Lola Versus Powerman and the Moneygoround, Part One, commonly abbreviated to Lola Versus Powerman, or simply Lola, is the eighth studio album by the English rock band the Kinks, released on 27 November 1970. A concept album, it is a satirical appraisal of the music industry, including song publishers, unions, the press, accountants, business managers, and life on the road. and helping restore them in the public eye, making it a "comeback" album. It contained two hit singles: "Lola", which reached the top 10 in the US and UK, and "Apeman", which peaked at number five in the UK. was lifted in 1969, so the group's management arranged a North American tour. However, members of the band fell ill, and the tour was shuffled, The down time between the tours allowed Ray Davies, lead singer and songwriter of the group, to develop the band's next single, "Lola".

The Kinks returned to England to start work on their new LP in spring 1970. The group used Morgan Studios, an independent studio in Willesden, London, which was a change for them.

Keyboardist John Gosling was added to the Kinks' lineup in May. He auditioned on the final backing master track for "Lola", and was hired soon after. He was initially taken on solely for their upcoming US tour, but his post evolved into a more permanent position soon after. Gosling would remain with the band until 1978, departing after the release of Misfits. Recording for the LP was completed by October, and it was mixed throughout the remainder of the month. Lola Versus Powerman and the Moneygoround, Part One was released on 27 November 1970.

For "Lola", Ray Davies overdubbed the trademarked word "Coca-Cola" with the generic "cherry cola" for the mono single release, as product placement rules meant the BBC (being a public service broadcaster) would not have played it.

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Lola Versus Powerman was well-received throughout the British music press. A review in New Musical Express called "[Ray] Davies ... one of the finest writers in contemporary rock", and praised the record's British styles and originality. Melody Makers interpretation of Lola Versus Powerman was Davies "taking a cheeky nibble" at the pop music business; they continued that "The music's pure Kinks simplicity—but it works."

The album received generally positive reviews in the US. Rolling Stone magazine commented that it was "the best Kinks album yet". Village Voice critic Robert Christgau commented that "Lola" had been an "astounding single", but gave Lola Versus Powerman a lukewarm review, saying that "the melodies are still there, but in this context they sound corny rather than plaintive."

Modern critical opinion towards Lola Versus Powerman is generally positive, albeit slightly less so. Initially given a positive review by Rolling Stone magazine in 1971, The Rolling Stone Album Guide rated it 3<sup>1/2</sup> out of 5 stars in its 1992 printing—however, the fourth edition of the Guide (published in 2004) ranked it at only 2 stars. Stephen Thomas Erlewine of AllMusic gave the album a positive review, writing that "Davies never really delivers a cohesive story, but the record holds together because it's one of his strongest sets of songs." It also peaked at No. 7 on the Record World charts.

Tracks from Lola Versus Powerman have been featured in multiple films across several languages. "This Time Tomorrow", "Strangers", and "Powerman" were featured in the 2007 Wes Anderson film The Darjeeling Limited; these tracks were later included on the accompanying soundtrack album. In France, "This Time Tomorrow" appeared in the 2005 Philippe Garrel film Les amants réguliers. "Apeman" has been featured in multiple films, including Mondovino (2004) and Harold Ramis' Club Paradise (1986).

Ray Davies adapted the album into an autobiographical drama, with the help of co-writer Paul Sirett, including new versions of songs from the album. This was broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in December 2021.

Part Two

Before the release of Lola Versus Powerman and the Moneygoround, Part One the band discussed the possibility of it being released as a double album. According to Doug Hinman's book, The Kinks: All Day and All of the Night, a sequel album was planned for release sometime in 1971, but was ultimately scrapped and the band opted to record Muswell Hillbillies instead. Due to the fact that an official title to the follow-up album was never revealed, Hinman refers to the album simply as Part Two and suggests that preliminary sessions may have occurred in late 1970/early 1971. It is unclear what songs would have appeared on this album, and it is unknown if any songs were even recorded, with the possible exception of some unreleased backing tracks. Almost certainly no songs were completed or mastered.

Ray Davies addressed the question of the unfinished sequel in a 2014 Uncut interview: <blockquote>Lola Versus Powerman… was good versus evil, obviously, and in Volume Two, I sketched out how you become your worst nightmare, how the good man goes so far he becomes the evil person he always fought against. But we had to do another tour, we had the RCA deal, and we had other recording projects that we had to work towards, and it got lost, unfortunately.</blockquote>

Reissues

Lola was reissued on CD in 1998 with three bonus tracks.

In 2014 the album was reissued on CD as a deluxe edition with seven previously unreleased bonus tracks and was paired with Percy as Lola versus Powerman and The Moneygoround and Percy two CD set.

Track listing

Notes

  • Some CD editions separate the first 40 seconds of "The Contenders" as its own track titled "Introduction"

Personnel

According to the band biographer Doug Hinman:

The Kinks

  • Ray Davies&nbsp;– lead vocals; acoustic, electric and resonator guitars; harmonica , producer
  • Dave Davies&nbsp;– backing vocals; electric and acoustic guitars; lead vocals
  • John Dalton&nbsp;– bass guitar
  • Mick Avory&nbsp;– drums
  • John Gosling&nbsp;– baby grand piano, electric piano, Hammond organ

Additional musician

  • Ken Jonesmaracas

Additional production

  • Mike Bobakengineer

Charts

Weekly charts

{| class="wikitable"

!|Chart (1970)

!|Peak<br />position

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|Australia (Kent Music Report)