Blur are an English rock band formed in London in 1988. The band consists of singer Damon Albarn, guitarist Graham Coxon, bass guitarist Alex James and drummer Dave Rowntree. Their debut album, Leisure (1991), incorporated the sounds of Madchester and shoegaze. Following a stylistic change influenced by English guitar pop groups such as the Kinks, the Beatles and XTC, Blur released the albums Modern Life Is Rubbish (1993), Parklife (1994) and The Great Escape (1995). As a result, the band helped to popularise the Britpop genre and achieved mass popularity in the UK, aided by a widely publicised chart battle with rival band Oasis in 1995 dubbed "The Battle of Britpop".
13 is the sixth studio album by the English alternative rock band Blur, released on 15 March 1999. Continuing the stylistic shift away from the Britpop sound of the band's early career, 13 explores experimental, psychedelic and electronic music.
Hot Space is the tenth studio album by the British rock band Queen. It was released on 4 May 1982 by EMI Records in the United Kingdom and by Elektra Records in the United States. Marking a notable shift in direction from their earlier work, they employed many elements of disco, funk, R&B, dance, pop and new wave music on the album. This made the album less popular with fans who preferred the traditional rock style they had come to associate with the band. Queen's decision to record a dance-oriented album germinated with the massive success of their 1980 hit "Another One Bites the Dust" in the US.
"Song 2" is a song by English rock band Blur. The song is the second song on their eponymous fifth studio album. Released physically on 7 April 1997, "Song 2" peaked at number two on the UK Singles Chart, number four on the Australian ARIA Singles Chart, and number six on the US Billboard Modern Rock Tracks chart.
"Don't Stop Me Now" is a song by the British rock band Queen, featured on their 1978 album Jazz and released as a single on 26 January 1979. Written by lead singer Freddie Mercury, it was recorded in August 1978 at Super Bear Studios in Berre-les-Alpes (Alpes-Maritimes), France, and is the twelfth track on the album.
"Morning Glory" is a song by the English rock band Oasis, written by Noel Gallagher and released on the band's second album (What's the Story) Morning Glory? in September 1995. It was given a commercial single release only in Australia, New Zealand, and Japan, and it was also a radio single in the United States and Canada. In North America, it was the first song of the album to receive significant airplay, although primarily at alternative rock radio stations, as "Some Might Say" and "Roll with It" had not achieved as such.
"Party All the Time" is a song by comedian and actor Eddie Murphy, written and produced by Rick James. It was the lead single from Murphy's 1985 debut musical album How Could It Be. It reached number two on the Billboard Hot 100 for three weeks, behind "Say You, Say Me" by Lionel Richie.
"Crazy Beat" is a song by English band Blur from their seventh album, Think Tank (2003). The song was written and produced by band members Damon Albarn, Alex James and Dave Rowntree in Morocco, with Norman Cook also serving as a producer. It was first serviced to alternative radio stations in the United States on 17 March 2003, by Virgin Records, while being commercially released in the United Kingdom on 7 July 2003, by Parlophone, including the songs "The Outsider" and "Don't Be" as B-sides. A three-chord song, "Crazy Beat" is a dance-pop and electropop track which draws influences of big beat and nu metal into its composition. Lyrically, it praises the effects of music and clubs on crowds.
"Girls & Boys" is a song by English rock band Blur, released in March 1994 by Food Records as the lead single from the group's third studio album, Parklife (1994). The frontman of Blur, Damon Albarn wrote the song's lyrics with bandmembers Graham Coxon, Alex James and Dave Rowntree, while Stephen Street produced it.
"White Flag" is a song by English singer-songwriter Dido, released as the lead single from her second studio album, Life for Rent (2003). The song was first released to US radio on 7 July 2003 and was issued in the United Kingdom as a physical single on 1 September 2003. The song performed well on record charts around the world, peaking at number one in Australia, Austria, the Czech Republic, Germany, Italy, Norway, and Portugal. In Dido's native UK, it reached number two on the UK Singles Chart, and in the United States, it climbed to number 18 on the Billboard Hot 100.
The discography of English rock band Blur consists of nine studio albums, six live albums, five compilation albums, one remix album, two video albums, four extended plays, 35 singles, 10 promotional singles and 37 music videos. Formed in London in 1988, the group consists of singer/keyboardist Damon Albarn, guitarist/singer Graham Coxon, bassist Alex James and drummer Dave Rowntree. Three years later, their debut release, the Madchester and shoegazing-tinged Leisure (1991), peaked at number seven on the UK Albums Chart. Modern Life Is Rubbish (1993) inaugurated the Britpop phase of their career. Its multi-Platinum follow-ups Parklife (1994) and The Great Escape (1995) helped the band achieve mainstream popularity in Britain; every Blur studio album from Parklife onwards has topped the British charts.
"Everywhere" is a song by British-American rock band Fleetwood Mac from their 14th studio album, Tango in the Night (1987). The song was written by Christine McVie, who also performed lead vocals, and produced by Lindsey Buckingham and Richard Dashut. In the United States, "Everywhere" was released in November 1987 as the album's fourth single, while in the United Kingdom, it was issued on 21 March 1988 as the album's fifth single.
Empire of the Sun is an Australian electronic music duo formed in 2007. The duo is a collaboration between Luke Steele, formerly of alternative rock band The Sleepy Jackson, and Nick Littlemore, of electronic dance band PNAU.
Leisure is the debut studio album by English rock band Blur, released by Food Records on 27 August 1991.
The Magic Whip is the eighth studio album by English rock band Blur. It was recorded in Hong Kong and London, and released by Parlophone on 27 April 2015 and Warner Bros. Records on 28 April 2015. It was the band's first studio album in 12 years since Think Tank (2003), marking the longest gap between studio albums in Blur's career, and the first in 16 years since 13 (1999) to have featured the original line-up. The album also marks the return of the band's longtime producer Stephen Street following Blur (1997).
"Should I Stay or Should I Go" is a song by English punk rock band the Clash from their album Combat Rock, written in 1981 and featuring Mick Jones on lead vocals. It was released in 1982 as a double A-sided single alongside "Straight to Hell", performing modestly on global music charts. In the United States, "Should I Stay or Should I Go" charted on the Billboard Hot 100 without reaching the top 40. The song received greater attention nearly a decade later as the result of an early-1990s Levi's jeans commercial, leading to the song's 1991 re-release, which topped the UK Singles Chart and reached the top 10 in New Zealand and many European charts. The song was listed in Rolling Stone's 500 Greatest Songs of All Time in 2004.
"Living in a Ghost Town" is a song by English rock band the Rolling Stones. The song was recorded during sessions of the Rolling Stones in 2019, ultimately being finished the following year. The track is reggae-influenced and features lyrics and a music video that reference the COVID-19 pandemic. It was released as a digital download and streaming single on 23 April 2020, through Polydor Records. The song was the Rolling Stones' first single in four years and the first original material from the band since "Doom and Gloom" and "One More Shot" in 2012. It received generally positive reviews from music critics and was a commercial success, appearing on over a dozen sales and streaming charts. It is the final original recording by the band to feature Charlie Watts before his death in August 2021.
"Hey, Hey, Rise Up!" is a song by the English rock band Pink Floyd, released on digital platforms on 8 April 2022. It is based on a 1914 Ukrainian anthem, "Oh, the Red Viburnum in the Meadow", and features vocals in Ukrainian by Andriy Khlyvnyuk of the Ukrainian band BoomBox.
"Face It Alone" is a song by British rock band Queen. Written by Brian May, John Deacon, Roger Taylor and Freddie Mercury and produced by David Richards, Kris Fredriksson and Justin Shirley-Smith, recorded over thirty years prior to its eventual release, and originally thought "unsalvageable" by May and Taylor, it was released on 13 October 2022 as a single as part of promotion for The Miracle Collector's Edition box set, which itself was released on 18 November 2022.
The Ballad of Darren is the ninth studio album by English rock band Blur. It was released on 21 July 2023 by Parlophone and Warner Records. The album's songs were written by frontman Damon Albarn in 2022 while on tour with Gorillaz, and composed by Albarn and the rest of the band. It was produced by James Ford at Studio 13 in London and Devon. It is Blur's first album since The Magic Whip (2015), and their shortest album, with a runtime under 40 minutes. The album's artwork features a 2004 photograph of a man swimming alone in the Gourock Outdoor Pool in Gourock, Scotland, taken by Martin Parr. Its title refers to Darren "Smoggy" Evans, the band's longtime bodyguard.
