Things Can Only Get Better (D:Ream song)

"Things Can Only Get Better"
Single by D:Ream
from the album D:Ream On Volume 1
Released	10 January 1993
Recorded	Aosis Studios
Genre	Dance music
Label	Magnet Records
Writer(s)	Peter Cunnah and Jamie Petrie
Producer	D:Ream and Tom Frederikse
D:Ream singles chronology
U R The Best Thing (1992) Things Can Only Get Better (1993) U R The Best Thing (Re-release) (1993)

"Things Can Only Get Better" is a popular dance-pop song by D:Ream. It is considered a part of the 'cool Britannia' cultural movement of the 1990s, and the Labour Party used it as a theme during the Party's successful 1997 campaign.

The song took several months to reach the top of the UK singles chart. Originally a club hit, pop success took much longer for the song – initially it reached only number 24 on the singles chart, in January 1993. Band member Al Mackenzie left later that year and remaining member Peter Cunnah took the band in a more pop friendly direction. "Things Can Only Get Better" was remixed and became an instant hit spending four weeks at number one in January 1994.

As a campaign song

In 1997 the track was adopted by the UK Labour Party as their theme for the 1997 UK General Election, in an attempt to reflect the need for change that they were pressing for after 18 years of Conservative Party rule.

On the back of this use it returned to the chart reaching number 19 in May 1997, when Labour returned to power with Tony Blair as prime minister, replacing John Major's Conservative party as the party in government.

John O'Farrell used the song title as the title of his book about Labour's 18 years in opposition. Later, lead singer, Peter Cunnah admitted mixed feelings about the use of the song as part of the election campaign.

See also

• You've never had it so good

References

Preceded by "Twist and Shout" by Chaka Demus & Pliers

UK Singles Chart number-one single 16 January 1994

Succeeded by "Without You" by Mariah Carey