At one point in the 'Evening With' him, he left his guitar at the side of the stage and produced a black hardbacked book bulging with loose leaves. He raised it in the air and said defensively, 'Just one page -- ' and read out a piece of glorious glutinous schoolboyish reverie from his days of obscurity so long ago. OK, he probably knew from other nights that reading aloud wasn't what most of the people came for -- not when there was 'Tired of Waiting For You' and 'Harry Rag' to hear. I for one though would have liked more from that book of musings. (I'd have loved to have a good leaf through that volume as well -- was it his autobiography, X-Ray, minus the dust wrapper? And what were those interleavings? My interest would have been scholarly and characterised by an ever-lengthening proboscis afflicted with nostril-quiver.)
With drums, bass guitar and lead guitar at his back the lanky Londoner ('like two boards clapped together', Mum would have said) capered around and harangued the audience, clanging away at the heavy-amped power chords.
The classic hits went down well -- there were plenty to choose from, and 'Waterloo Sunset' didn't appear until the first encore. I was particularly touched by 'No Return' which he said Astrud Gilberto's daughter covered in a recent tribute album dedicated to his compositions. Davies tapped his fingers on the shoulder of his 'axe' while his Australian guitarist strummed at the filigree of cool, unassuming jazz chords.
Davies said he had actually forgotten the song ever existed when it was taken up for this tribute album. He'd written it at the age of nineteen and it seemed like yesterday. (There was another Davies lyric somewhere in that sentiment, I thought.)
There are so many favourites that of course could not have been accommodated. I for one would have liked to hear 'Phenomenal Cat' and 'Johnny Thunder' but they might come in next time.
There has always been an element of the Variety Show about Davies' work. The Kinks for one would never have been out of place on a bill which included dog acts and those who swallow pints of beer and play the trumpet at the same time. Amongst the new songs he played was 'Stand Up Comic'. For this one he invited us to visualise him in a gaudy get-up and a clown's make-up. It wasn't difficult, but to see him as one of the characters among the Bash Street mob in the Beano would have been easier still.
'Creatures of Little Faith' was an outstanding tune off the new album which, again, sorted well with the Dandy and Beano, nosh-up, pie & chips, glass of beer idea of the Kinks bloke as we know and love him.