Top of the Pops for me is the "problem child" of the Lola album, but, like any child it is not undeserving of love and attention. My favorite aspect of the song is that, for the most part, our hero is singing the exact opposite of what he is thinking: "I'm oh so happy, so glad to be alive" == "I'm miserable and want to die" "Life is so easy when your record's hot" == "My life is more complicated and difficult than ever before" "I might end up a rock n' roll god" == "I'm really just an ordinary bloke from Muswell Hill" "Now the Melody Maker want to interview me" == "It's a trap! Remember what happened when I insulted Elvis?" "A woman recognized me and started to scream" == "I she insane, or am I a monster? why is she screaming at me??" "I've got friends I never had before" == "These people are not my friends" "Your records just got to number one" == "This is what I wanted, right???" "You can earn some real money" == "You're going to get screwed out of even more money" As a listening experience, Top of the Pops is remarkable in the sense that, while enjoyable, it also seems to be intentionally prickly - the song gets off to a plodding start, dragging its feet with a brutal beat under raunchy guitar, and then proceeds to bolt together recycled pop cliches, so that -- by the nature of its own construction -- it criticizes an industry that, from our hero's point of view, treats creative individuals as a resource to be exploited in order to mechanically churn out song as product for maximum profit, like the Lorax his Thneeds, while obsessively fixating on chart positions, sales numbers, and the whims of the record buying public. Finally, the capping off of the song with what's hard not to interpret as a clumsy racial stereotype leaves an unpleasant aftertaste, which, considering the spirit in which the song was constructed, seems fitting. Top of the Pops reminds me of the song Phobia from much later in their career, which is a similar pastiche of heavy rock tropes - but with Phobia there is an underlying sense of humor and playfulness that is completely absent here. That being said, I appreciate Top of the Pops as an essential part of the story that Lola the album is trying to tell.
I’ll click “like” despite not being in agreement with a single thing (sans your concluding sentence) that you say.
I blame all of you for forcing me to search eBay and wherever else for an affordable vinyl copy of Lola Versus Powerman and the Moneygoround, Part One.... (I still wanna know what happened to the one I had!)
Well, he has been a pox on the film world, but in TV land he did give us Felicity and made Jennifer Gardner a star in Alias.
You should find a copy relatively cheap. WB/Reprise kept it in print up to the CD era. No record stores in your area?
"Top Of The Pops" I was listening to Preservation Act 2 yesterday. I picked up a clean copy and have almost completed my Kinks LP collection. The only ones left to get are Everybody's In Showbiz and the last three which I don't see very often. Anyhow, this song doesn't sound far off from Preservation and the other theatrical records in style and guitar sound. I like how every album has a song that sounds connected to a future album. I also always thought it was a bit of a parody. Singing about the top of the pops and giving it that heavy riff treatment that is reminiscent to their early chart toppers. A humorous tune that serves its purpose and serves it well.
No good ones that have old records on vinyl that aren't ridiculously marked up. All I see is reissues, limited editions, deluxe packages, etc., at high prices. I sometimes have luck at the Goodwill stores and places like that. I was at one with my daughter last weekend and someone had dumped a big collection where I would have bought probably 20 to 30 LPs if I could justify the expense and actually make the time to listen to all of them. The upside to having no money is I have to be selective in what I acquire, therefore my good taste is renowned.
It was recently reissued and should still be out there for around $23. You live in Lemon Grove? I would try Record City, which would most likely have the reissue, or Folk Arts, which may have a used copy. Both places have very reasonable prices. I think Folk Arts is one of the best record stores I have ever been to. The reissue also sounds great to me and is a very nice pressing.
I was also listening to Act 2 yesterday - only played the first disc so far, and mine seems like a very decent copy as well. Now seeking out a copy of Act 1 to complete my collection.
Speaking of thrift shops, that was actually how and why I got my copies of Preservation Act 1 and Preservation Act 2 for maybe a couple of dollars apiece. I'm looking forward to when this thread hits that era as all I know about them is what I read in Ray Davies: A Complicated Life and Wikipedia, and the latter sometimes seems to be nothing more than a repository of oft-repeated canards.
Fun fact: the CD player in the family van suddenly stopped working a few months ago, as these things do. It rejects every CD I try to insert, giving a little error message, except for some reason it will accept and play The Kinks are the Village Green Preservation Society. So far nothing else. I thought maybe the van was a Kinks fan, but it won't accept any other Kinks CDs. Only The Kinks are the Village Green Preservation Society. It's simultaneously weird and amusing. (The kids, by the way, absolutely love the title track, cracking up every time the line about Donald Duck is sung. The first time they heard it they didn't believe Ray Davies was really singing about Donald Duck: I had to get the vinyl LP out and show them the lyrics printed on the back of the album to prove the words were really "God save Donald Duck.")
Thanks @Luckless Pedestrian. I'd never thought of the lyrics in this way, but they make perfect sense - especially in the context of this album. I laughed out loud at your Melody Maker 'trap' It's so true: politics and religion are two of the minefields even friends have sometimes to skirt around. Slagging off Elvis or the Beatles wouldn't be far behind.
I listened to Percy yesterday Trying to get some listening in ahead, because some of the upcoming albums are less familiar to me, and I'm trying not to jump in cold. So far I'm not hearing any real drop in quality at all. Just changes in musical emphasis. Percy is way better than I expected.
The most common causes for that symptom are an aging laser whose output is low or a failing disc motor.There is also a small chance the the laser lens is dirty. I was in the audio industry for 44 years.
Lola As most folk are aware this is a towering rock/pop song from the ground up as each part fills it's purpose to it's absolute zenith especially the arrangement, vocal blend, national guitar sound and lead guitar phrasing! Yes i have probably heard it to death so I don't play it frequently but I savour it and really enjoy it should i: A) Put it on Or especially so B) Hear it accidentally I played it a few times yesterday and sang along each time which even had other family members getting into it despite my poor pipes! To round out my joyous Lola (singing & post reading day) by some total coincidence a friend surprisingly gifted me their Lola UK Golden Hour 2 LP compilation that evening! Great post @zipp I find it hard to disagree with much of your thoughtful analysis. At the climax after the boy is presumably shocked and attempts to leave we find him on his knees on the floor but he looks back at Lola and she at he and he doesn't seem at all repulsed. They are looking at each other and that's the way the lad wants it to stay and he sounds becalmed & very contentedly accepting as the vocalising turns very soft and toffee sweet. If our young protagonist was going to wash his hands of the situation i cannot see why he would want it to stay this way with them gazing at each other so did he go on home to his lazyboy or with his ladyboy?
Top Of The Pops Great fun and a good catch @Fortuleo On the single note guitar lines echoing Land Of 1000 Dances by Wilson Pickett! This is a fine album track as it really moves the narrative down the line with Ray covering all the angles (of a green artist on the rise) as Dave gets to rock out even though it likely won't make mosts play lists! Edit: Somehow the opening riff reminds me of The Who's I'm Free in terms of it's breathlessness & it's dry throaty tone.
