PLAY THE HITS: Pulp

Posted on Tuesday 15th November 2022 at 16:00

After almost a decade indie icons Pulp have officially reformed for a summer tour plus festival appearances, and we cannot wait! Led by lanky singer Jarvis Cocker, the ultimate geek chic sex icon; their penchant for penning outsider anthems of everyday frustration have marked them as one of the greatest British bands of all time.

Join us, as we celebrate the return of Pulp with our favourite tracks, their biggest hits and choice deep cuts all found in our Play The Hits playlist. CLICK HERE for our complete listings for Pulp and to book tickets.

Do You Remember The First Time?

If tackling the topic of teenage romance, most songwriters tend to go with the unrivalled passion of finding “the one”, the sweet sorrow of parting and rose-tinted tales of adolescent first love. Very few come close to the nitty, gritty reality of losing your virginity, the all-consuming jealousy, outright confusion, and squirming questions that comes with it.

“Do You Remember The First Time?” is the bare all confessional song that reignites all that giddy excitement and is such an apt opening song.

Disco 2000

When “Disco 2000” dropped in 1995, there was still a tremendous sense of eagerness and optimism for the coming turn of the millennium. But what Cocker and co. manage to capture in four and a half minutes is just how naff everyday life is and, despite all the media hype, that isn’t going to change.

Framed within the timeless tale of unrequited love, “Disco 2000” is still as punchy and portentous nearly three decades later and still sets the Sheffield band lightyears apart from the Britpop dross they will forever be unfairly thrown in with.

Razzmatazz

Pulp had languished in the pop wilderness for over a decade before they found their voice. Their first three records It, Freaks and Separations are an awkward mix of folk and art rock and could easily have been lost forever in indie obscurity.

Sultry, sleazy, and wonderfully kitsch; “Razzmatazz” is an early example of what would become a perfect example of a Pulp song and remains a fan favourite to this day.

Words and images courtesy of @Jimi_A

Sylvia

Filled with pain, pathos, and desperate kitchen sink drama; “Sylvia” is plea of sympathy and understanding for a downtrodden everywoman crushed by the constant pursuits of uncaring men.

A theatrical false ending proceeds a whirling lead guitar building to a crescendo so epic it even rivals Strauss. If this were any other band, it would be the perfect note to end a show on. But then, Pulp are not just any other band…

Common People

Well, we couldn’t really compile a Pulp playlist and not mentioned their biggest ever banger! Pinching a glissandi intro from ABBA’s “Dancing Queen”; the song starts with our Jarvis’ personal account of a mismatched date with a poverty tourist so blithely clueless that she thinks “that poor is cool”. So absurdly funny, the tragi-comic anecdote is almost more hilarious than insulting. But still, the bitter taste remains all these years later.

“Common People” is the ultimate political pop clapback, reflecting the true attitudes and experiences of the British public which, as far as I am concerned, makes it our true national anthem and the perfect closing number.