Britpop's 25 best lyrics

7 May 2024, 09:43

The witty wordplay of some of the best tunes of the 90s: themes of youth, love, and rebellion, mixing clever storytelling and nostalgic charm. Here are some of the best examples!

By Radio X

@RadioX

1. "Oh, in your council home, he jumped on your bones / Now you're taking it time after time"

   Suede - Animal Nitrate

   

   Suede - Animal Nitrate (Remastered Official HD Video)

2. "He's a twentieth century boy / With his hands on the rails / Trying not to be sick again"

   Blur - For Tomorrow

   

   Blur - For Tomorrow (Official Music Video)

3. "She came from Greece, she had a thirst for knowledge / She studied sculpture at Saint Martin's College"

   Pulp - Common People

   

   Pulp - Common People

4. "Drivel head wears her glad rags / She's got her keys, money and fags / I know that her mind is made up / To get rocked"

   Elastica - Line-Up

   

   Elastica - Line Up

5. "A thousand thundering thrills await me / Facing insurmountable odds gratefully / The female of the species is more deadly than the male"

   Space - Female Of The Species

   

   Space - Female Of The Species

6. "Libraries gave us power / Then work came and made us free / What price now / For a shallow piece of dignity?"

   Manic Street Preachers - A Design For Life

   

   Manic Street Preachers - A Design For Life

7. "Is it my imagination, or have I finally found something worth living for?"

   Oasis - Cigarettes & Alcohol

   

   Oasis - Cigarettes & Alcohol (Official HD Remastered Video)

8. "Shopping for kicks, got the weekend to get through / She's keeping the rain off her Saturday hairdo"

   Sleeper - Inbetweener

   

   Sleeper - Inbetweener (Video)

9. "And then I missed my cue / Everybody had a laugh / And then went for an early bath, did you?"

   Shed Seven - Going For Gold

   

   Shed Seven - Going For Gold

10. "I've got a sandstorm blowin' in my head / I'm seein' many colours but the only one that's coming through is red"

    Cast - Sandstorm

    

    Cast - Sandstorm

11. "Where did you go? When things went wrong for you? When the knives came out for you?"

    The Bluetones - Slight Return

    

    The Bluetones - Slight Return

12. "Can't get the stink off / He's been hanging 'round for days"

    Radiohead - Just

    

    Radiohead - Just

13. "Blowing off the dust in the room where I forgot / I laid my plans in solid rock"

    Ocean Colour Scene - The Day We Caught The Train

    

    Ocean Colour Scene - The Day We Caught The Train (Official Video)

14. "If this is heaven, then send me to hell / So stay in the light, don't take your eyes from the prize / Hey, there goes the bell"

    Dodgy - Good Enough

    

    Good Enough - Dodgy

15. "Slip inside the eye of your mind / Don't you know you might find / A better place to play?"

    Oasis - Don't Look Back In Anger

    

    Oasis - Don’t Look Back In Anger

16. "Are we like you? / I can't be sure / Of the scene as she turns / We are strange in our worlds"

    Supergrass - Alright

    

    Supergrass - Alright (Official HD Video)

17. "Sugar smile savvy, the king of the kerb / Got a temper in the style of a bomb"

    Echobelly - King Of The Kerb

    

    Echobelly - King Of The Kerb (Video)

18. "How many special people change? / How many lives are living strange? / Where were you while we were getting high?"

    Oasis - Champagned Supernova

    

    Oasis - Champagne Supernova (Official Video)

19. "Streets like a jungle / So call the police / Following the herd / Down to Greece"

    Blur - Girls & Boys

    

    Blur - Girls And Boys (Official Music Video)

20. "Well, you and I collapsed in love / And it looks like we might have made it"

    Blur - To The End

    

    Blur - To The End (Official Music Video)

21. "Oh, is this the way they say the future's meant to feel? Or just 20,000 people standing in a field?"

    Pulp - Sorted For E's And Wizz

    

    Pulp - Sorted For E's & Wizz (Video)

22. "Got a low, low feeling around me / And a stone cold feeling inside / And I just can't stop messing my mind up / Or wasting my time"

    Supergrass - Moving

    

    Supergrass - Moving (Official HD Video)

23. "Karma police, arrest this man / He talks in maths / He buzzes like a fridge / He's like a detuned radio"

    Radiohead - Karma Police

    

    Radiohead - Karma Police

24. "We won't use guns, we won't use bombs / We'll use the one thing we've got more of / That's our minds, yeah"

    Pulp - Mis-Shapes

    

    Pulp - Mis-Shapes

25. "But we're trash, you and me / We're the litter on the breeze / We're the lovers on the streets"

    Suede - Trash

    

    Suede - Trash (Official Video)