BLUR – CRAZY BEAT Red Vinyl 7″ – Nr MINT UK 2003 INDIE DAMON ALBARN

Blur – Crazy Beat / The Outsider
(Parlophone Records  2003  R6610)

Sleeve & Red Vinyl in Nr MINT condition
some light crackles at the start of side 2

Blur are an English rock band, formed in London in 1988. The group consists of singer/keyboardist Damon Albarn, guitarist/singer Graham Coxon, bassist Alex James and drummer Dave Rowntree. Their debut album Leisure (1991) incorporated the sounds of Madchester and shoegazing. Following a stylistic change influenced by English guitar pop groups such as the Kinks, the Beatles and XTC, Blur released Modern Life Is Rubbish (1993), Parklife (1994) and The Great Escape (1995). In the process, the band helped establish the Britpop genre and achieved mass popularity in the UK, aided by a chart battle with rivals Oasis in 1995 dubbed the “Battle of Britpop”.

In recording their follow-up, Blur (1997), the band underwent another reinvention, showing influence from the lo-fi style of American indie rock groups. The album, including the “Song 2” single, brought Blur mainstream success in the United States. Their next album, 13 (1999) saw the band members experimenting with electronic and gospel music, and featured more personal lyrics from Albarn. In May 2002, Coxon left Blur during the recording of their seventh album Think Tank (2003). Containing electronic sounds and more minimal guitar work, the album was marked by Albarn’s growing interest in hip hop and African music. After a 2003 tour without Coxon, Blur did no studio work or touring as a band, as members engaged in other projects.

Blur reunited, with Coxon back in the fold, for a series of concerts in 2009. In the following years they released several singles and retrospective compilations, and toured internationally. In 2012, the group received a Brit Award for Outstanding Contribution to Music. Their first major release in twelve years, The Magic Whip (2015), became the sixth consecutive Blur studio album to top the British charts. The group have largely been on hiatus ever since the end of The Magic Whip tour.

“Crazy Beat” is a song by English band Blur. It was released as the second single from their seventh album Think Tank in 2003. “Crazy Beat” has been compared by critics and the band to Blur’s 1997 hit “Song 2” in its guitar-driven simplicity. Released in the United States as the first single from the album, it became Blur’s first single since “Song 2” to chart on the Modern Rock Tracks chart, reaching No. 22. Graham Coxon, who had left the group prior to the album’s release, plays on the single’s B-side “The Outsider”.

Track listings

7″

1. “Crazy Beat”
2. “The Outsider”

Production credits

• “Crazy Beat” produced by Norman Cook, Blur and Ben Hillier
• “Don’t Be” and “The Outsider” produced by Blur and Ben Hillier
• Damon Albarn – vocals, guitars, programming
• Alex James: bass, backing vocals
• Dave Rowntree – drums, programming
• Fatboy Slim – keyboards, synths, programming, effects