The British Empire is dead - Long live Ray Davies.

Last night in Portland, Ray Davies played at a lovely venue called The Crystal Ballroom. Yours truly was first in line (a first for me), with the lovely Djinn (see A Dizzy Life), soon followed by a guy from New Jersey who appeared to be the biggest Kinks fan in the USA. He and his girl had travelled from the east coast, through Canada and down to Portland following every stop on the tour. For anyone who doesn't remember, The Kinks were one of the first British Invasion bands of the early sixties with hits like "You Really Got Me", "All Day and All Of The Night". Later they became one of the more entertaining bands of the early seventies with occasional hits such as "Lola" and "Celluloid Heroes." Anyway, Ray was the singer and songwriter, along with his brother Dave on guitar. Over the years Ray Davies has written an absurd number of brilliant songs, many of them performed at this show. He is without a doubt in the upper pantheon of songwriters from any era. Witness this clip of him performing one of his best songs.