This Is a Low: Difference between revisions

"This Is a Low"
"This Is a Low"
Promotional single by Blur
from the album Parklife
Released	3 January 1995
Recorded	August 1993–January 1994
Genre	Britpop
Length	5:07 (album version); 5:02 (Blur: The Best Of version);
Label	Food
Songwriter(s)	Damon Albarn, Graham Coxon, Alex James and Dave Rowntree
Producer(s)	Stephen Street

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"This Is a Low" is a song by English rock band Blur for their third studio album, Parklife. The song was released as a promotional single in 1995.

Background and recording

Originally titled "We Are the Low", the song began life as an instrumental during the Parklife sessions. In the guitar solo, Graham Coxon played three solos, including one of him sitting in front of his amp, turned up to maximum volume.^[1] According to bassist Alex James, Damon Albarn was finding it hard to write lyrics. In his autobiography, A Bit of a Blur, he revealed that "for Christmas I bought him a handkerchief with a map of the shipping forecast regions on it ... you can never tell where the muse is going to appear."^[2] "We always found the shipping forecast soothing", James said. "We used to listen to it [on the American tour] to remind us of home. It's very good for a hangover. Good cure for insomnia, too."^[1] On 4 February 1994, the penultimate day of official recording, Albarn was due to go into hospital for a hernia operation. Pressured to come up with the lyrics, Albarn took advantage of the map James had given him. "I'd had this line – 'And into the sea go pretty England and me' – for a long time", Albarn revealed. "So I started at the Bay of Biscay. Back for tea. 'Tea' rhymes with 'me'. And then I went 'Hit traffic on the Dogger Bank'. 'Bank' – 'Rank' – so 'up the Thames to find a taxi rank'. And I just went round."^[1]

Music and lyrics

The song is in the key of E major^[3] and is in ⁴
₄ time. In total, the song contains two verses, two choruses, a guitar solo and two further choruses. The music commences with a four-chord guitar progression, before moving straight into the first verse. The music is based in the mixolydian mode, highlighted by the fact the V chord (B minor) is minor instead of major.

The song's lyrics reference a low-pressure area of weather hitting Britain. The lyrics are based on the Shipping Forecast, with references made to the various areas surrounding the country.^[1] In the lyric "sail on by with the tide", passing reference is also made to the tune "Sailing By", which plays at the start of the 0048 forecast on BBC Radio 4. Music writer John Harris described the lyrics as "a fantasia centred around the shipping forecast – [an] inexplicably calming institution that soundtracks the switching-off of the UK's night-lights – narrated as if the writer was gazing at the whole of The British Isles."^[4]

Locations named in the song

This is a list of the shipping areas mentioned in the song (in context):

Bay of Biscay – "Around the Bay of Biscay and back for tea"
Dogger, Thames – "Hit traffic on the Dogger Bank/Up the Thames to find a taxi rank"
Tyne, Forth, Cromarty, Forties – "Up the Tyne, Forth and Cromarty/There's a low in the High Forties"
Malin – "And on the Malin Head, Blackpool looks blue and red"

The song also mentions the most westerly point of England, Land's End; "the Queen, she's gone round the bend, jumped off Land's End".

Reception

"This Is a Low" is often chosen as a stand-out track from the album, including as a selected highlight by AllMusic, who describe the track as a "swirling, epic closer".^[5] John Harris described the song as Parklife's "key masterstroke" and "close to perfection". Harris also compared the quality with "any of Blur's illustrious forebears" including the Beatles.^[4] It was included on the band's Best Of and 2009 Midlife: A Beginner's Guide to Blur compilations.

The song has been performed live many times. It was the final song at Blur's Mile End stadium gig of 1995,^[6] as well as Glastonbury 1994, where the song was voted by fans on the festival's website to appear on the compilation DVD Glastonbury Anthems. It was performed by Damon Albarn and Graham Coxon as their first reunited performance as Blur at the 2009 NME Awards.^[7] Blur also performed the song at the 2012 Brit Awards as an encore.

In 2014, NME ranked it at number 198 in their list of The 500 Greatest Songs of All Time.^[8]

Track listing

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

CD promo

"This Is a Low" – 5:07

Personnel

Damon Albarn – vocals, keyboards
Graham Coxon – guitar
Alex James – bass guitar
Dave Rowntree – drums

References

^ ^a ^b ^c ^d Cavanagh, David; Maconie, Stuart (July–August 1995). "How did they do that?". Select.
^ James, Alex (2007). Bit of a Blur. Little, Brown. pp. 110–111. ISBN 9780316029957.
^ Parklife album booklet, page 16
^ ^a ^b Harris, John (2004). Britpop! Cool Britannia and the Spectacular Demise of English Rock. Da Cap Press. ISBN 0-306-81367-X.
^ Parklife- AllMusic [1] Last accessed: 21 July 2008.
^ AllMusic- A Knees Up at Mile End [2] Last accessed: 16 July 2008
^ "NME Awards: Blur's Damon Albarn and Graham Coxon reunite on stage". 26 February 2009.
^ Rocklist.net NME The 500 Greatest Songs of All Time.. 2014

[MaconieCavanagh-1] Cavanagh, David; Maconie, Stuart (July–August 1995). "How did they do that?". Select.

[2] James, Alex (2007). Bit of a Blur. Little, Brown. pp. 110–111. ISBN 9780316029957.

[Parklife_album_booklet,_page_16-3] Parklife album booklet, page 16

[Harris-4] Harris, John (2004). Britpop! Cool Britannia and the Spectacular Demise of English Rock. Da Cap Press. ISBN 0-306-81367-X.

[AllMusic-5] Parklife- AllMusic [1] Last accessed: 21 July 2008.

[Mile_End-6] AllMusic- A Knees Up at Mile End [2] Last accessed: 16 July 2008

[7] "NME Awards: Blur's Damon Albarn and Graham Coxon reunite on stage". 26 February 2009.

[8] Rocklist.net NME The 500 Greatest Songs of All Time.. 2014

[1]

[2]

[3]

[4]

[5]

[6]

[7]

[8]

@@ Line 1: / Line 1: @@
-{{Use dmy dates|date=August 2012}}
+{{Use dmy dates|date=August 2021}}
 {{Use British English|date=August 2012}}
-{{Infobox single
+{{Infobox song
-| Name           = This Is a Low
+| name       = This Is a Low
-| Cover          =
+| cover      =
-| Artist         = [[Blur (band)|Blur]]
+| alt        =
-| Album          = [[Parklife]]
+| type       = promo
-| Released       = 3 January 1995
+| artist     = [[Blur (band)|Blur]]
-| Format         = [[CD single|CD]]
+| album      = [[Parklife]]
+| released   = 3 January 1995
-| Recorded       = August 1993–January 1994
+| recorded   = August 1993–January 1994
-| Genre          = [[Britpop]], [[art rock]]
-| Length         = 5:07
+| studio     =
-| Writer         = [[Damon Albarn]]
+| genre      = [[Britpop]]
-| Composer       = [[Blur (band)|Blur]]
+| length     =
+*5:07 (album version)
-| Label          = [[Food Records]]
+*5:02 (''[[Blur: The Best Of]]'' version)
-| Producer       = [[Stephen Street]]
-| Misc           =
+| label      = [[Food Records|Food]]
+| writer     = [[Damon Albarn]], [[Graham Coxon]], [[Alex James (musician)|Alex James]] and [[Dave Rowntree]]
-{{Blur Singles Chronology
- | Last Single   = [[End of a Century]] <br/> (1994)
+| producer   = [[Stephen Street]]
+| prev_title =
- | This Single   = This Is a Low <br/> (1995)
+| prev_year  =
- | Next Single   = [[Country House]] <br/> (1995)
+| next_title =
-}}
+| next_year  =
-{{Extra tracklisting
-| Album = [[Blur: The Best Of|Blur: The Best of]]
-| Type  = compilation
-| prev_track     = "[[On Your Own (Blur song)|On Your Own]]"
-| prev_no        = 15
-| this_track     = "'''This Is a Low'''"
-| track_no       = 16
-| next_track     = "[[For Tomorrow]]"
-| next_no        = 17
-}}
-{{Extra music sample|filename=Blur - This Is a Low.ogg |title="This Is a Low" |Type=Song|format=[[Ogg]]}}
 }}
 "'''This Is a Low'''" is a song by English [[rock music|rock]] band [[Blur (band)|Blur]] for their third studio album, ''[[Parklife]]''. The song was released as a promotional single in 1995.
 == Background and recording ==
+Originally titled "We Are the Low", the song began life as an instrumental during the ''Parklife'' sessions. In the guitar solo, [[Graham Coxon]] played three solos, including one of him sitting in front of his amp, turned up to maximum volume.<ref name=MaconieCavanagh>{{cite journal|last1=Cavanagh|first1=David|first2=Stuart|last2=Maconie|title=How did they do that?|journal=Select|date=July–August 1995}}</ref> According to bassist [[Alex James (musician)|Alex James]], [[Damon Albarn]] was finding it hard to write lyrics. In his autobiography, ''A Bit of a Blur'', he revealed that "for Christmas I bought him a handkerchief with a map of the shipping forecast regions on it ... you can never tell where the muse is going to appear."<ref>{{cite book | first=Alex |last=James| title=Bit of a Blur| url=https://archive.org/details/bitofblur00jame | url-access=registration | year=2007 | issue=1 | pages=[https://archive.org/details/bitofblur00jame/page/110 110–111]|publisher=Little, Brown |isbn=9780316029957}}</ref> "We always found the shipping forecast soothing", James said. "We used to listen to it [on the American tour] to remind us of home. It's very good for a hangover. Good cure for insomnia, too."<ref name=MaconieCavanagh /> On 4 February 1994, the penultimate day of official recording, Albarn was due to go into hospital for a hernia operation. Pressured to come up with the lyrics, Albarn took advantage of the map James had given him. "I'd had this line – 'And into the sea go pretty England and me' – for a long time", Albarn revealed. "So I started at the Bay of Biscay. Back for tea. 'Tea' rhymes with 'me'. And then I went 'Hit traffic on the Dogger Bank'. 'Bank' – 'Rank' – so 'up the Thames to find a taxi rank'. And I just went round."<ref name=MaconieCavanagh />
-Originally titled “We Are the Low”, the song began life as an instrumental during the Parklife sessions.
-In the guitar solo, [[Graham Coxon]] played three solos, including one of him sat in front of his amp, turned up to maximum volume.<ref name=MaconieCavanagh>{{cite journal|last=Cavanagh|first=David|first2=Stuart |last2=Maconie|title=How did they do that?|journal=Select|date=July–August 1995|accessdate=10 November 2012}}</ref>
-According to bassist [[Alex James (musician)|Alex James]], [[Damon Albarn]] was finding it hard to write lyrics. In his autobiography, 'A Bit of a Blur', he revealed that "for Christmas I bought him a handkerchief with a map of the shipping forecast regions on it... you can never tell where the muse is going to appear."<ref>{{cite book | first=Alex |last=James| title=Bit of a Blur| year=2007 | issue=1 | pages=110–111}}</ref> “We always found the shipping        forecast soothing,” James explained. “We used to listen to it [on the American tour] to remind us of home. It’s  very good for a hangover. Good cure for insomnia, too.”<ref name=MaconieCavanagh />  On 4 February 1994, the penultimate day of official recording, Albarn was due to go into hospital for a hernia operation. Pressured to come up with the lyrics, Albarn took advantage of the map James had given him. “I’d had this line – ‘And into the sea go pretty England and me’ – for a long time", Albarn revealed. "So I started at the Bay of Biscay. Back for tea. ‘Tea’ rhymes with ‘me’. And then I went ‘Hit traffic on the Dogger Bank’. ‘Bank’ – ‘rank’ – so ‘up the Thames to find a taxi rank’. And I just        went round.”<ref name=MaconieCavanagh />
 == Music and lyrics ==
-The song is in the key of [[E major]] <ref name="Parklife album booklet, page 16">Parklife album booklet, page 16</ref> and is in [[Time signature|4/4 time]]. In total, the song contains two verses, two choruses, a [[guitar solo]] and two further choruses. The music commences with a four-chord guitar progression, before moving straight into the first verse. The music is based in the [[mixolydian mode]], highlighted by the fact the V chord (B minor) is minor instead of major.
+The song is in the key of [[E major]]<ref name="Parklife album booklet, page 16">''Parklife'' album booklet, page 16</ref> and is in [[Time signature|{{music|time|4|4}} time]]. In total, the song contains two verses, two choruses, a [[guitar solo]] and two further choruses. The music commences with a four-chord guitar progression, before moving straight into the first verse. The music is based in the [[mixolydian mode]], highlighted by the fact the V chord (B minor) is minor instead of major.
-The song's lyrics reference a [[low-pressure area]] of weather hitting Britain. The lyrics are based on the [[Shipping Forecast]], with references made to the various areas surrounding the country.<ref name=MaconieCavanagh /> In the lyric "''sail on by with the tide''", passing reference is also made to the tune [[Sailing By]], which ends each day's broadcast of [[BBC Radio 4]]. Music writer [[John Harris (critic)|John Harris]] described the lyrics as "a fantasia centred around the shipping forecast - [an] inexplicably calming institution that soundtracks the switching-off of the UK's night-lights - narrarated as if the writer was gazing at the whole of [[The British Isles]]."<ref name="Harris">{{cite book|last=Harris|first=John|authorlink=John Harris (critic)|title=Britpop! Cool Britannia and the Spectacular Demise of English Rock|year=2004|publisher=Da Cap Press|isbn=0-306-81367-X|ref=harv}}</ref>
+The song's lyrics reference a [[low-pressure area]] of weather hitting Britain. The lyrics are based on the [[Shipping Forecast]], with references made to the various areas surrounding the country.<ref name=MaconieCavanagh /> In the lyric "sail on by with the tide", passing reference is also made to the tune "[[Sailing By]]", which plays at the start of the 0048 forecast on [[BBC Radio 4]]. Music writer [[John Harris (critic)|John Harris]] described the lyrics as "a fantasia centred around the shipping forecast – [an] inexplicably calming institution that soundtracks the switching-off of the UK's night-lights – narrated as if the writer was gazing at the whole of [[The British Isles]]."<ref name="Harris">{{cite book|last=Harris|first=John|authorlink=John Harris (critic)|title=Britpop! Cool Britannia and the Spectacular Demise of English Rock|year=2004|publisher=Da Cap Press|isbn=0-306-81367-X}}</ref>
 === Locations named in the song ===
 This is a list of the shipping areas mentioned in the song (in context):
-*[[Bay of Biscay|Biscay]] - ''"Around the Bay of Biscay and back for tea"''
+*[[Bay of Biscay]] – "Around the Bay of Biscay and back for tea"
-*[[Dogger Bank|Dogger]], [[River Thames|Thames]] - ''"Hit traffic on the Dogger Bank/Up the Thames to find a taxi rank"''
+*[[Dogger Bank|Dogger]], [[River Thames|Thames]] – "Hit traffic on the Dogger Bank/Up the Thames to find a taxi rank"
-*[[River Tyne|Tyne]], [[River Forth|Forth]], [[Cromarty]], [[Long Forties|Forties]] - ''"Up the Tyne, Forth and Cromarty/There's a low in the High Forties"''
+*[[River Tyne|Tyne]], [[River Forth|Forth]], [[Cromarty]], [[Long Forties|Forties]] – "Up the Tyne, Forth and Cromarty/There's a low in the High Forties"
-*[[Malin Head|Malin]] - ''"And on the Malin Head, Blackpool looks blue and red"''
+*[[Malin Head|Malin]] – "And on the Malin Head, Blackpool looks blue and red"
-The song also mentions the most westerly point of England, [[Land's End]]: ''"the Queen, she's gone round the bend, jumped off Land's End"''.
+The song also mentions the most westerly point of England, [[Land's End]]; "the Queen, she's gone round the bend, jumped off Land's End".
-==Track listing==
+== Reception ==
+"This Is a Low" is often chosen as a stand-out track from the album, including as a selected highlight by [[AllMusic]], who describe the track as a "swirling, epic closer".<ref name="AllMusic">Parklife- AllMusic [{{AllMusic|class=album|id=r202255|pure_url=yes}}] Last accessed: 21 July 2008.</ref> John Harris described the song as ''Parklife'''s "key masterstroke" and "close to perfection". Harris also compared the quality with "any of Blur's illustrious forebears" including [[the Beatles]].<ref name="Harris"/> It was included on the band's ''[[Blur: The Best Of|Best Of]]'' and 2009 ''[[Midlife: A Beginner's Guide to Blur]]'' compilations.
-All music composed by [[Damon Albarn|Albarn]], [[Graham Coxon|Coxon]], [[Alex James (musician)|James]] and [[Dave Rowntree|Rowntree]]. All lyrics composed by Albarn.
-{{col-start}}
-{{col-2}}
-;'''CD Promo'''
-# "This Is a Low" – 5:07
+The song has been performed live many times. It was the final song at Blur's [[Mile End stadium]] gig of 1995,<ref name="Mile End">AllMusic- A Knees Up at Mile End [{{AllMusic|class=album|id=r233919|pure_url=yes}}] ''Last accessed: 16 July 2008''</ref> as well as [[Glastonbury festival|Glastonbury]] 1994, where the song was voted by fans on the festival's website to appear on the compilation DVD ''[[Glastonbury Anthems]]''. It was performed by Damon Albarn and Graham Coxon as their first reunited performance as Blur at the 2009 [[NME Awards]].<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/culture/music/rockandjazzmusic/4808570/NME-Awards-Blurs-Damon-Albarn-and-Graham-Coxon-reunite-on-stage.html|title=NME Awards: Blur's Damon Albarn and Graham Coxon reunite on stage|date=26 February 2009 }}</ref> Blur also performed the song at the [[2012 Brit Awards]] as an encore.
-==Personnel==
-*[[Damon Albarn]]: Vocals, Keyboards
-*[[Graham Coxon]]: Guitar
-*[[Alex James (musician)|Alex James]]: Bass Guitar
-*[[Dave Rowntree]]: Drums
+In 2014, ''[[NME]]'' ranked it at number 198 in their list of The 500 Greatest Songs of All Time.<ref>[http://www.rocklistmusic.co.uk/nme_500_greatest_songs_2014.htm Rocklist.net NME The 500 Greatest Songs of All Time.. 2014<!-- Bot generated title -->]</ref>
-== Reception ==
-"This Is a Low" is often chosen as a stand-out track from the album, including as a selected highlight by [[Allmusic]], who describe the track as a "swirling, epic closer".<ref name="Allmusic">Parklife- Allmusic [{{Allmusic|class=album|id=r202255|pure_url=yes}}] ''Last accessed: 21 July 2008''</ref> John Harris described the song as ''Parklife'''s "key masterstroke" and "close to perfection". Harris also compared the quality with "any of Blur's illustrious forebears" including [[The Beatles]]."<ref name="Harris"/>
+==Track listing==
-It is also very popular within the band, this is proved by the surprise inclusion on Blur's ''[[Blur: The Best Of|Best Of]]'' compilation album. "This Is a Low" was the only album track included on the album, selected ahead of some [[Single (music)|a-side]]s. It was also later included on the band's 2009 ''[[Midlife: A Beginner's Guide to Blur]]'' compilation.
+All music composed by [[Damon Albarn|Albarn]], [[Graham Coxon|Coxon]], [[Alex James (musician)|James]] and [[Dave Rowntree|Rowntree]]. All lyrics composed by Albarn.
+'''CD promo'''
-The song has been performed live many times, most notably as the final song at Blur's most famous concert, [[Mile End stadium]] gig of 1995,<ref name="Mile End">Allmusic- A Knees Up at Mile End [{{Allmusic|class=album|id=r233919|pure_url=yes}}] ''Last accessed: 16 July 2008''</ref> as well as [[Glastonbury festival|Glastonbury]] 1994, where the song was voted by fans on the festival's website to appear on the compilation DVD [[Glastonbury Anthems]].  It was performed by Damon Albarn and Graham Coxon as their first reunited performance as Blur at the 2009 [[NME Awards]].[http://www.telegraph.co.uk/culture/music/rockandjazzmusic/4808570/NME-Awards-Blurs-Damon-Albarn-and-Graham-Coxon-reunite-on-stage.html] Also Blur performed this song in the 2012's Brit Awards as an encore.
+# "This Is a Low" – 5:07
+== Personnel ==
-In 2014, ''[[NME]]'' ranked it at number 198 in their list of The 500 Greatest Songs of All Time.<ref>http://www.rocklistmusic.co.uk/nme_500_greatest_songs_2014.htm</ref>
+*[[Damon Albarn]] – vocals, keyboards
+*[[Graham Coxon]] – guitar
+*[[Alex James (musician)|Alex James]] – bass guitar
+*[[Dave Rowntree]] – drums
 == References ==
 {{reflist}}
-==External links==
-* {{MetroLyrics song|blur|this-is-a-low}}<!-- Licensed lyrics provider -->
 {{Blur}}
@@ Line 88: / Line 70: @@
 [[Category:Songs written by Damon Albarn]]
 [[Category:Song recordings produced by Stephen Street]]
-[[Category:Songs about radio]]
+[[Category:Songs written by Graham Coxon]]
+[[Category:Songs written by Alex James (musician)]]
+[[Category:Songs written by Dave Rowntree]]

v t e Blur
Damon Albarn Graham Coxon Alex James Dave Rowntree
Studio albums	Leisure Modern Life Is Rubbish Parklife The Great Escape Blur 13 Think Tank The Magic Whip The Ballad of Darren
Live albums	Live at the Budokan All the People: Blur Live at Hyde Park Parklive
Compilations	The Special Collectors Edition Bustin' + Dronin' The 10 Year Limited Edition Anniversary Box Set Blur: The Best Of Midlife: A Beginner's Guide to Blur Blur 21
Singles	"She's So High" "There's No Other Way" "Bang" "Popscene" "For Tomorrow" "Chemical World" "Sunday Sunday" "Girls & Boys" "To the End" "Parklife" "End of a Century" "Country House" "The Universal" "Stereotypes" "Charmless Man" "Beetlebum" "Song 2" "On Your Own" "M.O.R." "Tender" "Coffee & TV" "No Distance Left to Run" "Music Is My Radar" "Out of Time" "Crazy Beat" "Good Song" "Fool's Day" "Under the Westway"/"The Puritan" "Go Out" "Lonesome Street" "The Narcissist"
Other songs	"This Is a Low"
Video albums	Starshaped Showtime No Distance Left to Run To the End
Related groups	Gorillaz The Good, the Bad & the Queen Rocket Juice & the Moon Fat Les Me Me Me WigWam The Ailerons The Waeve
Related articles	Discography Songs Awards and nominations Rollercoaster Tour
Category