Song 2

"Song 2"
Single by Blur
from the album Blur
B-side
  • "Get Out of Cities"
  • "Polished Stone"
  • "Bustin' + Dronin'"
  • "Country Sad Ballad Man" (live acoustic)
Released7 April 1997 (1997-04-07)
StudioMayfair (London, England)
Genre
Length2:02
Label
Songwriter(s)
Producer(s)Stephen Street
Blur singles chronology
"Beetlebum"
(1997) 		"Song 2"
(1997) 		"On Your Own"
(1997)
Audio sample
"Song 2" by Blur
Music video
"Song 2" on YouTube

"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, It was also popular on radio stations in the US; consequently, it peaked at number 55 on the Hot 100 Airplay chart, number 6 on Billboard's Modern Rock Tracks chart, staying on that chart for 26 weeks. "Song 2" is certified triple platinum in the UK.

At the 1997 MTV Video Music Awards, "Song 2" was nominated for Best Group Video, and Best Alternative Video.[1] At the 1998 Brit Awards, the song was nominated for Best British Single, and Best British Video.[2] In 1998, BBC Radio 1 listeners voted "Song 2" the 15th Best Track Ever.[3] In 2011, NME placed it number 79 on its list "150 Best Tracks of the Past 15 Years".[4]

Background

According to Graham Coxon, "Song 2" was intended to be a joke on the record company.[5] Damon Albarn had recorded an acoustic demo of the song which was slower and contained the song's distinctive "woo-hoo" chorus in whistle form. Coxon then suggested that they pump up the speed and perform the song loudly, with Coxon deliberately seeking out an amateurish guitar sound.[6] From there, Coxon told Albarn to tell the record company that they wanted to release the song as a single to "blow the flipping record labels' heads off".[5] To Coxon's surprise, record executives reacted positively. When asked if the band had any idea of the song's commercial appeal, Coxon replied, "We'd just thought it was way too extreme".[5]

The track was originally nicknamed "Song 2" as a working title which represented its slot in the tracklist, but the name stuck.[7] The song is two minutes and two seconds long, with two verses, two choruses and a hook featuring Albarn yelling "woo-hoo!" as the distorted bass comes in. It is the second song on Blur's self-titled album, as well as Blur: The Best Of, and was the second single released from the former album.[8]

Some writers have stated that the song is intended to be a parody of the grunge genre,[8][9] while others state that it was a parody of radio hits and the music industry with a punk rock chorus.[10]

Genres and influences

Musically, the song has been labelled alternative rock,[11][12] punk rock,[13] or indie rock.[14] PopMatters described the song as a "[pastiche] [of] Seattle grunge and grubby lo-fi indie rock".[15] Rolling Stone Australia called it "frankly grunge-flavoured".[16]

Reception

A reviewer from Music Week wrote: "This punky, new wavathon is more immediate than most of the cuts from their new album and all the better for the catchy 'woo-hoo' bits."[17] David Sinclair from The Times noted "the American garageband banging and crashing" of the song.[18]

In the UK, "Song 2" built upon the success of Blur's chart-topping single "Beetlebum" to reach number two in the charts.[19] It was also popular on radio stations in the US; consequently, it went at number 55 on the Hot 100 Airplay chart, number 6 on Billboard's Modern Rock Tracks chart, staying on that chart for 26 weeks, and number 25 on the Mainstream Rock Tracks chart.[20] It also placed number two on Triple J's Hottest 100 for 1997 in Australia. The song is atypical of Blur's previous style. The song's intro has been called Graham Coxon's "finest moment".[21] NME ranked "Song 2" at number two in its end-of-year list of the Top 20 Singles of 1997,[22] and later listed it as one of the best songs from the 1990s.[23]

The song has become a fixture in sports stadiums as well.[24] It has been used in multiple FIFA video games, namely FIFA: Road to World Cup 98 and FIFA 23.

Music video

The music video for this song was directed by Sophie Muller, and it features the band playing in a small, secluded room with loud amplifiers behind them. During the choruses, the volume of the song sends the band members crashing against the walls and ground. The set used was modelled on that in the video for their pre-breakthrough single "Popscene".

In 2022, the band uploaded a video onto their YouTube channel called “Song 2 Take 2”, which shows previously unreleased footage of the video being shot in a single take. It was released in celebration of the 25th anniversary of the album.[25]

Live performances

On 20 October 2018, at the Demon Dayz Fest LA, Damon Albarn's other well-known band Gorillaz played the familiar Song 2 theme but in characteristic Gorillaz style with dub/funk elements. While recognition was still dawning on the audience, Graham Coxon joined Gorillaz onstage and launched into his original riff before he and Gorillaz went on to perform the classic arrangement to an enthusiastic reception.[26]

During the end of his only 2022 U.S. solo performance to promote The Nearer the Fountain, More Pure the Stream Flows, Albarn commented that he was asked if he'd perform "Song 2" by L.A. Times journalist Mikael Wood, "before [Wood] cast [Albarn] into the social media abyss". Earlier that day, an interview published by Wood put Albarn into heavy controversy, with Albarn claiming in the article that musician Taylor Swift did not write her own songs. Swift would issue a harsh rebuke to this claim, with several of her friends and collaborators coming to her defense. Albarn would apologize and dedicate the song, which ended up closing the set, to Wood.[27]

Covers and sampling

My Chemical Romance played the song at BBC Radio 1. The cover was later featured on the album "Radio 1's Live Lounge", released on 11 October 2006.

In 2014, Imagine Dragons played Song 2 at Lollapalooza Brazil and again in 2016 at Reading Festival.[28][29]

In 2024, the song was heavily sampled by UK Hip-Hop artist Jeshi in his track "Total 90",[30] which was featured during ITV Sport's coverage of England's Euro 2024 semi-final.

Track listings

All music was composed by Albarn, Coxon, James and Rowntree. All lyrics were written by Albarn.

Personnel

Charts

Certifications

Region Certification Certified units/sales
Australia (ARIA)[59] Gold 35,000^
Denmark (IFPI Danmark)[60] Gold 45,000‡
Italy (FIMI)[61] 2× Platinum 200,000‡
Spain (PROMUSICAE)[62] Platinum 60,000‡
United Kingdom (BPI)[63] 3× Platinum 1,800,000‡

^ Shipments figures based on certification alone.
‡ Sales+streaming figures based on certification alone.

Release history

Region Date Format(s) Label(s) Ref.
United States 17 February 1997 Alternative radio Virgin [64]
United Kingdom 7 April 1997
  • CD
  • cassette
[65]
Japan 8 May 1997 CD [66]

References

  1. ^ 1997 MTV Video Music Awards Rock On The Net. Retrieved 10 February 2012
  2. ^ The Brits 1998 Brits.co.uk. Retrieved 10 February 2012
  3. ^ Radio 1 - Best Tracks Ever Rock List.net. Retrieved 10 February 2012
  4. ^ "150 Best Tracks of the Past 15 Years | #79 Blur - Song 2". NME. Retrieved 16 December 2011.
  5. ^ a b c d "Inside The Song with Graham Coxon from Blur - "Song 2"". Produce Like a Pro. 8 January 2020. Archived from the original on 13 December 2021. Retrieved 12 January 2020.
  6. ^ The Meaningless Meaning Behind Blur’s Joke-Gone-Right, “Song 2” https://americansongwriter.com/the-meaningless-meaning-behind-blurs-joke-gone-right-song-2/
  7. ^ "Countdown | Hottest 100 - Of All Time | triple j". Australian Broadcasting Corporation. 19 December 2013. Archived from the original on 19 December 2013. Retrieved 22 October 2023.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link)
  8. ^ a b Lau, Melody. "Woo hoo! 20 things you may not know about Blur's 'Song 2'". CBC Music. Retrieved 9 September 2018.
  9. ^ DeVille, Chris (10 February 2017). ""Song 2" Turns 20". Stereogum.
  10. ^ Paulas, Rick (7 April 2017). "Woo-hoo! 20 Years Ago, Blur's 'Song 2' Became an Unlikely Sports Anthem". Vice Sports. Retrieved 9 January 2019.
  11. ^ Richin, Leslie (12 January 2017). "20 Alternative Rock Hits Turning 20 in 2017". Billboard. Retrieved 29 November 2018.
  12. ^ "The 79 Best Alternative Rock Songs Of 1997". SPIN. Retrieved 17 February 2022.
  13. ^ Pappademas, Alex (February 2003). "Essential Britpop". Spin. 19 (2): 56. Retrieved 18 September 2016.
  14. ^ Anderson, Sarah (December 2011). "20 greatest indie anthems ever, as voted by you". NME. Retrieved 17 February 2022.
  15. ^ "To the End: 12 Essential Blur Songs for 2012". PopMatters. 19 August 2012. Retrieved 17 February 2022.
  16. ^ Dwyer, Michael (21 July 2015). "Flashback: Blur's Woo Hoo Moment". Rolling Stone Australia. Retrieved 17 February 2022.
  17. ^ "Reviews: Singles" (PDF). Music Week. 29 March 1997. p. 36. Retrieved 14 May 2022.
  18. ^ Sinclair, David (15 February 1997). "The week's top pop releases; Pop". The Times.
  19. ^ Roberts, David (2006). British Hit Singles & Albums. London: Guinness World Records Limited.
  20. ^ Song 2 at AllMusic.
  21. ^ Harry Wylie (August 1997).Top Ten Indie Guitarists (Archived 28 May 2012 at the Wayback Machine) Total Guitar. Retrieved 16 December 2011.
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  25. ^ "Song 2 Take 2". YouTube. 7 April 2022. Retrieved 12 May 2024.
  26. ^ Gorillaz - Covering Blur-Song 2 with Graham Coxon, Demon Dayz Fest LA, October 20, 2018, 18 October 2010, archived from the original on 13 December 2021, retrieved 18 October 2018
  27. ^ Kohn, Daniel (25 January 2022). "Damon Albarn Addresses Taylor Swift Comments At Career-Spanning Intimate L.A. Show". Spin. Retrieved 14 February 2022.
  28. ^ "Watch Imagine Dragons cover Blur's 'Song 2' at Reading Festival". NME. 27 August 2016.
  29. ^ "Imagine Dragons - Song 2 (Blur Cover) - Lollapalooza Brazil 2014 [HD 1080i]". YouTube. 18 April 2014.
  30. ^ Chelosky, Danielle (19 June 2024). "Jeshi – "Total 90"". Stereogum. Retrieved 12 July 2024.
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  37. ^ Song 2 (Japanese mini-album liner notes). Blur. Food Records, Parlophone. 1997. TOCP-50174.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
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