Lola's Theme
Encyclopedia
Lola's Theme is a disco house song, released by the UK based production duo Shapeshifters
in 2004.
for this record; Lola is Simon Marlin's wife and it was while listening to her record collection that the initial idea for the track was conceived.
"Lola's Theme" features a sample
from the introduction of Johnnie Taylor
's 1982 R&B hit, "What About My Love." and it was originally released as an instrumental at the end of 2003 on their own Nocturnal Groove label. Due to its immense popularity, "Lola's Theme" was licensed from Nocturnal Groove to Positiva Records
. At the same time, the sample of "What About My Love" was then completely replayed by Mark Summers
at Scorccio Sample Replays, recreating all elements of the sample (strings, brass sections, piano etc.). The duo then set about finding a vocalist. After a long search they met Cookie
, a gospel singer from the London Community Gospel Choir
. who recorded the vocals for the full release.
"Lola's Theme" was released on 12 July 2004 and upon its release went straight into the UK charts at #1.. "Lola's Theme" also topped the American Dance Charts, peaking at #1 on the Hot Dance Airplay
chart in October 2004. The duo went on to have a further two Top 20 UK hits ("Back To Basics" and "Incredible") and now have a recording contract with Defected Records
.
The song was featured on the soundtrack of the video game Grand Theft Auto: The Ballad of Gay Tony
on the fictional in-game station Vladivostok FM.
Shapeshifters (band)
The Shapeshifters are Simon Marlin and Max Reich, a house music production duo based in London, England. They have a recording contract with Defected Records, and were previously signed to Positiva...
in 2004.
Background
The name "Lola's Theme" was originally a working titleWorking title
A working title, sometimes called a production title, is the temporary name of a product or project used during its development, usually used in filmmaking, television production, novel, video game, or music album.-Purpose:...
for this record; Lola is Simon Marlin's wife and it was while listening to her record collection that the initial idea for the track was conceived.
"Lola's Theme" features a sample
Sampling (music)
In music, sampling is the act of taking a portion, or sample, of one sound recording and reusing it as an instrument or a different sound recording of a song or piece. Sampling was originally developed by experimental musicians working with musique concrète and electroacoustic music, who physically...
from the introduction of Johnnie Taylor
Johnnie Taylor
Johnnie Harrison Taylor was an American vocalist in a wide variety of genres, from rhythm and blues, soul, blues and gospel to pop, doo-wop and disco.-Early years:...
's 1982 R&B hit, "What About My Love." and it was originally released as an instrumental at the end of 2003 on their own Nocturnal Groove label. Due to its immense popularity, "Lola's Theme" was licensed from Nocturnal Groove to Positiva Records
Positiva Records
Positiva Records is a subsidiary of EMI Records and is one of the biggest dance music labels in the UK. The record label was set up in 1993, by Nick Halkes, who previously ran XL Recordings . Its headquarters are at the EMI offices in Brook Green in West London, where it is currently the only large...
. At the same time, the sample of "What About My Love" was then completely replayed by Mark Summers
Mark Summers
Mark Summers is the CEO, Sample Replay Producer, Sound Engineer and Music Producer of Scorccio Sample Replays, a division of Scorccio Records, a dance music company founded in the UK in 1996.- First Recordings :...
at Scorccio Sample Replays, recreating all elements of the sample (strings, brass sections, piano etc.). The duo then set about finding a vocalist. After a long search they met Cookie
Cookie (singer)
Janet Ramus, better known by her stage name Cookie is a soul singer, who performs the vocals in the number one dance anthem Lola's Theme by the Shapeshifters, that was released in July 2004, and their hit single "Back To Basics". She was also featured in "Turn It Around" by Jason Karl...
, a gospel singer from the London Community Gospel Choir
London Community Gospel Choir
The London Community Gospel Choir is a successful gospel choir located in the United Kingdom.-History:The London Community Gospel Choir was founded in 1982 by the Reverend Bazil Meade with the assistance of Lawrence Johnson, Delroy Powell and John Francis.Initially the idea was for a single concert...
. who recorded the vocals for the full release.
"Lola's Theme" was released on 12 July 2004 and upon its release went straight into the UK charts at #1.. "Lola's Theme" also topped the American Dance Charts, peaking at #1 on the Hot Dance Airplay
Hot Dance Airplay
Dance/Mix Show Airplay is a monitored electronic dance music radio chart that is featured weekly in Billboard magazine. The chart came about as a result of the small but influential impact of electronic dance music on the radio in the United States and the stations that program it...
chart in October 2004. The duo went on to have a further two Top 20 UK hits ("Back To Basics" and "Incredible") and now have a recording contract with Defected Records
Defected Records
- History :Established in 1999 by former AM:PM and Cooltempo A&R man Simon Dunmore, Defected's first release was Soulsearcher's "I Can't Get Enough" which reached No.5 in the UK singles chart. This early success was followed up with Roger Sanchez's "Another Chance", which hit No.1 in the UK singles...
.
The song was featured on the soundtrack of the video game Grand Theft Auto: The Ballad of Gay Tony
Grand Theft Auto: The Ballad of Gay Tony
Grand Theft Auto: The Ballad of Gay Tony is the second of the two episodic expansion packs available to the Xbox 360, PlayStation 3 and PC versions of Grand Theft Auto IV, which was developed by Rockstar North and first released for the Xbox 360 on 29 October 2009. It was then released for both...
on the fictional in-game station Vladivostok FM.
Tracklisting
- "Lola's Theme" (Radio Edit) (3:25)
- "Lola's Theme" (Main Mix) (8:11)
- "Lola's Theme" (Extended Vocal Mix) (6:54)
- "Lola's Theme" (Eric Prydz Mix) (8:02)
- "Lola's Theme" (Calderone Vocal Mix) (10:26)
- "Lola's Theme" (Video) (3:30)
2008 version
"Lola's Theme" was remade in 2008 for an 'electro style' version of the 2004 number-one hit.Music video
The music video for "Lola's Theme" was filmed at George Irvin's Funfair and some of the video was filmed at the Irvin's Hellraiser (or Waltzer), the Top Buzz, and other rides. The film starts out with a girl writing the song's name and rushing into the park. The Shapeshifters are seen as well, but they don't sing. Then Cookie is seen as she sings and watches the Waltzer ride spin. A teenage boy and girl meet and kiss each other while they're watched. They head into an arcade and play a game. Another teenage boy meets the girl and says "hi", but the other guy trys to get her back and wins her. They head back out to the park and watch an airplane zoom by and start to kiss. Other people watch them kiss as well. Then 3 people use water guns to squirt each other with man milk as the film ends with the same girl at the beginning of the video waves goodbye with the chalkboard and rushes back into the crowd.Chart performance
| Chart (2004) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| Australia (ARIA ARIA Charts The ARIA charts are the main Australian music sales charts, issued weekly by the Australian Recording Industry Association. The charts are a record of the highest selling singles and albums in various genres in Australia. ARIA commenced compiling its own charts in-house from the week ending 26 June... ) |
35 |
| Austria (Ö3 Austria Top 40 Ö3 Austria Top 40 Ö3 Austria Top 40 is the name of the official Austrian singles chart, as well as the radio show which presents it, aired Fridays on Hitradio Ö3. The show presents the Austrian singles, ringtones and downloads chart. It premiered on 26 November 1968 as Disc Parade and was presented by Ernst Grissemann... ) |
47 |
| Belgium (Ultratop 50 Ultratop 50 Ultratop 50 singles, often just Ultratop 50, is the weekly chart of fifty best-selling singles in Flanders, Belgium, and is produced and published by the Ultratop organization. The chart has existed since March 31, 1995... Flanders) |
19 |
| Belgium (Ultratip Ultratop Ultratop is an organization which generates and publishes the official record charts in Belgium, and it is also the name of most of those charts... Wallonia) |
2 |
| Denmark (Tracklisten Tracklisten Tracklisten is a Danish top 40 record chart that is presented every Thursday midnight at .The weekly Danish Singles Chart also known as Track Top-40 combines the 40 best selling tracks from legal music downloads and the sales of music singles on either CD or vinyl... ) |
17 |
| Finland (Suomen virallinen lista) | 9 |
| Germany (Media Control AG Media Control Charts The official music charts in Germany are gathered and published by the company Media Control GfK International on behalf of Bundesverband Musikindustrie... ) |
23 |
| Ireland (IRMA Irish Recorded Music Association Irish Recorded Music Association is the Irish record industry association. IRMA is a non-profit association set up to manage and control the music industry in the Republic of Ireland.-Goals and activities:... ) |
7 |
| Italy (FIMI Federation of the Italian Music Industry The Federation of the Italian Music Industry is an umbrella organization that keeps track of virtually all aspects of the music recording industry in Italy.... ) |
18 |
| Netherlands (Dutch Top 40 Dutch Top 40 The Dutch Top 40 is a weekly music chart, which started as the "Veronica Top 40", because the offshore radio station Radio Veronica was the first to introduce it. It remained "The Veronica Top 40" until 1974, when the station was forced to stop broadcasting... ) |
13 |
| New Zealand (RIANZ Recording Industry Association of America The Recording Industry Association of America is a trade organization that represents the recording industry distributors in the United States... ) |
11 |
| Sweden (Sverigetopplistan Sverigetopplistan Sverigetopplistan, earlier known as Topplistan and Hitlistan and other names, is since October 2007 the Swedish national record chart, based on sales data from Swedish Recording Industry Association .... ) |
41 |
| Switzerland (Schweizer Hitparade Swiss Music Charts The Swiss Music Charts are Switzerland's main music sales charts. The charts are a record of the highest-selling singles and albums in various genres in Switzerland.The Swiss Charts include:* Singles Top 75... ) |
31 |
| UK Singles (The Official Charts Company) | 1 |
| US Hot Dance Club Songs (Billboard Billboard (magazine) Billboard is a weekly American magazine devoted to the music industry, and is one of the oldest trade magazines in the world. It maintains several internationally recognized music charts that track the most popular songs and albums in various categories on a weekly basis... ) |
5 |
See also
- List of number-one singles from the 2000s (UK)
- List of number-one dance airplay hits of 2004 (U.S.)