{"product_id":"x-ray-the-unauthorized-autobiography-a-speculative-memoir-of-the-kinks-and-the-death-of-the-sixties-9781585679393","title":"X-Ray: The Unauthorized Autobiography: A Speculative Memoir of the Kinks and the Death of the Sixties","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003eA work of high-concept genius--the most original rock memoir ever written.\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eSir Ray Davies--the mastermind behind The Kinks and the poet laureate of British rock--doesn't do \"traditional.\" In this subversively brilliant, one-of-a-kind memoir, the man who gave us \"Waterloo Sunset\" and \"Lola\" deconstructs the very idea of the rock autobiography.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003ci\u003eX-Ray\u003c\/i\u003e is not a standard autobiography. It is a psychological interrogation disguised as a rock-and-roll odyssey. Through the \"X-Ray\" lens of a narrator you can't quite trust, Davies deconstructs his own myth--from the jagged, distorted riffs of \"You Really Got Me\" to the pastoral melancholy of \u003ci\u003eThe Village Green Preservation Society\u003c\/i\u003e.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eThis one-of-a-kind rock memoir captures the friction between Ray and his brother Dave, the crushing weight of the music industry \"Moneygoround,\" and the melancholic genius of a man who was always \u003ci\u003eNot Like Everybody Else\u003c\/i\u003e. For fans of David Bowie, Bob Dylan, and literary rock history, \u003ci\u003eX-Ray\u003c\/i\u003e remains a gold standard of the genre.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eIn a chillingly familiar near-future, a global \"Corporation\" controls the narrative of history. Their latest assignment for a young, nameless investigator: extract the truth from R.D.D.--an aging, reclusive cultural icon known to the world as Ray Davies.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eAs the investigator probes deeper, the lines between the 1960s London \"Swinging\" scene and a sterile, controlled future begin to blur. This is a story of two brothers at war, a band banned from the very country they helped define, and a songwriter who predicted the corporate takeover of the human soul decades before it happened.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003eWhy this is essential reading: \u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cul\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\n\u003cb\u003eThe Original Rock Meta-Memoir: \u003c\/b\u003e Experience the experimental narrative structure that predated the modern \"post-truth\" era.\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\n\u003cb\u003eA Prophet of the Ordinary: \u003c\/b\u003e Revisit Davies's uncanny social commentary on British identity, suburban isolation, and the \"Moneygoround\" of the music industry.\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\n\u003cb\u003eBeyond the Music: \u003c\/b\u003e A literary achievement that's ripe for rediscovery, proving that Ray Davies was always \u003ci\u003eNot Like Everybody Else\u003c\/i\u003e.\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003c\/ul\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003e\"In an age when everybody's in show business and writes a lousy book about it, Ray Davies is to be honored for not doing the usual thing.\" --\u003c\/b\u003e\u003ci\u003e\u003cb\u003eRolling Stone\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eAbout the Author\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003eRay Davies was born and still lives in north London. Together with his younger brother, Dave, he launched The Kinks in 1964. Their first number- one single, \"You Really Got Me,\" was followed by thirty albums and a series of hit singles, including \"Waterloo Sunset\" and \"Lola.\"\u003cbr\u003e","brand":"Harry N. Abrams","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":52158625906962,"sku":"9781585679393","price":15.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0831\/4771\/8930\/files\/img_337dfb00-a4ef-4c0d-bc39-69f38568afef.jpg?v=1774970571","url":"https:\/\/surprise-castle.myshopify.com\/products\/x-ray-the-unauthorized-autobiography-a-speculative-memoir-of-the-kinks-and-the-death-of-the-sixties-9781585679393","provider":"Surprise Castle","version":"1.0","type":"link"}