It has been nearly twenty years since The Kinks toured the United States, a fact that I was reminded of when I saw a fan wearing a 1996 tour t-shirt at the recent Dave Davies show. Dave and his brother Ray, now touring separately, are offering up their unique take on the band’s legacy.
Of the two, Ray had the vocal chops, but it was Dave who added the exclamation points with his mastery of perfectly timed and placed power chords. If you had forgotten Dave’s contribution, he gave you plenty of opportunities to remember whose playing was behind the iconic Kinks songs like “All Day and All of The Night” or “You Really Got Me.”
As he has aged, Dave looks more like his brother Ray, but their stage persona is markedly different. Dave has an unassuming and humble charm that runs contrary to his powerhouse guitar style. He sings with less confidence, but with more emotion.
The crowd in attendance was a raucous bunch, especially at the end of the show when Davies brought out the heavy guns, firing off “Dead End Street,” “I’m Not Like Everybody Else” and “You Really Got Me.” They danced and pawed at his guitar and Davies seemed to reciprocate their adoration.
Dave dedicated “Young and Innocent Days” to his brother “Raymond,” while a solitary fan held up a sign that said “call your brother.” The lyrics “I see the lines across your face, time has gone and nothing ever can replace those great, so great young and innocent days” captured the mood of the evening.
Setlist:
I’m Not Like Everybody Else
I Need You
She’s Got Everything
Little Green Amp
Creeping Jean
Tired Of Waiting For You
See My Friends
Strangers
Flowers in the Rain
Young And Innocent Days
Death Of A Clown
The Healing Boy
Living on a Thin Line
All Day and All of the Night Dead End Street
Encore:
I’m Not Like Everybody Else
You Really Got Me
We would like to thank Tony Astran from the Seneca Niagara Casino for the credentials to review the show.
