This weekend 10 years ago, the bravest, bestest thing Pulp ever did was the twelfth most sold single in all of Rue Brittania, coming complete with a big fuck-off "Deal with this" message tattooed to its penetrated arse (well, maybe that image belongs to the This Is Hardcore album which reaches double figures next week - someone else can take over my mantle on commemorations and cover that one).
It still sounds like absoloutely nothing else - and I think it still demands you give yourself to it fully (or of course that you skip it altogether) but the song that Steve Mackey said made the annis horriblis of mid 1996-mid '97 "worth it" is if nothing else, the best answer to those who had Pulp down as the cheap keyboards and geeky lyrics lot.
That is what they did for an encore and what a hell of a show it was. Messrs Cocker, Mackey, Webber, Doyle (more of a messer maybe), Banks, and Thomas, Dudley, and of course, possibly most of all the other Thomas too, I salute you all.
On pretty poor radio rotation, (no matter how big Pulp were, six and a half minutes of uncommercial sounding matter would probably have had people reaching for the radio dial more than Zoe Ball's grating tones usually managed), those that did hear it, or indeed seen the Top Of The Pops appearance ("THAT goes in there" in front of young teens - subversive brilliance or what?) were left with strong feelings one way or another.
This song did its job and then some. "Wilfully destroying ourselves" has never sounded so fucking brilliant.
I remember going to the record store to buy the single and the LP a week later, 10 frickin years ago... a real shocking experience discovering that song for the first time. Doesn't seem that long. I also remember putting the video on repeat for weeks, it was like a little movie, absolute genius that really fit the song.
A great lead track for a classic album. And we thought they couldn't top Different Class. But they did.
Has it been 10 years already? (Oh God it has!) I love 'This Is Hardcore'. It has been in my top 5 favourite songs since the day I 1st heard it.I have never got bored of listening to it since. Anyone who ever questions their faith of Pulp being pure genius should refer to this song.
TIH also marks the final time Pulp would put forth any effort to produce an interesting single. (I don't expect to be reading anyone's fond memories of the single for "A Little Soul".) But as for TIH, the gold-banner single still gives me goosebumps when I listen to the whole thing through, while "Ladies Man" still remains a personal favourite of mine.
Eamonn, is it really the UK's 12th best-selling single? Surely, you must be mistaken.
TIH also marks the final time Pulp would put forth any effort to produce an interesting single. (I don't expect to be reading anyone's fond memories of the single for "A Little Soul".) But as for TIH, the gold-banner single still gives me goosebumps when I listen to the whole thing through, while "Ladies Man" still remains a personal favourite of mine.
TIH is probably my favourite overall single too, along with Sisters EP, & I fully apreciate your sentiment on Ladies Man. But Party Hard & BCV are pretty good singles too. The Fear (C&U Breakdown Version), We Are The Boys, BCV Video Version & Forever In My Dreams are all well worth it according to me!
TIH also marks the final time Pulp would put forth any effort to produce an interesting single. (I don't expect to be reading anyone's fond memories of the single for "A Little Soul".) But as for TIH, the gold-banner single still gives me goosebumps when I listen to the whole thing through, while "Ladies Man" still remains a personal favourite of mine.
TIH is probably my favourite overall single too, along with Sisters EP, & I fully apreciate your sentiment on Ladies Man. But Party Hard & BCV are pretty good singles too. The Fear (C&U Breakdown Version), We Are The Boys, BCV Video Version & Forever In My Dreams are all well worth it according to me!
The Breakdown version of the Fear would have been an epic intro track. Maybe overly epic. Triple solos are a bit much for any placement in a pop groups albums. I wonder who wrote those solos? Doesn't seem like Jarvis's style.
Also, sometimes I feel like We Are The Boyz gets passed over to often.
