Ray Davies
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CBE | |
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Background information | |
Birth name | Raymond Douglas Davies |
Born | London, England | 21 June 1944
Genres | |
Occupation(s) |
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Instrument(s) |
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Years active | 1960–present |
Formerly of | The Kinks |
Website | raydavies |
Sir Raymond Douglas Davies
Early years
Raymond Douglas Davies was born at 6 Denmark Terrace in the Fortis Green area of London on 21 June 1944. He is the seventh of eight children born to working-class parents, including six elder sisters and younger brother Dave Davies. His father, Frederick George Davies,[5] was a slaughterhouse worker.[6] Frederick liked to hang out in pubs and was considered a ladies' man. He was born in Islington and his registered birth name was Frederick George Kelly.[7]
Frederick's father, Henry Kelly, was a
When Davies was still a small child, one of his older sisters became a star of the dance halls, and soon had a child out of wedlock by an African man, an undocumented immigrant who subsequently disappeared from her life. The child, a daughter, was ultimately raised by Ray's mother.
1960s–1980s
The Kinks' early years
Davies was an art student at
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.[17]
The Kinks' early recordings of 1964 ranged from covers of
However, by 1965, this raucous, hard-driving early style had gradually given way to the softer and more introspective sound of "Tired of Waiting for You", "Nothin' in the World Can Stop Me Worryin' 'Bout That Girl", "Set Me Free", "I Go to Sleep" and "Ring the Bells". With the eerie, droning "See My Friends"—inspired by the untimely death of the Davies brothers' older sister Rene in June 1957—the band began to show signs of expanding their musical palette even further. A rare foray into early psychedelic rock, "See My Friends" is credited by Jonathan Bellman as the first Western pop song to integrate Indian raga sounds—released six months before the Beatles' "Norwegian Wood (This Bird Has Flown)".[18]
Mid-period (1965–1975)
Beginning with "
By late 1966, Davies was addressing the bleakness of life at the lower end of the social spectrum: released together as the complementary A-B sides of a
The Kinks have been called "the most adamantly British of the Brit Invasion bands"
Davies is often at his most affecting when he sings of giving up worldly ambition for the simple rewards of love and domesticity ("This is Where I Belong", 1966; "Two Sisters", 1967; "The Way Love Used to Be", 1971; "Sweet Lady Genevieve", 1973; "You Make It All Worthwhile", 1974), or when he extols the consolations of friendship and memory ("Waterloo Sunset", 1967; "Days", 1968; "Do You Remember Walter?", 1968; "Picture Book", 1968; "Young and Innocent Days", 1969; "Moments", 1971; "Schooldays", 1975). [citation needed]Yet another perennial Ray Davies theme is the championing of individualistic personalities and lifestyles ("I'm Not Like Everybody Else", 1966; "Johnny Thunder", 1968; "Monica", 1968; "Lola", 1970; "Celluloid Heroes", 1972; "Where Are They Now?", 1973; "Sitting in the Midday Sun", 1973). On his 1967 song "Waterloo Sunset", the singer finds a fleeting sense of contentment in the midst of urban drabness and solitude.
Davies's mid-period work for the Kinks also showed signs of an emerging social conscience. For example, "Holiday in Waikiki" (1966) deplored the commercialization of a once unspoiled
A definitive testament to Davies's reputation as a songwriter of insight, empathy and wit can be heard on the Kinks' landmark 1969 album
The Kinks followed up Arthur with Lola Versus Powerman and the Moneygoround, Part One (1970), a satirical take on the travails of the recording industry. This album proved to be another critical achievement as well as a commercial hit, spawning "Lola", their first US Top Ten single since "Tired of Waiting for You" in 1965. Lola Versus Powerman and the Moneygoround, Part One would also prove to be the band's final album before signing with RCA Records. This period on the RCA label (1971–75) produced Muswell Hillbillies, Everybody's in Show-Biz, Preservation Act 1 and Act 2, Soap Opera and Schoolboys in Disgrace.
Later sound (1976–1984)
When the Kinks changed record labels from
By the early 80s, the Kinks revived their commercial fortunes considerably by adopting a much more mainstream
I write songs because I get angry, and now I'm at the stage where it's not good enough to brush it off with humour.
1990s–present
Aside from the lengthy Kinks discography, Davies has released seven solo albums: the 1985 release Return to Waterloo (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, The Kinks Choral Collection in June 2009, Americana in April 2017, and its sequel, Our Country: Americana Act II in June 2018.
In 1986, he contributed the track "Quiet Life" to the soundtrack of the Julien Temple film Absolute Beginners that is a musical film adapted from Colin MacInnes' book of the same name about life in late 1950s London. The song was released as a single. Davies appeared in the film, in which he also sang "Quiet Life".
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.[23]
Davies published his "unauthorised autobiography",
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.[25] The shooting came less than a week after Davies was named a Commander of the Order of the British Empire by Queen Elizabeth II.
In 2005, Davies released The Tourist, a four-song
A choral album,
In October 2009, Davies performed "All Day and All of the Night" with Metallica at the 25th Anniversary Rock & Roll Hall of Fame Concert.[citation needed]
Davies was a judge for the 3rd (in 2004) and 7th (in 2008) annual Independent Music Awards to support independent artists' careers.[30]
Davies played at the Glastonbury Festival 2010 where he dedicated several songs to the late Kinks' bassist, Pete Quaife.
A collaborations album, See My Friends, was released in November 2010 with a US release to follow in early 2011.[31]
2011 also marked Davies's return to
On 18 December 2015, Ray joined his brother Dave for an encore at London's Islington Assembly Hall. The two performed "You Really Got Me", marking the first time in nearly 20 years that the brothers had appeared and performed together.[33]
In April 2017, Davies released the album Americana. Based on his experiences in the US it follows on from the short DVD Americana — a work in progress (found on the deluxe CD Working Man's Cafe from 2007), and his biographical book Americana from 2013. A second volume Our Country: Americana Act II was released in June 2018. For his backing band on Americana Davies chose The Jayhawks, an alt-country/country-rock band from Minnesota.[34][35]
He was knighted in the 2017 New Year Honours for services to the arts.[36]
Musicals
In 1981, Davies collaborated with Barrie Keeffe in writing his first stage musical, Chorus Girls, which opened at the Theatre Royal Stratford East, London,[37] starring Marc Sinden, and had a supporting cast of Michael Elphick, Anita Dobson, Lesley Manville, Kate Williams and Charlotte Cornwell. It was directed by Adrian Shergold, the choreography was by Charles Augins, and Jim Rodford played bass as part of the theatre's "house band".[citation needed]
Davies wrote songs for a musical version of
Davies's musical Come Dancing, based partly on his 1983 hit single with 20 new songs, ran at the Theatre Royal Stratford East, London in September–November 2008.[39]
Awards
- In 1990, Davies and the Kinks were the third British band (along with the Who) to be inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, at which Davies was called "almost indisputably rock's most literate, witty and insightful songwriter."[41]
- In 1999, "You Really Got Me" was inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame.[42]
- Davies was appointed Commander of the Order of the British Empire (CBE) for services to Music in the 2004 New Year Honours.[43]
- On 22 June 2004, Davies won the Award, which recognises "an artist whose career has been defined by his ability to pen classic material on a consistent basis."
- In 2005, The Kinks were inducted into the UK Music Hall of Fame.[44]
- On 3 October 2006, Davies was awarded the BMI Icon Award for his "enduring influence on generations of music makers" at the 2006 annual BMI London Awards.[45]
- On 15 February 2009, The Mobius Best Off-West End Production in the UK for the musical Come Dancing.[46]
- On 7 September 2010, Davies was awarded the Outstanding Achievement Award at the GQ Men of the Year Awards.[47]
- On 26 October 2010, Davies was presented with the Lifetime Achievement Award at his AVO Session concert in Basel; the concert was televised internationally.[48]
- On 12 June 2014, Davies was inducted into the American Songwriters Hall of Fame.[49]
- On 12 April 2015, Davies won an Olivier Award for Outstanding Musical Achievement for his West End musical Sunny Afternoon, which garnered 3 additional Olivier's.[50]
- In August 2015, Davies was voted 27th greatest songwriter of all time by Rolling Stone Magazine in their "100 Greatest Songwriters of All Time" list.[51]
- On 3 October 2016, Davies was awarded with a BASCA Gold Badge award for his unique contribution to music.[52]
- Davies was knighted in the 2017 New Year Honours for services to the arts.[53]
Personal life
Davies has been married three times and has four daughters.
In 1964, he married Rasa Didzpetris. The couple had two daughters, Louisa and Victoria.[13][54]
He changed his legal name by deed poll to "Raymond Douglas" for five years, which allowed him anonymity for his second marriage in 1974 to Yvonne Gunner.[13][55] The couple had no children.
In the 1980s, Davies had a relationship with Chrissie Hynde of The Pretenders. The couple had a daughter Natalie Rae Hynde.[56]
His third marriage was to Irish ballet dancer Patricia Crosbie, with whom he had a daughter named Eva.[57]
In January 2004, Davies was shot in the leg while chasing thieves who had snatched his companion's purse as they walked through the French Quarter of New Orleans.[58] A man was arrested, but the charges were dropped because Davies had already returned to London and did not come back to New Orleans for the trial.[59]
In June 2011, Davies' doctor ordered him to stay at home and rest for six months after blood clots were discovered in his lungs.[60]
Solo discography
Solo albums
- Return to Waterloo (1985)
- The Storyteller (1998) (UK No. 105)[61]
- Other People's Lives (2006) (UK No. 36, US No. 122)
- Working Man's Café (2007) (UK No. 179, US No. 140)
- Americana (2017) (UK No. 15, US No. 79)
- Our Country: Americana Act II (2018) (UK No. 58)
Collaborative albums
- The Kinks Choral Collection (2009) (UK No. 28) (with the Crouch End Festival Chorus)
- See My Friends (2010) (UK No. 12)
Compilation albums
- Collected (2009)
- Waterloo Sunset — The Very Best of The Kinks and Ray Davies (2012) (UK No. 14)
Chart singles written by Davies
The following is a list of Davies compositions that were chart hits for artists other than The Kinks i.e. covers. Some were originally hits for The Kinks themselves. (See The Kinks discography for hits by The Kinks.)
Year | Title | Artist | Chart positions | ||
---|---|---|---|---|---|
UK Singles Chart[62]
|
Canada | US Hot 100 | |||
1965 | "This Strange Effect" | Dave Berry | 37 | ||
"Something Better Beginning" | The Honeycombs | 39 | |||
1966 | "A House in the Country" | The Pretty Things
|
50 | ||
"Dandy" | Herman's Hermits | 1 | 5 | ||
1978 | "You Really Got Me" | Van Halen | 49 | 36 | |
"David Watts" | The Jam | 25 | |||
1979 | "Stop Your Sobbing" | The Pretenders | 34 | 65 | |
1981 | "I Go To Sleep" | The Pretenders | 7 | ||
1988 | "All Day and All of the Night" | The Stranglers | 7 | ||
"Victoria" | The Fall | 35 | |||
1989 | "Days" | Kirsty MacColl | 12 | ||
1997 | "Waterloo Sunset" | Cathy Dennis | 11 | ||
2007 | "The Village Green Preservation Society" | Kate Rusby | 102 |
References
- ^ "Ray Davies". The Leonard Lopate Show. 9 November 2009. Event occurs at 1:32–1:40. Retrieved 23 December 2009. "[Davies:] Think of it as 'viz', v-i-z".
- ^ Mendelsohn, John (19 December 1969). "Kinks". Los Angeles Free Press. Vol. 6, no. 283. p. 38.
Ray Davies (pronounced his last name, by the way, as if it had no 'e') ...
- ISBN 978-0-85712-991-8.
- ^ "Ray Davies: 'I'm not the godfather of Britpop … more a concerned uncle'". the Guardian. 16 July 2015. Retrieved 29 October 2021.
- ^ England & Wales, Civil Registration Birth Index, 1837-1915, England & Wales, Civil Registration Death Index, 1916-2007, UK, Burial and Cremation Index, 1576-2014
- ^ a b c London, England, Church of England Marriages and Banns, 1754-1936
- ^ England & Wales, Civil Registration Birth Index, 1837-1915
- ^ 1911 England Census
- ^ 1911 England Census, 1901 England Census, 1891 England Census
- ^ England & Wales, Civil Registration Death Index, 1916-2007, London, England, Church of England Marriages and Banns, 1754-1936
- ^ Johnny Rogan, Ray Davies: a complicated life, Vintage Books, 2015, p. 7-8.
- ^ Johnny Rogan, Ray Davies : a complicated life, Vintage books, 2015, p. 15.
- ^ a b c d e "Ray Davies on understanding hipsters, not talking to Pete Townshend – and why he fled Tony Blair's Britain". www.newstatesman.com. 12 April 2017. Retrieved 27 June 2021.
- ISBN 0-7513-0393-3.
- ^ "Ray Davies by Johnny Rogan review – the 'complicated life' of the Kinks frontman". the Guardian. 11 March 2015. Retrieved 27 June 2021.
- ^ ISBN 9781135867959.
- ^ "The Band". The Kinks Official Website. Archived from the original on 13 June 2017. Retrieved 9 February 2018.
- ^ Jonathan Bellman. The Exotic in Western Music. Lebanon, New Hampshire. 1998.
- ^ a b Paul Evans The Rolling Stone Album Guide, Straight Arrow Publishers, 1992, p. 403
- ^ Kitts, Thomas. Ray Davies: Not Like Everybody Else, p.131.
- ^ "About | Konk Studios | London Recording Studio". konk-studios. Retrieved 27 June 2021.
- ^ Tobler, John (1992). NME Rock 'N' Roll Years (1st ed.). London: Reed International Books Ltd. p. 315. CN 5585.
- ^ "More names join UK Music Hall of Fame". NME. 18 October 2005. Archived from the original on 11 August 2018.
- ISBN 9780140145274. Retrieved 13 June 2014.
- ^ "Kinks star shot in New Orleans". CNN. 5 January 2004. Retrieved 24 May 2007.
- ^ Denselow, Robin (3 October 2005). "Ray Davies on why he's come home to London". The Guardian. Retrieved 27 November 2018.
- ^ "Thanksgiving Day – Ray Davies". AllMusic. Retrieved 27 November 2018.
- ^ "Ray Davies duets with Chrissie Hynde". Retrieved 11 November 2009.
- ^ "Postcard From London Songfacts". Songfacts.com. 11 December 2009. Retrieved 9 June 2010.
- ^ "Past Judges". Independent Music Awards. Archived from the original on 13 July 2011. Retrieved 9 June 2010.
- ^ Jurgensen, John (10 June 2011). "Well-Respected Man". Online.wsj.com. Retrieved 2 November 2011.
- ^ Forest, Peter. "Ray Davies spotlights his deep Kinks catalog at Voodoo Fest". NOLA.com. Retrieved 2 November 2011.
- ^ "The Kinks' Ray and Dave Davies Reunite After 20 Years to Play "You Really Got Me"". Retrieved 4 January 2016.
- ^ Hunter-Tilney, Ludovic (21 April 2017). "Ray Davies: Americana — 'sedate roots-rock'". Financial Times. Archived from the original on 10 December 2022. Retrieved 23 April 2017.
- ^ Savage, Mark (23 April 2017). "To Ray Davies, America is a 'beautiful but dangerous' place". BBC News. Retrieved 23 April 2017.
- ^ "No. 61803". The London Gazette (Supplement). 31 December 2016. p. N2.
- ^ Smith, Alistair (16 July 2008). "Kinks frontman Davies makes musical debut". The Stage. Retrieved 9 June 2010.
- ^ Neu. "Kinks.de". Kinks.de. Retrieved 9 June 2010.
- ^ "Ray Davies turns Kinks classic into Come Dancing the musical". Evening Standard. Retrieved 7 April 2018.
- ^ Sunny Afternoon; retrieved 27 October 2014.
- ^ Varga, George (21 July 2012). "On the record with rock legend Ray Davies". The San Diego Union-Tribune. Retrieved 29 January 2018.
- ^ "GRAMMY Hall Of Fame". GRAMMY.com. 18 October 2010. Retrieved 7 April 2018.
- ^ United Kingdom: "No. 57155". The London Gazette (1st supplement). 31 December 2003. p. 7.
- ^ "BBC - Radio 2 - UK Music Hall Of Fame 2005". Bbc.co.uk. Retrieved 7 April 2018.
- ^ "Kinks Frontman Ray Davies Takes Top Honor at BMI London Awards". bmi.com. 3 October 2006. Retrieved 15 September 2010.
- ^ "The Talented Ray Davies Part Three - McKenna Musical Jubilee". McKenna Musical Jubilee. 21 September 2017. Retrieved 3 January 2018.
- ^ "The winners". Gq-magazine.co.uk. 29 March 2012. Retrieved 4 September 2017.
- ^ "BALOISE SESSION Awards". Baloise Session. Retrieved 8 February 2018.
- ^ "Ray Davies, Donovan inducted into Songwriters Hall of Fame". Retrieved 4 September 2017.
- ^ "Olivier Winners 2015". Olivier Awards. Retrieved 8 February 2018.
- ^ "100 Greatest Songwriters of All Time". Retrieved 15 December 2021.
- ^ "BASCA Gold Badge Award winners revealed". Musicweek.com. Retrieved 29 June 2018.
- ^ "No. 61803". The London Gazette (Supplement). 31 December 2016. p. N2.
- ^ "Marriages Dec 1964". FreeBMD. 31 December 2016. Retrieved 27 March 2018.
- ^ "Marriages Dec 1974". FreeBMD. 31 December 2016. Retrieved 27 March 2018.
- ^ "Bluffer's guide to Ray Davies". WalesOnline. 18 May 2007. Retrieved 20 November 2021.
- ^ "This much I know: Patricia Crosbie, Ballet mistress". Irish Examiner. 26 January 2014. Retrieved 27 March 2018.
- ^ "Kinks star shot in New Orleans", CNN, 5 January 2004
- ^ "The Ray Davies Case Comes Back in a Typically Frustrating Way - New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival". Archived from the original on 12 October 2019. Retrieved 12 October 2019.
- ^ Jurgensen, John (10 June 2011). "Ray Davies Talks About Coming Shows and Albums". The Wall Street Journal. Retrieved 27 March 2018.
- ^ Erlewine, Stephen. "The Storyteller - Ray Davies". AllMusic. Retrieved 20 June 2021.
- ISBN 1-904994-10-5.
- Sources
- Kitts, Thomas. Ray Davies, Not Like Everybody Else, 302 pp., Routledge Pub., 2008. ISBN 0-415-97769-X(paper)
Further reading
- Polito, Robert. Bits of Me Scattered Everywhere: Ray Davies and the Kinks, pp. 119–144 in Eric Weisbard, ed., This is Pop, Harvard University Press, 2004. ISBN 0-674-01344-1(paper)
- Rogan, Johnny. Ray Davies : a complicated life, Vintage, 2015.
External links
- Official website
- The Kinks website
- Ray Davies discography at Discogs