X-RAY. - Softcover

The shocking and edgy memoirs of Ray Davies, a dedicated enemy of fashion and the lead singer of The Kinks, is the must-read rock book of the year. Subversively brilliant, this one-of-a-kind rock autobiography, ingeniously styled as a biography, is written by a nameless, faceless writer hired by an Orwellian entity called "the Corporation" to capture the essence of Ray Davies, lead singer and song writer of The Kinks and one of the greatest rock and rollers of all time. "R.D". tells the story of his life - or does he? Tales of London and the rock scene of the swinging Sixties evolve in a labrynthine and thoroughly engrossing fashion as the Kinks frontman reveals his life and times to the young writer, often seemingly passing his stories directly into the writer's consciousness. Carnaby street, "Top of the Pops", The Cavern Club, the Beatles, The Rolling Stones, the Who and other fixtures of the times fade in and out of this compelling narrative. Part autobiography, part social history, part psychological thriller, this elusive and daring book exposes rock stardom as the heaven, hell, and purgatory it is.

Ray Davies was born and still lives in north London. Together with his younger brother, Dave, he launched The Kinks in 1964. Their first number- one single, "You Really Got Me," was followed by thirty albums and a series of hit singles, including "Waterloo Sunset" and "Lola."