Ray Davies at the Royal Albert Hall

Ray Davies
Dead Flamingoes
Royal Albert Hall, 4 October 2012

I was surprised when Dead Flamingoes walked on stage, not only because I didn't know there was going to be a support act, but also because I recognised both members. Firstly, I had seen James Walbourne last year supporting Laura Cantrell and then Kami Thompson, the daughter of British folk legends Richard and Linda Thompson, I saw supporting Elvis Costello a couple of years back.
Of course my memory isn't that good because I had to look up my posts to help me recall their performances and after reading them I have to say I think they made the right choice teaming up. Not that they weren't good on their own but they are definitely that little bit more special as a duo and I'm going to make the obvious comparison here but it is very true, they did recall Kami's famous parents very much. The material was a mix of traditional folk numbers reinterpreted and singer-songwriter material, as heard on their debut EP, Habit. It works really well and the dynamic is actually pretty similar to Richard & Linda Thompson, with fine harmonies vocals and Walbourne's superb guitar playing. Definitely a nice addition to the line-up tonight.

It's funny that the last time Kinks legend Ray Davies was in London he was performing at the Olympics ceremony because tonight there's a similar vibe of celebration and an old-fashioned knees up complete with more than its fair share of singalongs. Of course the Kinks-adoring audience reveled in the chance to sing along with their hero on all their favourite songs and all these moments went down a treat but for me it was just a tiny bit cheesy. I know I sound like a grouch here but I've never been a lover of those big clapping moments and singalongs except in small doses and tonight Ray was keen to please his audience, even bringing back Waterloo Sunset for a second time solely so everybody could sing it instead of him. I know this was very enjoyable for all the older fans (and maybe a lot of the younger ones too) but just not so enjoyable for me, since I really wanted to hear Ray not his fans. 

The start of the show unfortunately was all about the singalongs, with Ray and his Irish guitarist Bill Shandy performing acoustic versions of such classics as Autumn Almanac, Dedicated Follower Of Fashion and Sunny Afternoon. While it was great to hear these songs live there's no doubt that it shows up the fact that Ray's voice isn't all it used to be, although at 68 it's still undeniably distinctive as ever. When the rest of the band finally showed up it was a bit of a relief if I've being honest and when he was rocking out on songs like 20th Century Man (which sounded pretty magnificent), Where Have All The Good Times Gone and 'Til The End Of The Day he was actually pretty fantastic. These songs had a punk rock edge (a genre The Kinks obviously inspired) and sat in stark contrast to the singalong numbers.

The highlight for many will probably be when he performed Waterloo Sunset and brought out a special guest:  Paul Weller.  Once again I'm going to sound ungrateful and grumpy, but I have never liked Paul Weller so to hear him singing half of maybe Davies most famous and iconic song wasn't the greatest treat for me. Still Ray seemed excited to have him there and certainly the audience were enthusiastic. So the best part for me wasn't the unexpected appearance of Weller but all the songs from maybe The Kinks' most underrated record, Muswell Hillbillies. Starting with the aforementioned 20th Century Man, we also got to hear great versions of the title track Muswell Hillbilly and my favourite Oklahoma, USA. 

It was obvious throughout it all though that Ray was having tremendous fun and when he came back for the encore he didn't want to leave the stage, returning several times and even apologising saying: "If there's anything we've forgotten, I'm sorry". After responding to a request for the classic Days he continued to give the audience what they wanted by playing even more favourites, offering up instantly recognisable hits such as You Really Got Me and Come Dancing.

Davies still has a lot of energy and loads of warmth and charm and people obviously adore him (which he certainly deserves). This meant there was a great atmosphere in the Royal Albert Hall, with people jumping up to dance by their seats and some even making a break for the front of the stage. But for me, although I'm glad to be able to say I've seen the legend that is Ray Davies live, I would have preferred more of the rock and less of the cheese.