Parklife (song)
This article needs additional citations for verification. (July 2011) |
"Parklife" | ||||
---|---|---|---|---|
Single by Blur starring Phil Daniels | ||||
from the album Parklife | ||||
B-side |
| |||
Released | 22 August 1994[1] | |||
Genre | ||||
Length | 3:05 | |||
Label | ||||
Songwriter(s) | ||||
Producer(s) |
| |||
Blur singles chronology | ||||
| ||||
Music video | ||||
"Parklife" on YouTube |
"Parklife" is a song by the English rock band Blur, released in August 1994 by Food and Parlophone as the third single from the band's third studio album, Parklife (1994). The song contains spoken-word verses by the actor Phil Daniels, who also appears in the music video, which was directed by Pedro Romhanyi.
"Parklife" reached No. 10 on the
Background
This section possibly contains original research. (January 2014) |
According to Graham Coxon, the song was sarcastic, rather than a celebration of Englishness. He explained the song "wasn't about the working class, it was about the park class: dustbin men, pigeons, joggers – things we saw every day on the way to the studio [Maison Rouge in Fulham]" and that it was about "having fun and doing exactly what you want to do".[5]
Phil Daniels had been approached to recite a poem for "The Debt Collector", but Damon Albarn could not find a poem he liked and made the song into an instrumental. Daniels was asked to sing lead vocals on "Parklife" instead. He reinvigorated the band, who had grown tired of working on the track.[5] Daniels was unfamiliar with the band, but after talking to Albarn, he accepted the job. The recording in the studio took about forty minutes. Daniels opted for a cut of the royalties rather than being paid up front.[6] Daniels said of the song, "You never knew exactly what the song was about, and I still don't, which is part of the magic of it."[7]
Despite what is commonly believed,[
A number of newspaper articles about the young
The song played a part in Blur's supposed feud with fellow
Reception
"Parklife" is the best-selling single from the album, with 190,000 copies sold.[16]
The Kinks' Ray Davies spoke glowingly of the song, calling it "maybe their best song, and certainly their best record" and stating, "One of my fondest times with Damon is a poetry festival at the Albert Hall. He sang one of my songs and I sang 'Parklife'. Then I understood the similarities between The Kinks and Blur. It's in the way I change chords, and sing stylistically."[17]
Music video
The song's music video (directed by Pedro Romhanyi) filmed next to The Pilot pub on the
The car used by Daniels and Albarn is a bronze-coloured
The video was featured in the 1995 episode "Lightning Strikes" (episode 21 of Season 5) of Beavis and Butt-Head. The characters stated Daniels bore a resemblance to Family Feud host Richard Dawson.
B-sides
Blur provided the single with a selection of strikingly contrasting B-sides, all pastiches of other genres of music.[19] One of a number of occasional Blur songs written in waltz time and built on an arrangement of harpsichord, piano and string synths, Theme from an Imaginary Film was planned but rejected for the film Decadence. Supa Shoppa was an instrumental in the style of acid jazz, recorded with percussion, synth flute and Hammond organ parts. Drowned in Sound, reviewing Blur's career, noted that it had been a "perfect live opener for the Parklife tour when cranked up."[20] Beard also parodied jazz music, and was named based on the stereotype of jazz fans wearing them. An additional alternative version of "To the End" was also added.
Football
The song started to be played at
Nike aired a television advertisement in 1997 called Parklife. The advertisement featured the song and Premier League footballers including Eric Cantona, Ian Wright and Robbie Fowler.[21] The advert received acclaim and later was rated the 14th best advert of all time by ITV in 2005,[22] and as the 15th best by Channel 4 in 2000.[23]
The song is played before the home matches of Chelsea F.C. at Stamford Bridge. The song's narrator Phil Daniels and Blur frontman Damon Albarn are both fans of Chelsea.[24]
Track listings
All music was composed by Albarn, Coxon, James and Rowntree. All lyrics were written by Albarn.
|
|
Personnel
- Damon Albarn – lead vocals, piano, Hammond organ
- Phil Daniels – narration
- Graham Coxon – electric guitars, alto saxophone, backing vocals
- Alex James – bass guitar
- Dave Rowntree – drums
- Simon Clarke – baritone saxophone
Charts
Chart (1994) | Peak position |
---|---|
Australia (ARIA)[31] | 119 |
Europe (Eurochart Hot 100)[32] | 37 |
Ireland (IRMA)[33] | 30 |
Scotland (OCC)[34] | 7 |
10 |
Certifications
Region | Certification | Certified units/sales |
---|---|---|
United Kingdom (BPI)[36] | Platinum | 600,000‡ |
‡ Sales+streaming figures based on certification alone. |
References
- ^ "This how Phil Daniels got paid for Blur's Parklife single..." Radio X. 14 August 2020. Retrieved 26 June 2021.
- ^ Stewart, Ethan (20 January 2022). "YARD ACT REVIVE THE GLORY DAYS OF POST-PUNK ON 'THE OVERLOAD'". PopMatters. Retrieved 29 January 2022.
- ^ "History". BRIT Awards.
- ^ "Closing Ceremony of the London Olympics: Review". The Hollywood Reporter. 12 August 2012.
- ^ ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 1 April 2020.
- ^ "This how Phil Daniels got paid for Blur's Parklife single..." Radio X. 22 August 2019.
- ^ "Blur's Parklife: Track By Track". Spin.
- ^ oasisworld (19 February 2017). On 19.02.1996, Oasis won 3 BRIT Awards... and they sang the unforgettable #SHITELIFE! #LiamGallagher #NoelGallagher #BRITspic.twitter.com/hovBYkWmls. @myoasisworld.
- ^ Flick, Larry (13 August 1994). "Single Reviews" (PDF). Billboard. p. 61. Retrieved 14 November 2018.
- ^ Campbell, Chuck (15 July 1994). "L7's Hungry, But The Group Doesn't Stink". Knoxville News Sentinel.
- ^ Barringer, Holly (27 August 1994). "Singles". Melody Maker. p. 36. Retrieved 8 October 2023.
- ^ "New Releases: Singles" (PDF). Music & Media. 17 September 1994. p. 10. Retrieved 15 March 2021.
- NME. p. 41. Retrieved 12 October 2023.
- ^ Sutherland, Mark (17 August 1994). "New Singles". Smash Hits. No. 410. p. 51.
- ^ "The Greatest Indie Anthems Ever – countdown continues". NME. 1 May 2007. Retrieved 27 June 2020.
- ^ Myers, Justin (2 May 2014). "Official Charts Flashback 1994: Blur – Parklife". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 14 November 2018.
- ^ "Blur – Album By Album, by Stephen Street, William Orbit and Ben Hillier". Uncut. 25 April 2014. Retrieved 8 December 2020.
- ^ "Blur's Parklife in Greenwich". Archived from the original on 21 September 2020. Retrieved 9 July 2023.
{{cite web}}
: CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link) - ^ Cavanagh and Maconie (1995). "How did they do that?". Select. July. Retrieved 5 August 2015.[permanent dead link]
- ^ Hammond, Didz. "Blur Parklife". Drowned in Sound. Archived from the original on 17 October 2015. Retrieved 5 August 2015.
- ^ Dyer, Clare (12 September 2006). "Nike scores own goal on Hackney Marshes". The Guardian. Retrieved 9 August 2019.
- ^ "Classic Ads : Spots and Spot Innovation". Archived from the original on 5 March 2009. Retrieved 1 April 2020.
- ^ "UK TV Adverts - Fun Facts". www.uktvadverts.com. Archived from the original on 2 April 2015. Retrieved 16 January 2015.
- ^ Smith, Giles (12 February 2015). "Giles Smith: More, more, more". Chelsea Football Club. Retrieved 23 May 2017.
- ^ Parklife (UK CD1 liner notes). Blur. Food Records, Parlophone. 1994. CDFOODS53, 7243 8 81656 2 4.
{{cite AV media notes}}
: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link) - ^ Parklife (UK cassette single sleeve). Blur. Food Records, Parlophone. 1994. TC FOOD 53, 7243 8 81656 4 8.
{{cite AV media notes}}
: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link) - ^ Parklife (UK CD2 & Australian CD single liner notes). Blur. Food Records, Parlophone. 1994. CDFOODS53, 7243 8 81657 2 3.
{{cite AV media notes}}
: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link) - ^ Parklife (UK 12-inch single sleeve). Blur. Food Records, Parlophone. 1994. 12 FOOD 53.
{{cite AV media notes}}
: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link) - ^ Parklife (European CD single liner notes). Blur. Food Records, Parlophone. 1994. 7243 8 81675 2 9.
{{cite AV media notes}}
: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link) - ^ Parklife (French CD single liner notes). Blur. Food Records, EMI Records. 1994. 07243 8 8184 3 2.
{{cite AV media notes}}
: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link) - ^ "Blur chart history, received from ARIA on 16 February 2022". Imgur.com. Retrieved 21 June 2024. N.B. The High Point number in the NAT column indicates the release's peak on the national chart.
- ^ "Eurochart Hot 100 Singles" (PDF). Music & Media. Vol. 11, no. 37. 10 September 1994. p. 13. Retrieved 4 October 2020.
- ^ "The Irish Charts – Search Results – Park Life". Irish Singles Chart. Retrieved 2 November 2018.
- ^ "Official Scottish Singles Sales Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 2 November 2018.
- ^ "Official Singles Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 2 November 2018.
- ^ "British single certifications – Blur – Parklife". British Phonographic Industry. Retrieved 25 September 2020.
External links
- Parklife official video (HD) on YouTube