The Wildhearts: 10 Tracks You Need To Call Yourself A Fan

Among hardcore WIldhearts’ fans, their b-sides have always been the stuff of legend, with some even becoming more beloved than many of the band’s more famous songs.

But nothing in their canon can be described more accurately as a “fan favourite” than 29 x The Pain. Taken from 1994’s Suckerpunch single, its title is an homage to Hüsker Dü's song 59 x The Pain, but what of the significance of the number 29? Well that depends on who you ask.

Ginger was 29 when he wrote the song, so that’s a good start. But some eagle-eyed fans have worked out that it was also the 29th Wildhearts song to be released, if you count chronological order and tracklistings.

There are some who even say that in the song Ginger name-checks 29 of his favourite bands. Some of these are easy to spot - “The Beatles and the Stones, get to hang out with Ramones, and the Pistols shunning fame...” - but others are more subtle, meaning that this theory is the most dubious one.

One person it definitely does reference is Kurt Cobain. The song was released just weeks after his suicide, and in it Ginger says he will miss the Nirvana frontman. When it was re-recorded two years later, just after Manic Street Preachers’ guitarist Richey Edwards disappeared, Ginger altered this part of the lyrics to honour him instead.

Oh, and watch out for the bonus track at the end of the song, drummer Ritch Battersby’s short but bonkers Duck Song!