'Lola' by The Kinks: The making of Ray Davies' classic

20 April 2026, 12:55

By Mayer Nissim

Loading audio...

The Kinks were probably the greatest British singles band of the 1960s. Maybe the best singles band, anywhere, any time, full stop.

And while their chart positions seem to dip towards the end of the decade, they came roaring back at the start of the next with the all-conquering 'Lola'.

The song has remained one of the band's best known and best loved hits, popping up on most compilations released in the years since.

Though it's also attracted a fair bit of controversy too.

Below we take a closer look at The Kinks 'Lola' and the storm around it.

Who wrote 'Lola'?

The Kinks - Lola (Official Music Video)

The vast majority of the Kinks' songs were written by their leader Ray Davies. A sprinkling came from Ray's brother Dave, including the classic 'Death of a Clown'.

On 'Lola's parent album Lola Versus Powerman and the Moneygoround, Part One. Dave contributed both 'Rats' and 'Strangers', but 'Lola' is credited to Ray Davies and Ray alone.

But it's worth a quick mention of the fact that Dave has claimed to have had a big role in writing the song.

'Lola' was written in a similar way to 'You Really Got Me'," Dave told Guitar Magazine in 1990.

"We got together in Ray's front room, and Ray had the basic idea of the song, the skeleton idea for this song, and I just started playing E in the bottom position, moved it up to A, leaving the E string open and in the chord. Ray said, 'Ah, that's great. Let's put that in as well'.

"Ray has a very firm idea about what he wants to do, and I try to accommodate him as best I can, but I think in certain areas, on certain songs, there's a lot more collaboration than people realise."

What are the lyrics to 'Lola' actually about?

Ray Davies of The Kinks at the White City pop festival. Picture: Alamy

It's your typical guy meets girl ("I met her in a club down in old Soho"), guy swoons at girl ("when I looked in her eyes, well I almost fell for my Lola"), guy finds out that girl is a guy ("I know what I am and I'm glad I'm a man/and so is Lola") kind of tale.

No matter who did what on the music, Dave fully accepts that Ray wrote the lyrics to 'Lola' and the man himself has been pretty candid about the real-life inspiration behind it.

No, it's not based on any sort of fling between Ray Davies and Candy Darling (the subject of The Velvet Underground's 'Candy Says'), as the two were really just good friends.

"It was a real experience in a club," Ray has said.

Andy Warhol with superstar Candy Darling - NOT the subject of 'Lola'. Picture: Alamy

"I was asked to dance by somebody who was a fabulous looking woman. I said, 'No thank you'. And she went in a cab with my manager straight afterwards. It's based on a personal experience. But not every word."

For what it's worth, the band's drummer Mick Avory has a slightly different story, supposedly about a quirky fan attracted by the group's kinky name.

"He used to have this place in Earl's Court, and he used to invite me to all these drag queen acts and transsexual pubs," Mick said.

"They were like secret clubs. And that's where Ray got the idea for 'Lola'. When he was invited too, he wrote it while I was getting drunk."

Ray later told the New York Times: "In Lola's journey, I did a bit of research with drag queens. I admire anyone who can get up and be what they want to be."

Was 'Lola' controversial when it was first released and was it actually banned?

The Kinks - Lola (from One For The Road)

In 2026, techno punk turned ambient advertiser Moby hit out at 'Lola'

"'Lola' by the Kinks came up on a Spotify playlist, and I thought the lyrics were gross and transphobic," Moby told The Guardian.

"I like their early music, but I was really taken aback at how unevolved the lyrics are."

Dave Davies hit back, first on Twitter, saying: "I am highly insulted that MOBY would accuse my brother of being ‘unevolved’ or transphobic in any way."

He also shared a letter from trans punk icon Jayne County expressing her love for the song.

Punk icon Jayne County in concert in 2005. Picture: Alamy

Dave later got in touch with Ray and told him about the furore.

"Ray said to me, 'Who the f**k is Moby?'," Dave told Rolling Stone. "I said, 'He's someone who does quite well. I don’t know anything about the guy'."

He added: "I don't like to criticise anybody. But I didn’t particularly like his music. And I don't like him because he’s throwing all this s**t up about something that shouldn’t bother him.

"I don't think we should make a fuss about it … I do love animals. I appreciate Moby’s work for animals. But he's misinterpreting us, really."

But 'Lola' didn't suddenly become controversial in 2026.

The Kinks - Lola (Mono 'Cherry Cola' Single Version) (Official Audio)

The song has always raised eyebrows, though not always for the most obvious reasons.

Some radio stations faded out the "reveal" of Lola's biology at the end of the record. Some made a bad edit to skip the line about Lola being a man. Some apparently banned it altogether.

"It really doesn't matter what sex Lola is," Ray told Record Mirror at the time. "I think she's all right."

Amazingly, the BBC banned the song outright... because it mentioned Coca-Cola. Namechecking brandnames on the Beeb was very much a no-no at the time.

So Ray Davies interrupted the band's US tour for a 6,000 mile roundtrip to record the words "cherry cola" in a studio to be overdubbed for the single release. You can hear both versions out and about these days.

When was 'Lola' released and where did it get in the charts?

The Kinks Lola Top of the Pops 1970

'Lola' was recorded in the spring of 1970 and the band didn't hold it back for long, releasing it on June 12, 1970.

It reached number nine in the US and peaked at number 2 in the UK, only being kept off the top by Elvis Presley's 'The Wonder of You' and eventually going Platinum.

It nestled in the middle of the band's eighth studio album Lola Versus Powerman and the Moneygoround, Part One, which was released on November 27 and reached number 35.

Who has covered 'Lola'?

Lola

'Lola' is a pretty intimidating song to cover, given how perfect The Kinks' original recording is, but a few artists have been brave enough to give it a go.

The Raincoats did a version for their 1979 self-titled album in their energetic post-punk style.