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Ray Davies
Nov. 9th, 2011 08:00 pmI got tickets for the show only several days prior. I had been meaning to decide whether to see this show for quite some time. It was only the last minute that I decided we really must see it. It was certainly worth the measly thirty-five bucks. Anyway, we were sitting near the back row of the floor. Not a horrible place to be at the Pabst, since it's not that big.
The opening act was The 88. They didn't get a warm response when they took the stage, but they very quickly won over the audience. They got quite enthusiastic applause. The energetic LA band played straight-ahead rock music with a variety influences, including a dose of British pop.
Ray took the stage with a guitar and guitarist Bill Shanly. The two sat on stools, and opened with two songs I didn't recognize. I assume they were Davies solo songs. At the end of each song, Ray gave a curious mix of "hey, how is everybody!" and distraction by poor sound. By the end of the third song he had to give up and take a break of a few minutes while they got it sorted out. He was not happy. It was interesting, because he was talking to the crowd while looking offstage and gesturing. He's been performing for over 45 years, so I couldn't tell if he was just yelling out to the crowd by rote while being distracted, or if he was multitasking and really was in contact with the audience.
Speaking of performing for over 45 years, Ray is 67 years old. He moves like it. Kinda stiff. He can't dance, but he can actually jump around pretty well. At least, he did that once or twice. But I guess he hurt his back when he was young, so I guess I'll give him a pass on that. A lot of his audience interaction was pretty stiff, too. The same old lines, always doing that "day-oh!" thing.
And speaking of old, the audience was pretty gray. Pretty vocal, though. They didn't need much encouragement to sing along. Or shout things at Ray. Not usually a bad thing, though. They were having a good time.
Predictably, Ray played mostly Kinks songs. (Speaking of old,) I was a little surprised at the number of early Kinks songs. This Is Where I Belong, David Watts (sing along: Fa fa fa fa fa fa fa! Lead sung by Keith of The 88), Dedicated Follower of Fashion (sing along: "Oh yes he is!"), Apeman, Waterloo Sunset, See My Friend, Sunny Afternoon (third song), Victoria, A Long Way from Home (recorded with Lucinda Williams on his latest collaboration album), I'm Not Like Everybody Else and probably a few more that I'm forgetting. About halfway through, The 88 joined him onstage for "Till the End of the Day". This got everyone on their feet. They followed it up with "All Day And All of The Night". Later in the evening came "You Really Got Me". I think the audience sat for all the other songs but those three.
Ray also played a song that seemed to be from the last decade. He did play a few of the Kinks' mid-career hits, including Low Budget, Celluloid Heroes, Misfits and... shoot, what was it... Sleepwalker? Speaking of "Misfits," a few people in the audience were pretty annoying. So Ray introduced the song and dedicated it to his fans. He and Shanly did an acoustic, down-tempo and heartfelt version, and I was listening to the quiet song, contemplating the lyrics anew, when the people next to me started talking to each other, loudly. Not screaming loud, but given the quiet song of the moment, I'm sure half the theater could hear them. And it wasn't so bad that they were talking, but that it was the most inane thing I've ever heard. Why did you bother to open your mouths?! Anyway...
The college age girl next to us (on the other side) really got into those early songs. As I said, the audience in general didn't need much encouragement to join in. Some songs were sing-alongs all the way though. "Apeman" was notably such. I guess it's an easy one to sing - I know I sing it all the time. Everyone had a good time. The 88 gave the show a lot of energy, and Bill Shanly was an excellent player.
And he didn't play "Lola". I'm fine with that.
The opening act was The 88. They didn't get a warm response when they took the stage, but they very quickly won over the audience. They got quite enthusiastic applause. The energetic LA band played straight-ahead rock music with a variety influences, including a dose of British pop.
Ray took the stage with a guitar and guitarist Bill Shanly. The two sat on stools, and opened with two songs I didn't recognize. I assume they were Davies solo songs. At the end of each song, Ray gave a curious mix of "hey, how is everybody!" and distraction by poor sound. By the end of the third song he had to give up and take a break of a few minutes while they got it sorted out. He was not happy. It was interesting, because he was talking to the crowd while looking offstage and gesturing. He's been performing for over 45 years, so I couldn't tell if he was just yelling out to the crowd by rote while being distracted, or if he was multitasking and really was in contact with the audience.
Speaking of performing for over 45 years, Ray is 67 years old. He moves like it. Kinda stiff. He can't dance, but he can actually jump around pretty well. At least, he did that once or twice. But I guess he hurt his back when he was young, so I guess I'll give him a pass on that. A lot of his audience interaction was pretty stiff, too. The same old lines, always doing that "day-oh!" thing.
And speaking of old, the audience was pretty gray. Pretty vocal, though. They didn't need much encouragement to sing along. Or shout things at Ray. Not usually a bad thing, though. They were having a good time.
Predictably, Ray played mostly Kinks songs. (Speaking of old,) I was a little surprised at the number of early Kinks songs. This Is Where I Belong, David Watts (sing along: Fa fa fa fa fa fa fa! Lead sung by Keith of The 88), Dedicated Follower of Fashion (sing along: "Oh yes he is!"), Apeman, Waterloo Sunset, See My Friend, Sunny Afternoon (third song), Victoria, A Long Way from Home (recorded with Lucinda Williams on his latest collaboration album), I'm Not Like Everybody Else and probably a few more that I'm forgetting. About halfway through, The 88 joined him onstage for "Till the End of the Day". This got everyone on their feet. They followed it up with "All Day And All of The Night". Later in the evening came "You Really Got Me". I think the audience sat for all the other songs but those three.
Ray also played a song that seemed to be from the last decade. He did play a few of the Kinks' mid-career hits, including Low Budget, Celluloid Heroes, Misfits and... shoot, what was it... Sleepwalker? Speaking of "Misfits," a few people in the audience were pretty annoying. So Ray introduced the song and dedicated it to his fans. He and Shanly did an acoustic, down-tempo and heartfelt version, and I was listening to the quiet song, contemplating the lyrics anew, when the people next to me started talking to each other, loudly. Not screaming loud, but given the quiet song of the moment, I'm sure half the theater could hear them. And it wasn't so bad that they were talking, but that it was the most inane thing I've ever heard. Why did you bother to open your mouths?! Anyway...
The college age girl next to us (on the other side) really got into those early songs. As I said, the audience in general didn't need much encouragement to join in. Some songs were sing-alongs all the way though. "Apeman" was notably such. I guess it's an easy one to sing - I know I sing it all the time. Everyone had a good time. The 88 gave the show a lot of energy, and Bill Shanly was an excellent player.
And he didn't play "Lola". I'm fine with that.
