As far as I am concerned, Ray Davies is the best songwriter of my lifetime. His body of work is amazing and he is still going strong well into his Sixties. He may not have achieved the same level of notoriety of his peers over the years, but I challenge anyone who is a fan of rock music to sit down and listen to the vast collection of songs created by The Kinks and his solo work and not come away impressed. Pete Townshend has been vocal with his praise over the years and Bruce Springsteen and John Bon Jovi are avid fans. He recently released a collaborative album called See My Friends in which many top artists (past and present) covered his hits with him.