45 Facts About Dave Davies

David Russell Gordon Davies was born on 3 February 1947 and is an English guitarist, singer and songwriter.

Dave Davies was the lead guitarist and backing vocalist for the English rock band the Kinks, which featured his elder brother Ray Davies.

Dave Davies was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1990 as a member of the Kinks.

Dave Davies is prolific with his innovative nature on the electric guitar, specifically in being one of the first to utilize electric guitar distortion and exposing the effect to the mainstream.

Dave Davies's signature distorted power chord riffs on songs would heavily influence future heavy metal and punk rock acts.

In 2003, Dave Davies was ranked 91st in Rolling Stone Magazine's list of the "100 Greatest Guitarists of All Time".

David Russell Gordon Dave Davies was born at 6 Denmark Terrace, Muswell Hill, North London.

Dave Davies was born the last of eight children, including six elder sisters and an elder brother, later bandmate Ray.

Dave Davies grew up playing skiffle, but soon bought an electric guitar and started experimenting with rock.

Activities in the Dave Davies household centred around this front room, culminating in large parties, where the parents would sing and play piano together.

Dave Davies had a turbulent relationship with Avory, one of the reasons behind the latter's departure from the band in the mid-1980s, although the two had been housemates together in the mid-1960s.

Ray and Dave Davies remained the only two steady members of the band.

Dave Davies played a largely subordinate role to his brother, often staying behind the scenes.

Dave Davies was solely responsible for the signature distorted power chord sound on the Kinks' first hit, "You Really Got Me".

Dave Davies achieved the sound by using a razor blade to slit the speaker cone on his Elpico amplifier, which he then ran through a larger Vox as a "pre-amp".

Dave Davies then fled from the scene and Davies was taken to Cardiff Royal Infirmary, where he received 16 stitches to the head.

In July 1967, Dave Davies released his first solo single, "Death of a Clown", credited entirely under his name as the recording artist, though it was co-written by his brother.

Pye Records, the Kinks' label, sensed potential sales in a solo release from the overlooked Dave Davies and issued "Death of a Clown" as his debut.

Dave Davies recorded two songs of his own for this LP, the acoustic "Strangers" and the hard-rocking "Rats".

Dave Davies later commented that he was glad to be back to more guitar-oriented songs, and he has listed Sleepwalker as one of his favourites.

Dave Davies saw the band through both success and failure, as they reached their commercial peak in the early 1980s.

At the invitation of Ray Dave Davies, Avory agreed to manage Konk Studios, where he served as a producer and occasional contributor on later Kinks albums.

Ray and Dave Davies reunited onstage to perform "You Really Got Me" at the Islington Assembly Hall in London on 18 December 2015.

Dave Davies went on to release Glamour, which charted at number 152.

Dave Davies brought in a back-up band to play with him on this record.

Dave Davies released his first true solo studio album in twenty years, Bug, in 2002.

Dave Davies's planned US tour in support of the release was postponed per doctor's advice.

Dave Davies undertook a short tour of the US to promote the album.

Dave Davies performed his first UK show in thirteen years in February 2014.

Dave Davies appeared on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon to promote the album in 2014.

Dave Davies has continued to tour to acclaimed reviews in the US as of 2018.

Davies has played a number of guitars over time, the most recognizable of which is his Gibson Flying V Davies bought it in 1965, and soon began appearing live and on TV performances with it.

Dave Davies was one of the few guitarists who played Flying Vs at the time.

Guitarists such as Lonnie Mack, Jimi Hendrix, Albert King and Dave Davies himself helped stir interest in the instrument, and it would eventually become one of the signature guitars of the heavy metal era.

Dave Davies has played several models of Gibson Les Pauls over time, including a "Goldtop" model with P90 pickups and a black '78 model.

In 1967, Dave Davies married Lisbet and they divorced in 1990.

From that marriage, Dave Davies has four sons: Martin, Simon, Christian, and Russell.

Dave Davies briefly reunited with Sue Sheehan in the late 90s.

Dave Davies published an autobiography, entitled Kink in 1996, in which he discussed his bisexuality and brief relationships with Long John Baldry and music producer Michael Aldred in the late 1960s.

Dave Davies wrote of the tense professional relationship with his brother over the Kinks' career.

Dave Davies has been vegetarian since the late 60s, and has said that he does not think meat is good for the nervous system.

On 30 June 2004, Dave Davies suffered a stroke while exiting a lift at Broadcasting House, where he had been promoting his album, Bug.

Dave Davies was taken to University College Hospital near Euston Square tube station.

Dave Davies contributed backing vocals to the songs "Front Room" and "King of Karaoke".

Dave Davies discussed his leaving of wives and children when relationships were outgrown.