Parklife is a Britpop album by the band Blur, released on April 25, 1994 (see 1994 in music). The album, along with Oasis' Definitely Maybe, launched the Britpop revolution in music in the UK and elsewhere. The bands' sketches of British life among ordinary men and women prompted many reviewers to compare the band to The Kinks. Another probable influence, especially on the title song, is The Small Faces. A surprising influence on the lyrics of "This Is a Low" is the BBC's Shipping Forecast. The songs themselves span many genres, such as the Pet Shop Boys-esque hit single 'Girls And Boys', the jazzy interlude of 'The Debt Collector', the Oi punk of 'Bank Holiday', and the hard rocking 'Trouble In The Message Centre'. Despite this, the album always sounds cohesive, and is rightly regarded as one of the best albums ever.

Table of contents
1 Track listing
2 Personnel
3 Chart positions

Track listing

  1. "Girls & Boys" (Albarn/Coxon/James/Rowntree) - 4:51
  2. "Tracy Jacks" (Albarn/Coxon/James/Rowntree) - 4:20
  3. "End of a Century" (Albarn/Coxon/James/Rowntree) - 2:45
  4. "Parklife" (Albarn/Coxon/James/Rowntree) - 3:05
  5. "Bank Holiday" (Albarn/Coxon/James/Rowntree) - 1:42
  6. "Badhead" (Albarn/Coxon/James/Rowntree) - 3:25
  7. "The Debt Collector" (Albarn/Coxon/James/Rowntree) - 2:10
  8. "Far Out" (Albarn/Coxon/James/Rowntree) - 1:41
  9. "To the End" (Albarn/Coxon/James/Rowntree) - 4:05
  10. "London Loves" (Albarn/Coxon/James/Rowntree) - 4:15
  11. "Trouble in the Message Centre" (Albarn/Coxon/James/Rowntree) - 4:09
  12. "Clover over Dover" (Albarn/Coxon/James/Rowntree) - 3:22
  13. "Magic America" (Albarn/Coxon/James/Rowntree) - 3:38
  14. "Jubilee" (Albarn/Coxon/James/Rowntree) - 2:47
  15. "This Is a Low" (Albarn/Coxon/James/Rowntree) - 5:07
  16. "Lot 105" (Albarn/Coxon/James/Rowntree) - 1:17

Personnel

  • Phil Daniels - Trombone, Horn, Narrator
  • Damon Albarn - Synthesizer, Strings, Harpsichord, Organ (Hammond), Programming, Recorder, Vocals, Vocals (bckgr), Melodica, Moog Synthesizer, Vibraphone
  • Simon Clarke - Flute, Sax (Alto), Sax (Baritone)
  • Graham Coxon - Guitar (Acoustic), Clarinet, Guitar, Percussion, Guitar (Electric), Saxophone, Vocals, Vocals (bckgr)
  • Richard Edwards - Trombone
  • Louise Fuller - Violin
  • Kevin Godley - Director
  • Stephen Hague - Piano, Producer, Engineer
  • Alex James - Guitar, Vocals, Noise
  • Richard Koster - Violin
  • Roddy Lorimer - Trombone
  • Ivan McCready - Cello
  • John Metcalfe - Arranger, Viola
  • Leo Payne - Strings
  • Mark Pharoah - Violin
  • Chris Pitsillides - Strings
  • Audrey Riley - Strings
  • Dave Rowntree - Percussion, Drums, Programming, Noise, Crowd Noise
  • Laetitia Sadier - Vocals
  • Tim Sanders - Sax (Soprano), Sax (Tenor)
  • John Smith - Producer, Engineer
  • Stephen Street - Keyboards, Programming, Sound Effects, Producer
  • Bob Thomas - Photography
  • Chris Tombling - Strings
  • Brunskill - Photography
  • Far Out - Guitar (Bass), Crowd Noise
  • John Smith - Engineer

Chart positions

United Kingdom - album 

1994  Parklife                                                 No. 1
United Kingdom - singles 
1994  Girls and Boys                                           No. 5
1994  To the End                                               No. 16
1994  Parklife                                                 No. 10
1994  End of a Century                                         No. 19
Billboard Music Charts (North America) - album 
1994	Heatseekers	                                        No. 6
Billboard (North America) - singles 
1994	Girls and Boys The Billboard Hot 100	                No. 59
1994	Girls and Boys Modern Rock Tracks	                No. 4
1994	Girls and Boys Top 40 Mainstream	                No. 40
1994	Girls and Boys Hot Dance Music/Club Play	        No. 21
1994	Girls and Boys Hot Dance Music/Maxi-Singles Sales	No. 23