Lola Versus Powerman and the Moneygoround, Pt. 1

This 1970 album serves as the final installment in the Kinks' string of '60s masterpieces. In an age when most rockers were capitalizing on the new sound inspired by The Beatles' SGT. PEPPER, Ray Davies and the Kinks were looking back in time for musical inspiration on records like ARTHUR and VILLAGE GREEN PRESERVATION SOCIETY. Mixing classic rock & roll, blues, American country, and English dance hall music, The Kinks were ahead of and behind the times all at once. LOLA VERSUS POWERMAN AND THE MONEY-GO-ROUND merges some of Davies's highbrow stylistic concepts with the edgier rock & roll of the band's early years on some of the finest songs of the group's career.
The 14-track disc features the irresistible radio hits "Lola" and "Apeman"--the first a confused love song to a transvestite, the second a tongue-in-cheek celebration of primitivism. Both songs have rightfully become part of the rock song canon. Equally impressive are Ray Davies's countryish ballad "Denmark Street," the edgier "Get Back In Line," and music industry satire "Top of the Pops." Guitarist Dave Davies also contributes one of his most beautiful songs, the delicate "Strangers." The Kinks were among the all-time masters of the smartly crafted, idiosyncratic pop song. LOLA VERSUS POWERMAN AND THE MONEY-GO-ROUND is a great collection, ranking just behind their brightest moments in the '60s.