X-Ray: The Unauthorized Autobiography
by Ray Davies
List Price:
Our Price: $4.75
You Save: $11.20 (70%)
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
Category: Book
See more book details and other editions
Book Summary Information
Author: Ray DaviesEdition: Paperback
Audio: English (Original Language); English (Unknown); English (Published)
Published: 2007-10-30
ISBN: 1585679399
Number of pages: 432
Publisher: Overlook TP
Product features:
- ISBN13: 9781585679393
- Condition: NEW
- Notes: Brand New from Publisher. No Remainder Mark.
- Click here to view our Condition Guide and Shipping Prices
Book Reviews of X-Ray: The Unauthorized Autobiography
Book Review: A must-read for Kinks and Davies fans, and an excellent autobiography
Summary: 5 Stars
Here is a book that turned out to be every bit as good as I hoped it would be. This is the story of one fascinating and complex man, Raymond Douglas Davies: rebel, oddball, head case, and perhaps a pop music genius as well. He begins by introducing a technique that is simultaneously distancing and revealing - the story is not being told by Davies, but by a young writer hired by "The Corporation" to do a biography of him. Davies gets to play with the idea of himself viewing himself, of Ray Davies the pop star, who is, in fact, a memory, a creation. He then tells his story thru a series of mock interviews, in which he by turns intimidates, toys with, and bares his heart to the imaginary biographer.
The focus here is on the 1960s and The Kinks's rise to stardom. The story flows pretty much chronologically. Davies grew up in a large, working class family in Muswell Hill, North London. One of the many interesting ironies about R.D. is the fact that he, one of the more cosmopolitan and cynical songwriters of his time, was very closely tied to his old neighborhood and his clan for much of his life. As a kid, he was both a competitive athlete and a creative type. At first The Kinks were mostly unknown, but things began to change for them when Davies began to discover his songwriting talent.
The book is full of marvelous anecdotes of life on the road and encounters with other pop musicians, but it did take a toll on the author. He frankly describes having some sort of depressive breakdown in the middle of their most popular and musically successful period. R.D. is a remarkably complex guy. He married young and fathered a child, but the marriage did not last. He probably was/is bisexual, yet he dances around the issue. He seems to view himself as a morose, solitary artistic type. Surprisingly, he says very little about his playing and singing and writing. Whatever you can say about him, I think he was, and still is, a wonderful writer of songs, and now, of autobiographical prose. He succeeds in portraying himself sincerely as a dramatic character, primarily the star of some cynical comedy, but with touches of tragedy and insight into the human condition. Bravo!
Summary of X-Ray: The Unauthorized Autobiography
This subversively brilliant rock memoir, ingeniously styled as a biography, is the work of a nameless, faceless writer hired by an Orwellian entity called "the Corporation" to capture the essence of Ray Davies, lead singer and songwriter of The Kinks and one of the greatest rock 'n' rollers of all time. Tales of London and the swinging Sixties rock scene evolve as R.D. reveals his life and times to the writer, often 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 period fade in and out of this compelling narrative. Part memoir, part social history, part psychological thriller, this elusive and daring book exposes rock stardom as the heaven, hell, and purgatory that it is.Rock Books
Book Subjects
- Arts & Photography
- Audiobooks on Cassette
- Audiobooks on CD
- Biographies & Memoirs
- Business & Investing
- Children's Books
- Comics & Graphic Novels
- Computers & Internet
- Cooking, Food & Wine
- e-Books
- Engineering
- Entertainment
- Gay & Lesbian
- Health, Mind & Body
- History
- Home & Garden
- Horror
- Law
- Literature & Fiction
- Medicine
- Mystery & Thrillers
- Nonfiction
- Outdoors & Nature
- Parenting & Families
- Professional & Technical
- Reference
- Religion & Spirituality
- Romance
- Science
- Science Fiction & Fantasy
- Sports
- Teens
- Travel
Most talked about in Rock Books
Scar Tissueby Anthony Kiedis, Larry Sloman
Hyperion; Published: 2005-10-19; Paperback; Book
Best price: $5.80
Price in other shops:
Let It Bleed: The Rolling Stones, Altamont, and the End of the Sixtiesby Ethan A. Russell
Springboard Press; Published: 2009-11-02; Hardcover; Book
Best price: $19.25
Price in other shops:
The Beatles Anthologyby Beatles, John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison, Ringo Starr
Chronicle Books; Published: 2000-10-05; Hardcover; Book
Best price: $37.80
Price in other shops:
The Heroin Diaries: A Year in the Life of a Shattered Rock Starby Nikki Sixx
VH1; Published: 2008-10-28; Paperback; Book
Best price: $10.80
Price in other shops:
Motley Crue: The Dirt - Confessions of the World's Most Notorious Rock Bandby Tommy Lee, Vince Neil, Mick Mars, Nikki Sixx, Neil Strauss
It Books; Published: 2002-07-01; Paperback; Book
Best price: $9.80
Price in other shops:
Travelin' Man: On the Road and Behind the Scenes With Bob Seger (Painted Turtle)by Tom Weschler, Gary Graff
Wayne State University Press; Published: 2009-10-15; Hardcover; Book
Best price: $16.34
Price in other shops:
Miss O'Dell: My Hard Days and Long Nights with The Beatles, The Stones, Bob Dylan, Eric Clapton, and the Women They Lovedby Chris O'Dell
Touchstone; Published: 2009-10-06; Hardcover; Book
Best price: $8.98
Price in other shops:
Paul McCartney: A Lifeby Peter A Carlin
Touchstone; Published: 2009-11-03; Hardcover; Book
Best price: $14.45
Price in other shops:
Big Man: Real Life & Tall Talesby Clarence Clemons, Don Reo
Grand Central Publishing; Published: 2009-10-21; Hardcover; Book
Best price: $13.48
Price in other shops:
Bon Jovi: When We Were Beautifulby Bon Jovi
Collins Design; Published: 2009-11-01; Hardcover; Book
Best price: $16.02
Price in other shops:
Similar Books and other products
The Kinks: A Step-by-Step Breakdown of the Guitar Styles and Techniques of Dave and Ray Davies (Guitar Signature Licks)by Dave Rubin, The Kinks
Hal Leonard Corporation; Published: 2002-08-01; Paperback; Book
Best price: $14.42
Price in other shops:
The Kinks: You Really Got MeKoch International; Release date: 2008-03-04; DVD
Best price: $18.40
Price in other shops:
Kinksby Neville Marten, Jeff Hudson
Bobcat Books; Published: 2007-09-30; Paperback; Book
Best price: $10.90
Price in other shops:
Ray Davies - Working Man's Cafe (Ltd Ed Deluxe CD/ DVD Combo)Dig; Release date: 2008-02-19; Music CD
Best price: $13.40
Price in other shops:
Ray Davies & the Crouch End Festival Chorus - The Kinks Choral CollectionRelease date: 2009-11-10; Music CD
Best price: $10.49
Price in other shops:
The Kinks - Arthur - Or The Decline And Fall Of The British EmpireKINKS; Release date: 1990-05-02; Music CD
Best price: $6.72
Price in other shops:
The Kinks' The Village Green Preservation Society (Thirty Three and a Third series)by Andy Miller
Continuum; Published: 2003-10; Paperback; Book
Best price: $7.84
Price in other shops:
The Kinks: All Day and All of the Night: Day by Day Concerts, Recordings, and Broadcasts, 1961-1996by Doug Hinman, The Kinks
Backbeat Books; Published: 2004-01-01; Paperback; Book
Best price: $14.54
Price in other shops:
Ray Davies - The StorytellerRelease date: 2006-02-07; Music CD
Best price: $14.99
Price in other shops:
Ray Davies: Not Like Everybody Elseby Thomas Kitts
Routledge; Published: 2007-11-28; Paperback; Book
Best price: $20.81
Price in other shops: