Song 138 - Country House by Blur

I seem to be deep in the heart of 90s music at the moment and reliving the songs of my student life, however,   I cannot do this properly without talking about Britpop and bands like Suede, Blur and  Oasis.

Britpop is, in truth, a marketing terms to describe a subgenre of pop and alternative rock, that orginated in the UK in the 1990s. It was British bands reaction to the grunge music coming out of the USA . The Jukebox will get to grunge and Nirvana promise.  With its origins coming out of the indie scene of the 1980s, Britpop emerged with an association of Cool Britannia which evoked the swinging sixties and the British pop guitar music of that decade.

For me, the soundtrack of Britpop evokes memories of student life in Edinburgh and dancing the night away at the Citrus Club in Edinburgh. The Citrus Club is still there (although my clubbing days are long over),  and, in my day, had a unique smell of fags and alcohol that followed you home after a Saturday night dancing that would no longer apply now the smoking ban is in place (which is probably a good thing).

I think to start our journey of Britpop, I am going to start with Country House by Blur as this song bounces energy and happiness. Released as the lead single from their fourth album, The Great Escape, Country House became the band's first number  one, beating their rivals Oasis to the top spot in the UK chart. There is much written about the rivalry between the two bands, and it is said that Blur deliberately changed the release date of Country House to ensure that they would go head to head with Oasis's Roll with it. Oasis though would reach number 1 in the album charts keeping The Great Escape off the top of the charts so like everything in life it is swings and roundabouts.

Originally called Seymour, the band consisted of childhood friends Damon Albarn and Graham Coxon, Alex James and Dave Rowntree. In November 1989, Food Records heard Seymour play and were keen to signed them but wanted them to change their name and by March the next year  they had a new record deal and the new name of Blur. Their first breakout hit was There's no other way in 1991, started their road to become one of the most popular bands of the 1990s. All four members of the bands were involved with writing the music for Country House, with Albarn also contributing the lyrics.

It doesn't take a genius to know what this song is about and I think the band was inspired by one of the managers of their record label buying a house in the country; and used famous celebrities like Keith Allen and Matt Lucas in the video. The video was directed by Damien Hirst, who had been at university with some of the group; and  the video pays homage to Benny Hill and Queen in its direction.

To enjoy the song and video
Country House by Blur

Written by Blur
Released: August 1995
Album: The Great Escape