1995, charting much lower, only reaching #42 in the UK...
".
A collaborations album, See My Friends
See My Friends (album)
-Track listing:#"Better Things" - Ray Davies and Bruce Springsteen#"Celluloid Heroes" - Ray Davies, Jon Bon Jovi and Richie Sambora#"Days/This Time Tomorrow" - Ray Davies and Mumford & Sons#"A Long Way from Home" - Ray Davies, Lucinda Williams and The 88...
, was released in November 2010 with a US release to follow in early 2011.
Davies performed with Mando Diao
Mando Diao
Mando Diao is an alternative rock band from Borlänge, Sweden. The band got their breakthrough with the release of the album Hurricane Bar. Their main fan base is in Sweden, Germany, and Japan although their influence has recently spread to Western Europe, most notably the UK.-Origin:The roots of...
in their MTV Unplugged
MTV Unplugged
MTV Unplugged is a TV series showcasing many popular musical artists usually playing acoustic instruments. The show has received the George Foster Peabody Award and 3 Primetime Emmy nominations among many accolades.-Unplugged:...
live show.
In 2011 Davies was "grounded" for six months following discovery of blood clots in his lungs. After the malady Davies programmed the line-up for the upcoming Meltdown Festival in London. At the festival he is scheduled to perform rendition of the Kinks' Village Green Preservation Society album with the London Philharmonic and a local chorus. He was working on his second book: a memoir that Davies described as "kind of fictionalized". His first book X-Ray was released in 1995.
2011 also marked Davies' return to New Orleans, Louisiana
Louisiana
Louisiana is a state located in the southern region of the United States of America. Its capital is Baton Rouge and largest city is New Orleans. Louisiana is the only state in the U.S. with political subdivisions termed parishes, which are local governments equivalent to counties...
to play the Voodoo Experience
Voodoo Experience
Voodoo Experience, also commonly referred to as Voodoo or Voodoo Fest, is a multi-day music and arts festival held in City Park, New Orleans, Louisiana. It was first held on Halloween weekend in 1999. It has since moved between the weekend before Halloween and Halloween weekend throughout the years...
Music festival. Davies' setlist included material by the Kinks and solo material.
In Fall 2011, Davies toured with The 88
The 88
The 88 is a four-piece indie rock band based in Los Angeles, California. They have released five full length albums as of 2010, and are the backing band for the Ray Davies Fall 2011 US Tour.- Members :Members of the band are:...
as his backing band.
Musicals
In 1981 Davies collaborated with Barrie Keefe to write his first stage musical, Chorus GirlsChorus Girls (musical)
Chorus Girls was a musical written in 1981 by The Kinks lead singer and songwriter Ray Davies, who collaborated with The Long Good Friday screenwriter Barrie Keefe....
, which opened at the Theatre Royal Stratford East
Theatre Royal Stratford East
The Theatre Royal Stratford East is a theatre in Stratford in the London Borough of Newham. Since 1953, it has been the home of the Theatre Workshop company.-History:...
, London, starring Marc Sinden
Marc Sinden
Marc Sinden is an English theatre producer, documentary director and actor. His father is the actor Sir Donald Sinden.-Theatre:...
and also had a supporting cast of Michael Elphick
Michael Elphick
Michael John Elphick was an English actor. Elphick was known in the UK for his trademark croaky voice and his work on British television, in particular his roles as the eponymous private investigator in the ITV series Boon and later Harry Slater in BBC's EastEnders.Robust and ruggedly good-looking...
, Anita Dobson
Anita Dobson
Anita Dobson is an English television actress and singer. She gained her highest profile while playing Angie Watts in the BBC soap opera, EastEnders...
, Kate Williams and Charlotte Cornwell
Charlotte Cornwell
-Life and career:Cornwell was born in Marylebone, London, England, the daughter of Ronald Cornwell. She is the half-sister of spy novelist John le Carré . She describes him as "the best brother a girl could have"...
. Directed by Adrian Shergold, the choreography
Choreography
Choreography is the art of designing sequences of movements in which motion, form, or both are specified. Choreography may also refer to the design itself, which is sometimes expressed by means of dance notation. The word choreography literally means "dance-writing" from the Greek words "χορεία" ...
was by Charles Augins
Charles Augins
Charles Augins is an American actor, dancer and choreographer for stage and screen. Born in Virginia he won the Laurence Olivier Theater award in 1991 for Best Choreography in Five Guys Named Moe. He had a small role in Revenge of the Pink Panther as Vic Vancouver. He is best known for playing...
and Jim Rodford
Jim Rodford
Jim Rodford is a musician who played with The Kinks, The Swinging Blue Jeans and was a founding member of Argent...
played bass with the theatre's "house band".
Davies wrote songs for a musical version of Jules Verne
Jules Verne
Jules Gabriel Verne was a French author who pioneered the science fiction genre. He is best known for his novels Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Sea , A Journey to the Center of the Earth , and Around the World in Eighty Days...
's Around the World in Eighty Days; the show, 80 Days, had a book by playwright Snoo Wilson
Snoo Wilson
Snoo Wilson, , born Andrew James Wilson, is an English playwright, screenwriter and director. His early plays such as Blow-Job were overtly political, often combining harsh social comment with comedy...
. It was directed by Des McAnuff
Des McAnuff
Desmond McAnuff is the Canadian-American artistic director of the Stratford Shakespeare Festival and director of musical theatre of such Broadway productions as Big River, The Who's Tommy and Jersey Boys.-Biography:...
and ran at the La Jolla Playhouse
La Jolla Playhouse
La Jolla Playhouse is a not-for-profit, professional theatre-in-residence on the campus of the University of California, San Diego. -Background:...
's Mandell Weiss Theatre in San Diego from 23 August to 9 October 1988. The musical received mixed responses from the critics. Davies' multi-faceted music, McAnuff's directing, and the acting, however, were well received, with the show winning the "Best Musical" award from the San Diego Theatre Critics Circle.
Davies' musical Come Dancing, based partly on his 1983 hit single
Come Dancing (song)
"Come Dancing" is a 1982 recording by British rock group The Kinks; a 1983 hit single in both the US and the UK, the track was included on the album State of Confusion.-Song themes and meaning:...
with twenty new songs, ran at the Theatre Royal Stratford East, London in September–November 2008.
Awards
- On 17 March 2004, Davies received the CBEOrder of the British EmpireThe Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is an order of chivalry established on 4 June 1917 by George V of the United Kingdom. The Order comprises five classes in civil and military divisions...
from Queen Elizabeth IIElizabeth II of the United KingdomElizabeth II is the constitutional monarch of 16 sovereign states known as the Commonwealth realms: the United Kingdom, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, Jamaica, Barbados, the Bahamas, Grenada, Papua New Guinea, the Solomon Islands, Tuvalu, Saint Lucia, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, Belize,...
for "Services to Music." - On 22 June 2004, Davies won the MojoMojo (magazine)MOJO is a popular music magazine published initially by Emap, and since January 2008 by Bauer, monthly in the United Kingdom. Following the success of the magazine Q, publishers Emap were looking for a title which would cater for the burgeoning interest in classic rock music...
Songwriter AwardMOJO AwardsThe MOJO Awards is an awards ceremony that began in 2004 by Mojo, a popular music magazine published monthly by Bauer in the United Kingdom...
, which recognises "an artist whose career has been defined by his ability to pen classic material on a consistent basis." - Davies was also a judge for the third annual Independent Music AwardsThe Independent Music AwardsThe Independent Music Awards is an international program that honors top-ranked independent artists and releases in more than 50 Album, Song, Music Video and Design categories....
. His contributions helped assist upcoming independent artists' careers. - Davies and the Kinks were the third British band (along with The WhoThe WhoThe Who are an English rock band formed in 1964 by Roger Daltrey , Pete Townshend , John Entwistle and Keith Moon . They became known for energetic live performances which often included instrument destruction...
) to be inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of FameRock and Roll Hall of FameThe Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and Museum is a museum located on the shore of Lake Erie in downtown Cleveland, Ohio, United States. It is dedicated to archiving the history of some of the best-known and most influential artists, producers, engineers and others who have, in some major way,...
in 1990, at which Davies was called "almost indisputably rock's most literate, witty and insightful songwriter." They were inducted into the UK Music Hall of FameUK Music Hall of FameThe UK Music Hall of Fame was an awards ceremony to honour musicians, of any nationality, for their lifetime contributions to music in the United Kingdom. The Hall of Fame started in 2004 with the induction of five founder members and five more members selected by a public televote, two from each...
in 2005. - On 3 October 2006, Davies was awarded the BMIBroadcast Music IncorporatedBroadcast Music, Inc. is one of three United States performing rights organizations, along with ASCAP and SESAC. It collects license fees on behalf of songwriters, composers, and music publishers and distributes them as royalties to those members whose works have been performed...
Icon Award for his "enduring influence on generations of music makers" at the 2006 annual BMI London Awards. - On 15 February 2009, The Mobius Best Off-West End Production in the UK for the musical Come Dancing.
- On 7 September 2010, Davies was awarded the Outstanding Achievement Award at the GQ Men Of The Year Awards.
- On 26 October 2010, Davies was presented with the Lifetime Achievement Award at his AVO SessionAvo Session BaselAVO SESSION Basel is an indoor music festival, which takes place every October/November in Basel, Switzerland. The festival features international as well as national artists of diverse music genres in an intimate club setting...
concert in Basel; the concert was televised internationally.
Solo discography
- For Kinks discography see The Kinks discographyThe Kinks discographyThe recording career of the English rock group the Kinks spanned more than 30 years between 1964 and 1996. In that time the group released 25 studio albums and a number of hit singles.-Studio albums:-Live and other albums:...
- Return to WaterlooReturn to WaterlooReturn to Waterloo is an album and hour-long film by Kinks' leader and chief songwriter Ray Davies. Several of the tracks on the album release were also available in near-identical form on The Kinks 1984 release Word of Mouth...
(1985) - The Storyteller (1998) (UK#105)
- Other People's LivesOther People's LivesOther People's Lives is an album by Kinks' leader and chief songwriter Ray Davies. It reached the top 40 in the UK charts in February 2006, and 122 in the USA top 200...
(2006) (UK#36) - Working Man's CaféWorking Man's CaféWorking Man's Café is a solo album released 22 October 2007 in the UK by Ray Davies, formerly lead singer and songwriter of The Kinks. A day earlier, on 21 October 2007, a 10 track promotional copy of the album was 'given away' with the Sunday Times newspaper in the UK...
(2007) (UK#179) - The Kinks Choral CollectionThe Kinks Choral CollectionThe Kinks Choral Collection is an album, released 15 June 2009 in the UK and 10 November 2009 in the US, by Ray Davies and the Crouch End Festival Chorus...
(2009) (UK#28) - Ray Davies - Collected (2009) (released 19 October 2009) (Compilation)
- See My FriendsSee My Friends (album)-Track listing:#"Better Things" - Ray Davies and Bruce Springsteen#"Celluloid Heroes" - Ray Davies, Jon Bon Jovi and Richie Sambora#"Days/This Time Tomorrow" - Ray Davies and Mumford & Sons#"A Long Way from Home" - Ray Davies, Lucinda Williams and The 88...
(2010) (UK#12)
- Return to Waterloo
Chart singles written by Davies
The following is a list of Davies compositions that were chart hits for artists other than The Kinks. (See The Kinks discographyThe Kinks discography
The recording career of the English rock group the Kinks spanned more than 30 years between 1964 and 1996. In that time the group released 25 studio albums and a number of hit singles.-Studio albums:-Live and other albums:...
for hits by The Kinks.)
| Year | Title | Artist | Chart positions | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| UK Singles Chart UK Singles Chart The UK Singles Chart is compiled by The Official Charts Company on behalf of the British record-industry. The full chart contains the top selling 200 singles in the United Kingdom based upon combined record sales and download numbers, though some media outlets only list the Top 40 or the Top 75 ... |
Canada | U.S. Hot 100 Billboard Hot 100 The Billboard Hot 100 is the United States music industry standard singles popularity chart issued weekly by Billboard magazine. Chart rankings are based on radio play and sales; the tracking-week for sales begins on Monday and ends on Sunday, while the radio play tracking-week runs from Wednesday... |
|||
| 1965 | "This Strange Effect" | Dave Berry Dave Berry (musician) Not to be confused with English 1960s singer Mike Berry.Dave Berry is a British pop singer and former teen idol of the 1960s... |
#37 | ||
| "Something Better Beginning" | The Honeycombs The Honeycombs The Honeycombs were an English beat/pop group, founded in 1963 in North London. The group had one chart-topping hit, the million selling "Have I the Right?", in 1964. After that song the interest in the group ebbed away, and they split up in late 1966... |
#39 | |||
| 1966 | "A House in the Country" | The Pretty Things The Pretty Things The Pretty Things are an English rock and roll band from London, who originally formed in 1963. They took their name from Bo Diddley's 1955 song "Pretty Thing" and, in their early days, were dubbed by the British press the "uglier cousins of the Rolling Stones". Their most commercially successful... |
#50 | ||
| "Dandy Dandy (song) "Dandy" is a 1966 song from The Kinks, appearing on their Face to Face album. It was released as a single in Continental Europe only, where it charted, reaching #1 in Germany, #2 in Belgium and #3 in the Netherlands... " |
Herman's Hermits Herman's Hermits Herman's Hermits are an English beat band, formed in Manchester in 1963 as Herman & The Hermits. The group's record producer, Mickie Most , emphasized a simple, non-threatening, clean-cut image, although the band originally played R&B numbers... |
#1 | #5 | ||
| 1978 | "You Really Got Me You Really Got Me "You Really Got Me" is a rock song written by Ray Davies and performed by his band, The Kinks. It was released on 4th August 1964 as the group's third single, and reached Number 1 on the UK singles chart the next month, remaining for two weeks... " |
Van Halen Van Halen Van Halen is an American hard rock band formed in Pasadena, California, in 1972. The band has enjoyed success since the release of its debut album, Van Halen, . As of 2007 Van Halen has sold 80 million albums worldwide and has had the most #1 hits on the Billboard Mainstream Rock chart... |
#49 | #36 | |
| "David Watts" | The Jam The Jam The Jam were an English punk rock/New Wave/mod revival band active during the late 1970s and early 1980s. They were formed in Woking, Surrey. While they shared the "angry young men" outlook and fast tempos of their punk rock contemporaries, The Jam wore smartly tailored suits rather than ripped... |
#25 | |||
| 1979 | "Stop Your Sobbing" | The Pretenders The Pretenders The Pretenders are an English rock band formed in Hereford, England in March 1978. The original band consisted of initiator and main songwriter Chrissie Hynde , James Honeyman-Scott , Pete Farndon , and Martin Chambers... |
#34 | #65 | |
| 1981 | "I Go To Sleep" | The Pretenders | #7 | ||
| 1988 | "All Day and All of the Night All Day and All of the Night "All Day and All of the Night" is a song by the British band The Kinks from 1964. It can be found on their debut album "Kinks". It reached #2 on the UK Singles Chart and #7 on Billboards United States chart in 1965.... " |
The Stranglers The Stranglers The Stranglers are an English punk/rock music group.Scoring some 23 UK top 40 singles and 17 UK top 40 albums to date in a career spanning five decades, the Stranglers are the longest-surviving and most "continuously successful" band to have originated in the UK punk scene of the mid to late 1970s... |
#7 | ||
| "Victoria Victoria (song) "Victoria" is a song written by Ray Davies of The Kinks. It is the opening track on the band's 1969 concept album Arthur .... " |
The Fall | #35 | |||
| 1989 | "Days Days (The Kinks song) Kirsty MacColl covered "Days" on her 1989 album Kite. It was released as a single and reached #12 on the UK singles chart, the same position achieved by The Kinks in 1969. It was re-released in 1995, charting much lower, only reaching #42 in the UK... " |
Kirsty MacColl Kirsty MacColl Kirsty Anna MacColl was an English singer-songwriter.MacColl scored several pop hits from the early 1980s to the early 1990s... |
#12 | ||
| 1997 | "Waterloo Sunset Waterloo Sunset Waterloo Sunset is a song by British rock band The Kinks. It was released as a single in 1967, and featured on their album Something Else by The Kinks... " |
Cathy Dennis Cathy Dennis Cathy Dennis is a British dance-oriented pop singer-songwriter, record producer and actress... |
#11 | ||
See also
- Songs written by Ray Davies
External links
- Official website
- The Kinks website
- Ray Davies at FacebookFacebookFacebook is a social networking service and website launched in February 2004, operated and privately owned by Facebook, Inc. , Facebook has more than 800 million active users. Users must register before using the site, after which they may create a personal profile, add other users as...
- Waterloo Sunset's Fine For Ray Davies, blog post about a performance Davies had with the Crouch End Festival Chorus near Waterloo Bridge for the release of his album The Kinks Choral Collection (includes pictures)