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Ray Davies Is Not Like Everybody Else

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By CURTIS ROSS, The Tampa Tribune

Published: February 21, 2008

Ray Davies has pined for the good old days since he was in his 20s. Now in his 60s, his age has finally caught up with his mindset, and "Working Man's Cafe" finds Davies fully settled into his role as grumpy old man.

OK, that's a bit of a cheap shot. His arguments are rooted in compassion and humanity. If Davies is none too impressed with modern life and conveniences, he's eloquent about what these marvels have cost us.

The title track isn't just about the disappearance of small diners under a flood of Starbucks and chain restaurants. It's about the disappearance of a way of life: working people with pride and modest, attainable goals since trampled by consumerism.

Opening track "Vietnam Cowboys" takes swipes at globalization and outsourcing, backed by twanging Spaghetti Western guitars. It's less striking than the title track, one suspects, because Davies doesn't have the same personal stake in the subject.

Davies is at his most powerful when he takes things personally.

"Morphine Song" and "No One Listen" both address Davies' 2004 shooting after chasing two men who stole his girlfriend's purse. The latter song rails against the bureaucrats who he says botched the case. (Charges against the gunman were dropped when Davies didn't appear for hearings on two occasions. He says he was given insufficient notice.)

On "Morphine Song," Davies sketches the characters he observed in the New Orleans hospital where he recovered. Sad and funny, often at the same time, the portraits are unflinchingly honest but sympathetic as well.

If there's anything to love about the modern world, it's that Davies never will tire of carping about it. Thankfully.

Download this: "Morphine Song"

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