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Xray (Book)
''X-Ray'' (1994) was Ray Davies' first major attempt to write prose outside his musical career as founding member of the British rock band the Kinks. Robert Polito calls it an "experimental non-fiction" and describes Davies as "a prose stylist of Nabokovian ambition". X-Ray The book, subtitled as an "unauthorized autobiography", employs a nameless 19-year-old first-person narrator hired by 'the Corporation' to seek out and interview a slightly demented geriatric version of Davies himself ten to twenty years after the time of the novel's publication. Thus, while technically an autobiography, the work has an unreliable narrator. In many ways a work of fiction, it reveals many factual details concerning the Kinks and other important figures of the swinging sixties, but tends to do so in a literary fashion. By employing this narrative device, Davies was able to shed some light on the life of the Kinks without resorting to the usual pedestrian 'he said/she said' mechanics often as ...
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Ray Davies
Sir Raymond Douglas Davies ( ; born 21 June 1944) is an English musician. He was the lead vocalist, rhythm guitarist and primary songwriter for the Rock music, rock band the Kinks, which he led, with his younger brother Dave Davies, Dave providing lead guitar and backing vocals, and both of them were the only consistent members during their existence. He has also acted in, directed and produced shows for theatre and television. Known for focusing his lyrics on rock bands, Culture of England, English culture, nostalgia and social satire, he is often referred to as the "Godfather of Britpop", though he disputes this title. He was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame as a member of the Kinks in 1990. After the dissolution of the Kinks in 1996, he embarked on a solo career. 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 el ...
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Pye Records
PYE or Pye Records is an independent British record label. It was first established in 1955 and played a major role in shaping rock 'n' roll and pop music history. The Pye name was dropped in 1980 due to trademark issues, after which it produced almost no music until the company name and trademark was acquired by the Scottish broadcaster and music producer Tony Currie (broadcaster), Tony Currie in September 2024. The new Pye Records has begun to release new albums on vinyl: ''Race the Sun'' from the Tony Currie Orchestra, conducted by Gavin Sutherland (conductor), Gavin Sutherland (principal guest conductor for the English National Ballet), and Callum Au. ''Race the Sun'' was conceived to pay tribute to the pop orchestras of the original Pye Records. The revived label has also released ''Harvest Gold'' by the London-based singer-songwriter Andrea Black. Pye Records was best known for artistes such as Lonnie Donegan (1956–1969), Petula Clark (1957–1971), The Searchers (band) ...
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1994 Non-fiction Books
The year 1994 was designated as the " International Year of the Family" and the "International Year of Sport and the Olympic Ideal" by the United Nations. In the Line Islands and Phoenix Islands of Kiribati, 1994 had only 364 days, omitting December 31. This was due to an adjustment of the International Date Line by the Kiribati government to bring all of its territories into the same calendar day. Events January * January 1 ** The North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) is established. ** Beginning of the Zapatista uprising in Mexico. * January 8 – '' Soyuz TM-18'': Valeri Polyakov begins his 437.7-day orbit of the Earth, eventually setting the world record for days spent in orbit. * January 11 – The Irish government announces the end of a 15-year broadcasting ban on the Provisional Irish Republican Army and its political arm Sinn Féin. * January 14 – U.S. President Bill Clinton and Russian President Boris Yeltsin sign the Kremlin accords, which stop th ...
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Music Autobiographies
Music is the arrangement of sound to create some combination of Musical form, form, harmony, melody, rhythm, or otherwise Musical expression, expressive content. Music is generally agreed to be a cultural universal that is present in all human societies. Definitions of music vary widely in substance and approach. While scholars agree that music is defined by a small number of elements of music, specific elements, there is no consensus as to what these necessary elements are. Music is often characterized as a highly versatile medium for expressing human creativity. Diverse activities are involved in the creation of music, and are often divided into categories of musical composition, composition, musical improvisation, improvisation, and performance. Music may be performed using a wide variety of musical instruments, including the human voice. It can also be composed, sequenced, or otherwise produced to be indirectly played mechanically or electronically, such as via a music box ...
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The Kinks
The Kinks were an English rock band formed in London in 1963 by brothers Ray Davies, Ray and Dave Davies, and Pete Quaife. They are regarded as one of the most influential rock bands of the 1960s. The band emerged during the height of British rhythm and blues and Merseybeat, and were briefly part of the British Invasion of the United States until their The Kinks' 1965 US tour#Ban, touring ban in 1965. Their third single, the Ray Davies-penned "You Really Got Me", became an international hit, topping the charts in the United Kingdom and reaching the Top 10 in the United States. The Kinks' music drew from a wide range of influences, including Rhythm and blues, American R&B and rock and roll initially, and later adopting British music hall, Folk music, folk, and country music, country. The band gained a reputation for reflecting English culture and lifestyle, fuelled by Ray Davies' observational and satirical lyricism, and made apparent in albums such as ''Face to Face (The Kinks ...
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Eric Weisbard
Eric Weisbard is an American music critic known for founding the Pop Conference, which for many years was hosted annually by the Museum of Pop Culture (formerly known as the EMP Museum), and which continues with other sponsors. He also organized the conference for many years. Career Weisbard serves as professor of American studies at the University of Alabama. He is also the author of both a 33⅓ book entry about ''Use Your Illusion'' and the 2014 book ''Top 40 Democracy: The Rival Mainstreams of American Music'', and a former editor for ''Spin''. With Craig Marks, he was also the co-editor of the ''Spin Alternative Record Guide'', and has also written for ''the Village Voice''. For ''Top 40 Democracy'', he received the 2015 Woody Guthrie Award from the International Association for the Study of Popular Music's United States branch. Personal life Weisbard is married to Ann Powers, a music critic for NPR National Public Radio (NPR) is an American public broadcasting orga ...
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Chrissie Hynde
Christine Ellen Hynde (born September 7, 1951) is an American-British musician. She is a founding member of the rock band the Pretenders and is the band's lead vocalist, guitarist, and primary songwriter; she and drummer Martin Chambers are the band's two remaining original members. Hynde is the only continuous member of the Pretenders, having appeared on every studio album released by the band. Hynde formed the Pretenders in Hereford, England, in 1978, with Pete Farndon, James Honeyman-Scott and Chambers. She has also recorded a number of songs with other musicians, including Frank Sinatra, Cher and UB40. Hynde recorded her first solo album, ''Stockholm'', in 2014. Hynde was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2005 as a member of the Pretenders. Early life Hynde was born in Akron, Ohio, United States, the daughter of a part-time secretary and a Yellow Pages manager, and grew up in nearby Cuyahoga Falls. She graduated from Firestone High School in Akron but stat ...
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Acts 1 & 2
The Acts of the Apostles (, ''Práxeis Apostólōn''; ) is the fifth book of the New Testament; it tells of the founding of the Christian Church and the spread of its message to the Roman Empire. Acts and the Gospel of Luke make up a two-part work, Luke–Acts, by the same anonymous author. Traditionally, the author is believed to be Luke the Evangelist, a doctor who travelled with Paul the Apostle. It is usually dated to around 80–90 AD, although some scholars suggest 110–120 AD.Tyson, Joseph B., (April 2011)"When and Why Was the Acts of the Apostles Written?" in: The Bible and Interpretation: "...A growing number of scholars prefer a late date for the composition of Acts, i.e., c. 110–120 CE. Three factors support such a date. First, Acts seems to be unknown before the last half of the second century. Second, compelling arguments can be made that the author of Acts was acquainted with some materials written by Josephus, who completed his Antiquities of the Jews in 93� ...
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John Lennon
John Winston Ono Lennon (born John Winston Lennon; 9 October 19408 December 1980) was an English singer-songwriter, musician and activist. He gained global fame as the founder, co-lead vocalist and rhythm guitarist of the Beatles. Lennon's Lennon–McCartney, songwriting partnership with Paul McCartney remains the most successful in history. Born in Liverpool, Lennon became involved in the Skiffle revival, skiffle craze as a teenager. In 1956, he formed the Quarrymen, which evolved into the Beatles in 1960. Lennon initially was the group's ''de facto'' leader, a role he gradually seemed to cede to McCartney, writing and co-writing songs with increasing innovation, including "Strawberry Fields Forever", which he later cited as his finest work with the band. Lennon soon expanded his work into other media by participating in numerous films, including ''How I Won the War'', and authoring ''In His Own Write'' and ''A Spaniard in the Works'', both collections of literary nonsense, ...
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British Invasion
The British Invasion was a cultural phenomenon of the mid-1960s, when Rock music, rock and pop music acts from the United Kingdom and other aspects of Culture of the United Kingdom, British culture became popular in the United States with significant influence on the rising "counterculture of the 1960s, counterculture" on both sides of the Atlantic Ocean. British pop and rock groups such as the Beatles, the Rolling Stones, Bee Gees, Gerry and the Pacemakers, the Who, the Kinks, the Zombies, Small Faces, the Dave Clark Five, the Spencer Davis Group, the Yardbirds, Them (band), Them, Manfred Mann, The Searchers (band), the Searchers, Billy J. Kramer, Billy J. Kramer and the Dakotas, Freddie and the Dreamers, the Hollies, Herman's Hermits, Chad and Jeremy, Peter and Gordon, the Animals, the Moody Blues, the Mindbenders, the Troggs, John Mayall & the Bluesbreakers, Cream (band), Cream, Traffic (band), Traffic, the Pretty Things, Pink Floyd, and Procol Harum, as well as solo singer ...
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Lola Versus Powerman And The Moneygoround, Part One
''Lola Versus Powerman and the Moneygoround, Part One'', commonly abbreviated to ''Lola Versus Powerman'', or simply ''Lola'', is the eighth studio album by the English rock band the Kinks, released on 27 November 1970. A concept album, it is a satirical appraisal of the music industry, including song publishers, unions, the press, accountants, business managers, and life on the road. It marked the group's expansion to a five-piece with the addition of keyboardist John Gosling. Although it appeared during a transitional period for the Kinks, ''Lola Versus Powerman'' was a success both critically and commercially for the group, charting in the Top 40 in America and helping restore them in the public eye, making it a "comeback" album. It contained two hit singles: " Lola", which reached the top 10 in the US and UK, and " Apeman", which peaked at number five in the UK. In October 2020, Sanctuary Records released a 3-disc 50th Anniversary set that includes 36 extra tracks that in ...
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Dave Davies
David Russell Gordon Davies ( '; born 3 February 1947) is an English guitarist, singer and songwriter. He was the lead guitarist and backing vocalist for the English rock band the Kinks, led by his older brother (and principal writer and singer) Ray, and the both of them were the only consistent members during their existence. Davies also sometimes undertook writing and/or lead vocals duties within the band, for example on songs such as " Death of a Clown", " Party Line", "Strangers" and "Rats". He has also embarked on a solo career, releasing several singles during the late 1960s and has since released eight solo albums. Davies is known for innovative electric guitar technique, specifically in being one of the first to use electric guitar distortion and exposing the effect to the mainstream. His signature distorted power chord riffs on songs would heavily influence future heavy metal and punk rock acts. He was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1990 as a member of ...
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