I have 2LP and 2CD versions of the "Countdown 1992-1983" compilation, both of which have the Nectar Masters logo on the cover. However, I have seen photos of a cover for this compilation with the Fire logo on (see the one on Pulp wiki) but I have never actually owned one of these. Is this a non-UK version or did Fire simply reissue it on their label after the Nectar Masters version had sold out?
Thanks for that. Looks like I missed out on the Fire version when it was released.
I very vaguely remember a TV ad for it. I also remember "Countdown" and "My Legendary Girlfriend" being played on the radio around the time it was released.
Number 10 was quite realistic as pretty much anything with the name Pulp on it would have sold well in 1996. Obviously, the charts depend on several factors such as the number of new releases but I think it would be fair to say that its first-week sales were similar to "His n Hers" and probably not that far off "We Love Life".
Well, quite. Fire must have been licking their lips, they couldn't have timed the release/licensing of that compilation any better. Released a few weeks after the Brits fiasco, Pulp/Jarvis were probably the best-selling group in the UK for that month or so.
Reminds me of another fortuitous/well-judged incident of happenstance around that time - the sprawling social-conscience epic TV drama, Our Friends In The North, was also released that spring and the closing scene with Daniel Craig's character trudging over the Tyne Bridge was soundtracked by Don't Look Back Anger which went to number one that same week; something even in post-production, could never have been foreseen. My two favourite TV dramas of the 90s, that and This Life also debuted in March'96. Take me back, I never knew you...
Well, quite. Fire must have been licking their lips, they couldn't have timed the release/licensing of that compilation any better. Released a few weeks after the Brits fiasco, Pulp/Jarvis were probably the best-selling group in the UK for that month or so.
Reminds me of another fortuitous/well-judged incident of happenstance around that time - the sprawling social-conscience epic TV drama, Our Friends In The North, was also released that spring and the closing scene with Daniel Craig's character trudging over the Tyne Bridge was soundtracked by Don't Look Back Anger which went to number one that same week; something even in post-production, could never have been foreseen. My two favourite TV dramas of the 90s, that and This Life also debuted in March'96. Take me back, I never knew you...
I can't really remember it, I must look up some old episodes.
In fairness to Fire, most of what they reissued directly was great; they made the first 3 albums available on CD in 1993-4 and released "Masters of the Universe" around that time. I think that "Countdown 1992-1983" and the other compilations came about when they were approached by other labels. It would be interesting to find out when (or if) Fire finally started to make some profit from the Pulp recordings, they were made quite cheaply so I'd assume that they would only have to sell a couple of thousand copies to break even. This probably happened when Pulp became big in the 1990s.
Didn't Fire request a "points" (percentage) arrangement in royalties on future albums when Island eventually managed to sign Pulp in '93? They probably made more from their % from Different Class than any amount of Pulp Fire albums ever sold/likely to be sold in the future!
Re This Life - Ricky Gervais was a music advisor for this, his partner being a director of the show. I remember that all the Different Class singles can be heard in the background during various episodes. A fair bit of Suede too (Gervais having managed them briefly in the early 90s).
Yes, Pulp signed a multi-album deal with Fire then left after one so I think that the points thing was to offset the albums that they would have otherwise released on Fire. Another interesting question is: if Pulp had stayed with Fire, would they have been as famous? Within 18 months of releasing "Countdown", they were in the top 100 with "Razzmatazz" so really, it's a question of whether Fire would have been able to meet the increasing demand for Pulp material.