https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WDswiT87oo8 Standout track: 'Girls & Boys' Like the mods and rockers of the 60s, Oasis and Blur formed one of music's great rivalries. Their ongoing battle for songwriting supremacy culminated in the "Battle of Britpop" in 1995, which saw Blur's 'Country House' beat the Oasis single 'Roll With It' to number one spot in the UK charts. That song was the first of Blur's singles to accomplish such a feat (the second being 'Beetlebum' in 1996), but the Essex band's breakthrough Britpop moment had already come the previous year in the form of their third album Parklife. Above all, it was an album that showcased Blur's vast depth and intelligence. 'End of a Century' and 'This Is A Low' saw the band at their most beautifully forlorn, Phil Daniels' sardonic spoken-word narration helped the title track become a sing-along classic, and the pulsing synth riff of opening track 'Girls & Boys' radiated the kind of vibrancy and daring that made the genre such a breath of fresh air to begin with. Since his Blur days, vocalist Damon Albarn has gone on to earn further success with Gorillaz and as a solo artist. It's telling that Parklife is still considered one of his most inventive pieces of work. Honourable mention: The Great Escape
History graduate, writer, and long-suffering Spurs fan interested in all things music and sports-related. Once briefly held the title of world's youngest person.
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