Thank You for the Days: Celebrating Ray Davies' 70th Birthday ... and the Kinks

It's been a rather note-worthy few days for celebrating birthdays of some of rock 'n roll's greatest living songwriters.

On June 18, Paul McCartney turned 72, and Brian Wilson did likewise on June 20.

Today, June 21, another of my all-time favorites--Ray Davies, chief songwriter and singer of The Kinks--turns 70.

(BTW, though I have invariably called him Ray 'Day-veez' over the years, multiple sources in recent years corroborate that 'Day-viz' is more accurate.)

I hope he celebrates by further rekindling his relationship with brother Dave--the band's lead guitarist--and finally reuniting the Kinks after years of publicly longing to (with the caveat that original bassist Pete Quaife passed in 2010).

On April 9, 1983, a show by the Kinks at Chicago's UIC Pavilion was just the second concert I attended without a parent (Sammy Hagar was the first, about a month prior).

I would see the Kinks twice more, in 1987 and 1993, and since 2006 have seen Ray in concert five times, all featuring a heavy dose of Kinks Klassics.

Though I can't precisely cite what first got me into the Kinks in the early '80s--I was born in 1968--I'm pretty sure it wasn't Van Halen's cover of "You Really Got Me" even if it may have made chronological sense. The first Kinks record I owned was the double-live album, One for the Road.

I must have gotten this not long after its 1980 release, as I know I had it before 1981's Give the People What They Want.

AllMusic.com, which rates nine Kinks albums 5 or 4-1/2 stars (out of 5) only gives One for the Road 2-1/2.

Yet, while I have long since come to appreciate the depths of the Kinks' greatness far exceeds that live set, One for the Road was undoubtedly one of the cornerstone albums of my music-loving life.

Sure, I loved the early classics that album included--"You Really Got Me," "All Day and All of the Night," "Where Have All the Good Times Gone," "Till the End of the Day," "David Watts"--and, of course, "Lola," but I also relished such relatively recent (at the time) gems like "The Hard Way," "Catch Me Now I'm Falling," "Low Budget," "Wish I Could Fly Like Superman" and "Misfits."

Perhaps most of all, I loved--and still do--the ode to Golden Age Hollywood, "Celluloid Heroes," from which I first learned of Greta Garbo, Bette Davis, Rudolph Valentino and Bela Lugosi.

Whether in the late '60s when they released four straight 5-star (per AllMusic) masterpieces yet were banned from touring the U.S., to 1983 when even with Top 10 single "Come Dancing" they played a 9,000-seat arena in Chicago, to recent years when Ray Davies has repeatedly played but failed to fill the 3,880-seat Chicago Theatre, the Kinks have never enjoyed popularity like their fellow British invasion icons The Beatles, The Rolling Stones and The Who.

Paul McCartney and the Stones regularly fill outdoor stadiums around the world, and with just Townshend and Daltrey representing the original Who, their tours still sell out basketball arenas.

Though I would definitely attend a Kinks reunion show anywhere near me--besides seeing Ray, last year I saw a Dave Davies solo show--my suspicion is that if the Kinks did a U.S. reunion tour, they would be lucky to fill the UIC Pavilion again. And perhaps even if they brought along a reunited Jam, Smiths and Blur, the United Center arena might be about as big a place as they could sell out (and that's in Chicago; packing arenas in places like Louisville and Charlotte would be considerably harder).

Nonetheless, anyone I know who appreciates good music likes the Kinks. And most who like the Kinks love the Kinks. Though I own almost all of their albums on CD--including largely forgettable late career works like Think Visual and UK Jive--I would be considered a middling Kink-o-phile compared to some of my friends, and conceivably many among the KindaKinks.net online community.

Yet while they deserve the hardcore devotion of the truly Kinky, the band can be considered great on so many levels, even to relative neophytes.

Any overview of the Kinks usually begins with "You Really Got Me," one of the cornerstones of the British Invasion and often cited as the song that begat hard (power chord-driven) rock and even heavy metal. It was soon followed by the similar "All Day and All of the Night."

These songs definitely influenced Pete Townshend at the time (Chicago-born Shel Talmy was the producer of both the early Kinks and Who), and myriad others since.

Many people, perhaps around my age, quite likely came to know "Lola" as a staple of late '70s rock radio (though it was originally released in 1970) and paid attention to the band's subsequent singles and accompanying videos at the height of MTV: "Destroyer," "Come Dancing," "Do It Again," "Working at the Factory."

Those familiar with the amazing Kinks' 1966-1970 output may simply know some of the most prominent singles ("Sunny Afternoon," "A Well Respected Man," "Till the End of the Day," "Tired of Waiting For You"), those a bit deeper ("I'm Not Like Everybody Else," "Waterloo Sunset," "Apeman," "Dedicated Follower of Fashion"), even more so ("See My Friends," "Set Me Free," "David Watts," "Dead End Street," "Death of a Clown," the latter written by Dave), select full albums (perhaps Something Else and The Kinks are the Village Green Preservation Society) or, among the truly avid, every song on all of them.

Those who don't know the Kinks of the '60s are less likely to know their '70s oeuvre, but there are numerous gems like "20th Century Man," "Celluloid Heroes," "Sweet Lady Genevieve," "Juke Box Music," "Live Life," "Low Budget," "Catch Me Now I'm Falling," "Wish I Could Fly Like (Superman)" and undoubtedly several songs that I don't know or appreciate as much as I should.

The Kinks never had a #1 hit on the Billboard singles charts in the U.S., and only five songs in the Top 10. The highest any of their studio albums charted in America was 1979's Low Budget at #11.

So we can see it as though the Kinks were never as popular as they deserved to be--and therefore Ray Davies not as widely regarded as he merits as one rock's greatest geniuses--or that the band likely holds the highest fan reverence to mass popularity ratio of all-time, save for perhaps the Ramones (whose best-selling album hit #38).

While I won't dig for examples now, I've long seen the Kinks cited by bands and musicians as being among their foremost influences.

And even if there is some credence to the Kinks being both too Anglo and literate in the subject matter of their songs to become huge in America, a similar thread clearly ran through--and inspired--The Move, The Jam, The Smiths and Blur, who are also among my favorites though never substantively popular in America.

So I salute Ray Davies on his 70th birthday, not just because he is a great and (sadly, today, just somewhat) famous musician, whom I have loved for 3/4 of my life.

It is not hyperbole to say that very few musicians have enriched my existence to a similar extent.

So Happy Birthday, Ray.

And thank you for the "Days," Mr. Davies.

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Since the Kinks are strangely under-represented on Spotify, I have put together this YouTube playlist of 20 of my favorite Kinks songs. It should not be construed as a ranking, as I tried to select songs representative of the band's various periods. The video below runs through all 20 clips, but if you would like to see individual videos--or just the list of my selections--you can see the playlist contents here.

While I enjoy Ray's 2006/07 solo albums, Other People's Lives and Working Man's Cafe, I did not include any of the songs here, but the links will take you to the full albums on Spotify. Also worthwhile are the Kinks' duets and choral albums Ray put together in recent years. And while I have not yet delved into his 2013 autobiography Americana, one of the more remarkable aspects of his amazing life is his surviving being shot in New Orleans in early 2004.

Enjoy the songs below--and some rather historic videos, though a few are audio-only--and if you like what you hear, by all means, kontinue the exploration. 

With Concertful of Kinks Klassics, Ray Davies Puts on a Clinic

Concert Review
Ray Davies
with The 88 (opening & backing)
November 11, 2011
Chicago Theatre, Chicago
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Though still rather spry at age 67, Ray Davies isn't doing a lot he hasn't already done. At least in concert. But that's OK.

In terms of recorded output, in recent years Davies has been "re-doing" many of his classic Kinks tunes, first with a choral collection and then a compilation duets. He's also put out, in 2006 & 2007, a pair of respectable solo albums.

But on his current tour, which brought him to the Chicago Theatre on Friday night, there was no chorus, no famous guests and just one song from his solo work.

Which left his bread & butter: a boatload of great old Kinks songs, some performed acoustically with a second guitarist named Bill Shanley and the rest backed by a rock band from L.A. called The 88, who also performed a show opening set of their own material.

There are few rock canons that I love any more than that of the Kinks, so while Davies isn't doing anything particularly novel in coming through town every year or two--I've now seen him five times in the last 5 years--and rifling through a bunch of his chestnuts, I'll gladly come out to hear him. And while each of his shows has been stellar, this one was as rewarding as any, as without a new album to promote, Ray not only played more Kinks klassics, he also mined his old band's discography a bit deeper.

After an enjoyable set by the 88, Davies came onstage accompanied only by Shanley, and played "I Need You," "I'm Not Like Everybodÿ Else," "Sunny Afternoon," "Dedicated Follower of Fashion," "Waterloo Sunset," "See My Friends" and "Apeman." Not a bad way to start.

In referencing his collection of duets, called See My Friends, he mentioned a collaboration he had done with Lucinda Williams on a lesser-known Kinks song called "A Long Way From Home," which he then played. The 88 came onstage to back him on a rollicking version of 20th Century Man, and they--along with Shanley--rolled through more Kinks treasures, like "This Is Where I Belong," "Where Have All the Good Times Gone," "Till The End of the Day" and "All Day And All of the Night."

But what I appreciated just as much was when Ray reached beyond his 60s output and into the 70s, for "Misfits," "Celluloid Heroes" and "Full Moon," a song from 1977''s Sleepwalker album that I didn't know, but still sounded great. Of course, a buzz-saw rendition of "You Really Got Me" was also wonderful, but in opening his encores with 1979's "Low Budget," Ray again re-itereated the timelessness of his best material, whatever its original time. And though at some shows on the tour, it seems he's been skipping "Lola," I was certainly glad he came out for a second encore and played that one. (Full setlist on Setlist.fm)

I realize I don't have much to say about this show beyond what was played. But when one of your favorite singer/songwriters plays 2 hours of entirely wonderful music, there isn't a whole lot to complain about. Sure, I could always name 10 other songs that would have been "nice to hear". And though I don't think the public is truly demanding it, a Kinks reunion could be nice to see. But sometimes you needn't worry about Something Else and just enjoy being Face to Face with a living legend doing what he does.

A Fun Film For Dedicated Followers of The Kinks, But Not A Heroic Piece of Celluloid - Movie Review: Do It Again

Movie Review

Do It Again
a documentary written by & starring Geoff Edgers about his quest to reunite The Kinks; directed by Robert Patton-Spruill
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I would like to presume that among most rock historians and avid fans, the Mt. Rushmore of British Invasion bands would include The Beatles, The Rolling Stones, The Who and The Kinks (yes, I know it'd be hard to fit all the members on a mountainside and that The Who didn't surface until '65, a trifle later than the others).

But ever since introducing themselves to American audiences in 1964 with the great 1-2 punch of "You Really Got Me" and "All Day and All the Night," The Kinks have lagged far behind their brethren in popularity, despite a comparable output of phenomenal, critically-revered music (as their AllMusic.com discography attests).

I became a big Kinks fan in the early '80s and had the pleasure of seeing them three times ('83, '87, '93) while never quite grasping why they were relegated to playing small arenas and half-filled outdoor amphitheaters as The Stones, Who and Paul McCartney continued to fill football stadiums. I don't recall ever hearing of an official Kinks break-up, but whatever hiatus they may have initially been on soon became permanent, as they stopped touring and putting out albums. And when I heard that guitarist Dave Davies suffered a stroke in 2004, after his brother Ray--the head Kink--got shot on the streets of New Orleans (but fortunately wasn't critically wounded ), I pretty much presumed The Kinks would never be whole again.

But despite putting out a pair of stellar albums over the past five years, better in fact than his latter-day Kinks output, and touring solo (see my review of his stellar Chicago show in March), Ray Davies had recently been rather vocal about his desire to reunite the Kinks. Yet while this Rolling Stone piece from Sept. 2008 spoke to the possibility, it became apparent that the band, for one reason or another, just wasn't getting back together. At least not the four original members, who were all still alive until bassist Pete Quaife died this past June.

So when I heard about a new movie called Do It Again, billed as "one man's quest to reunite The Kinks," it sounded a day late and a dollar short. But I still had to see it, for any movie about the Kinks can't be all that bad and I had read some pretty positive reviews. The Chicago International Movies and Music Festival (CIMMfest.org)--which seems to largely be an event taking place next April--held a showing last night at the Metro, long one of Chicago best live music venues.

My friend Dave and I arrived for the only known showing in the Chicagoland area--a region of over 8 million people--and found a total of five fellow Kinks fanatics already there. The audience swelled to about 18 once the film began, but somewhat debunking the movie's premise, or at least its stated purpose, it doesn't appear that the general public is really clamoring for a Kinks reunion. Ray Davies didn't sell out the 2,500 capacity Riviera in March and my guess is The Kinks today might draw at best 10,000 fans in Chicago--make it a festival with a reunited Jam, Smiths & Blur and perhaps 20,000 folks might join me--so imagine the crowds when The Kinks would hit Kansas City and Des Moines.

The film, somewhat properly a 'Low Budget' affair,' was written by and centers around Geoff Edgers, an arts writer for the Boston Globe, who decides it's his mission to try to reunite the Kinks. I applaud his passion to shed greater light on one of the most criminally under-appreciated bands in history, and overall the movie was enjoyable. But it did seem that:

A) It was more about Edgers wanting to make a documentary about trying to reunite the Kinks than showcasing any real legitimate aim, expectation or reason to bring them back together.

B) Its only real appeal is to hardcore Kinks fans, unlike great documentaries that are compelling even to those uninitiated to its subject matter. I really can't recommend this film to non-Kinks aficionados, not even as a way to generate new fans, as a decent Behind The Music episode would tell anyone considerably more about the Kinks and their music.

C) Hearty Kinks fans like me were left with more of a distaste for Ray's personality and his treatment of Dave over the years than I really wanted to know about.

So without a truly viable or even novel mission--as Ray had beaten him to the punch in terms of pining for a Kinks reunion but being unable to make it happen--and negligible appeal for anyone other than ardent Kinkophiles--as the mid-life crisis, bickering wife, job troubles in this economy, seeking a sense of purpose story Edgers tells about himself has been better told elsewhere--what we are left with is a movie of Edgers conducting interviews with people who generally have great things to say about the Kinks.

Some of this is a lot of fun. Interviews with musicians like Paul Weller (of the Jam), Warren Zanes (Del Fuegos), Peter Buck (R.E.M.), Robyn Hitchcock (the Soft Boys), Sting (the Police) and singer-actress Zooey Deschanel--who is included because she was seen having a large, Kinkless record collection in Almost Famous--shed some enjoyable insight, as do talks with early Kinks producer Shel Talmy, record mogul Clive Davis and a smattering of original and replacement Kinks (I won't give away who chooses to participate in the film or Edgers' attempts to bring them together).

Buck, along with R.E.M. touring sideman Scott McCaughey, makes a good point about how R.E.M. has always functioned as a democracy with shared songwriting credits, but that bands in which one person is the clear leader and chief songwriter invariably run into the same problems most autocracies do.

And while Edgers' attempts to get many of his interview subjects to sing Kinks songs with him comes off a bit obnoxious--especially when he was told in advance of their unwillingness--it is great when he gets Sting to play a Kinks Klassic, and Buck/McCaughey's sweet take on "Get Back into Line" redeems the previous scene in which Edgers--seemingly out of nowhere--is seen complaining about his union after having to accept a pay cut.

I don't think I'll be giving away the movie's ending to say that as of this writing, The Kinks have not reunited. And given Quaife's passing, the original lineup obviously never will. While I would love to Ray and Dave back onstage again, the truth is that it doesn't seem like that great, or necessary, an idea. The Kinks had a 30+ year run, the last decade of which was clearly their worst. Dave (davedavies.com) seems to relatively healthy, happy and active while Ray (raydavies.info) is making great music on his own and plays plenty of Kinks songs when he tours solo. His newest project, See My Friends, a collection of duets on Kinks tunes with the likes of Bruce Springsteen, Metallica, Jackson Browne, Jon Bon Jovi and Billy Corgan, sounds intriguing. And as he once so eloquently sang: 

I know you've got a lot of good things happening up ahead
The past is gone it's all been said
So here's to what the future brings,
I know tomorrow you'll find better things

The Kinks will always be a @@@@@, Absolutely Phenomenal band. The movie, Do It Again, is @@@, Good But Not Great. See it if you're a Kinks fan--if you can find it; for now it's sporadically playing festivals and isn't yet available on DVD, although the screening I saw was just a DVD, not celluloid--but probably skip it if you're not.

Although you should be. And since you're here, these are just a few of my favorite Kinks songs: