Lyrical: “Lola” (Part One)

“Lola” is one of the Kinks’ most famous and enduring songs, written by Ray Davies and released as a single on June 12, 1970, from the album Lola Versus Powerman and the Moneygoround, Part One. Musically, it combines rock, pop, acoustic guitar, electric guitar, piano, bass and drums, while its memorable chorus helped make it an international hit.

The song tells the story of a young man who meets Lola in a London nightclub, where she dances with him, buys him champagne and gradually reveals that she is not quite what he initially assumed. The lyrics deliberately blur gender roles, especially in the lines about “girls will be boys and boys will be girls,” making “Lola” an unusually daring mainstream pop song for 1970.

Ray Davies later explained that the song was inspired partly by stories he had heard about encounters in London clubs and by the colorful characters he observed in nightlife. Rather than presenting Lola simply as a joke, the song plays with confusion, attraction and identity, leaving the narrator fascinated by her despite his surprise. There were several versions and edits: the original recording used “Coca-Cola,” but the BBC objected to the commercial reference,

so Davies flew from New York to London during the Kinks’ American tour to change it to “cherry cola.” Some radio stations also edited the song because of its sexual and gender implications. “Lola” became one of the Kinks’ biggest commercial successes, reaching No. 2 in Britain and No. 9 on the Billboard Hot 100, while reaching No. 1 in several other countries. It was later included on numerous Kinks compilations and live recordings, and the song has been covered by various artists, including the Raincoats and Andy Taylor.

“Lola” has also received major critical recognition, appearing on Rolling Stone’s lists of the greatest songs of all time, and remains a defining example of Ray Davies’ talent for combining catchy pop music with witty, provocative storytelling.

“Copacabana (At the Copa)” is one of Barry Manilow’s signature songs, written by Manilow with lyricists Bruce Sussman and Jack Feldman and released in 1978 as the third single from his album Even Now. Unlike Manilow’s better-known ballads, it is an upbeat, disco-influenced story song with Latin-flavored percussion, strings, horns and a highly theatrical arrangement.

The song tells the tragic story of Lola, a Copacabana showgirl, her boyfriend Tony, and Rico, a wealthy gangster who becomes interested in Lola. After Rico makes an unwanted advance toward her, Tony confronts him, leading to a violent fight and a fatal shooting; thirty years later, Lola has lost her former glamour and is still sitting at the Copa, apparently unable to escape the tragedy of her past.

Manilow has described “Copacabana” as a novelty or storytelling song rather than something he initially expected to become a major hit, but listeners responded enthusiastically to its combination of catchy dance music and melodramatic narrative. The song reached No. 8 on the Billboard Hot 100, No. 6 on the Adult Contemporary chart and No. 22 in the United Kingdom, making it one of Manilow’s biggest international successes.

The original album recording runs nearly six minutes, while a shorter radio edit was released for single play; extended and remix versions have also appeared over the years. The song became so popular that it inspired the 1985 television musical Copacabana, starring Manilow and Annette O’Toole, with additional songs written specifically for the production. “Copacabana”

also appeared in the 1978 film Foul Play and has been featured in numerous television programs and films. Its greatest recognition came at the 21st Annual Grammy Awards in 1979, when Manilow won the Grammy for Best Male Pop Vocal Performance, his first and, according to the Recording Academy, only Grammy win. Today, “Copacabana” remains perhaps Manilow’s most recognizable recording and a classic example of a pop song that disguises a surprisingly dark story beneath an irresistibly cheerful rhythm.

“Frank and Lola” is a humorous, story-driven song by Jimmy Buffett and Steve Goodman, first released on Buffett’s 1985 album Last Mango in Paris. Goodman, the acclaimed singer-songwriter who died in 1984, had been a friend and collaborator of Buffett’s, and Buffett dedicated the album to him. The song follows the comic adventures of Frank and Lola,

a married couple taking a second honeymoon in Pensacola, Florida, as they try to rekindle their romance after too much arguing, family chaos and everyday stress. Their attempt at privacy turns into a typically Buffett-style Florida escapade involving a movie, walks along the beach, seafood, popcorn, moonlight and an almost disastrous encounter with a lifeguard’s Jeep.

The humor comes from treating Frank and Lola as a classic comic couple, and Buffett himself compared them to famous pairs such as Lucy and Ricky, Fred and Ethel, Laurel and Hardy, and Rocky and Bullwinkle. The song is essentially about trying to turn back the clock, rediscover affection and repair a relationship,

but it presents those ideas through deliberately silly situations rather than sentimentality. Buffett’s official site credits the song to “Jimmy Buffett & Steve Goodman,” while Buffett’s own notes explain that “Lola” was a difficult rhyme until he realized that Pensacola supplied the answer. The recording features Buffett’s relaxed vocal style and harmonica from “Fingers” Taylor,

giving the song a jaunty, country-folk character. “Frank and Lola” was not released as a major charting single, so it has no significant Billboard ranking of its own, but it became a popular album and concert-era track among Buffett fans. A live version was later included on the 2003 compilation Meet Me in Margaritaville: The Ultimate Collection, and the song also appeared on the 1992 compilation Boats, Beaches, Bars & Ballads.

Although it never approached the commercial stature of “Margaritaville” or “Come Monday,” “Frank and Lola” represents an important side of Buffett’s songwriting: humorous character sketches, clever rhymes, Florida settings and ordinary people turned into memorable musical stories.

“Lola (My Love)” is a song by Buckingham Nicks, the duo of Lindsey Buckingham and Stevie Nicks, written entirely by Lindsey Buckingham and released on their self-titled 1973 album Buckingham Nicks. Buckingham wrote and sings lead on the track, with Nicks providing background vocals, and the recording features an impressive group of session musicians,

including guitarists Buckingham and Waddy Wachtel, bassists Jerry Scheff and Mark Tulin, drummers Jim Keltner and Ronnie Tutt, percussionist Gary “Hoppy” Hodges, keyboardist Peggy Sandvig and synthesizer player Monty Stark. Produced by Keith Olsen, the song is a short, energetic rock performance built around Buckingham’s guitar work and a playful,

sexually suggestive portrait of Lola, a woman whom the narrator describes as exceptionally attentive to her lover. The lyrics are deliberately straightforward and sensual, presenting Lola as an idealized fantasy figure who knows exactly how to satisfy her man, making the song more of a flirtatious celebration of sexual attraction than a conventional romantic ballad.

One of its most historically important features is its guitar introduction: Buckingham later reused the basic instrumental idea when Fleetwood Mac developed “The Chain” for the 1977 Rumours album, making “Lola (My Love)” an intriguing musical precursor to one of Fleetwood Mac’s best-known songs. The original album recording is generally listed at about 3:30–3:44, depending on the release, and a live version recorded at the University of Alabama on January 28, 1975, was later issued in the We’ve Just Joined Fleetwood Mac! material.

Because “Lola (My Love)” was an album track rather than a commercial single, it did not receive a Billboard Hot 100 ranking. The Buckingham Nicks album itself initially attracted little commercial attention, but its importance grew enormously after Buckingham and Nicks joined Fleetwood Mac in 1975. “Lola (My Love)” therefore remains a fascinating early example of Buckingham’s songwriting and guitar style and an important piece of the musical history that preceded Fleetwood Mac’s Rumours era.