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This Is a Low

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"This Is a Low"
Song

"This Is a Low" is a track written and recorded by Blur for the band's third studio album, Parklife.

Music and Lyrics of the song

The song is in the key of E major [1] and is in 4/4 time. In total, the song contains two verses, two choruses, a guitar solo and two further choruses. The music commences with a four-chord guitar progression, before moving straight into the first verse. The music is based in the mixolydian mode, highlighted by the fact the V chord (B minor) is minor instead of major.

The song's lyrics are about a low in pressure hitting the country. The lyrics are based on the Shipping Forecast, with references made to the various areas surrounding Britain. According to bassist Alex James in his 2007 autobiography Bit of a Blur, "Damon was struggling with the words. For Christmas I brought him a hankerchief with a map of the shipping forecast regions on it... you can never tell where the muse is going to appear. It went on to become Blur's most popular song". [2]

Locations named in the song

This is a list of the forecast locations mentioned in the song (in context):

Popularity

The song is certainly a popular one, regarded highly by both the fans and the band. On Blur's last.fm page, the song charts well inside the Top 20, higher than some a-sides by the band [4]. The album Parklife, itself was (and still is) regarded as a classic in many "best-of" charts (e.g. in the Channel 4's Greatest album's poll [5] and in the Top 25 of Q and HMV's Best British Albums list [6]). This song is often chosen as a stand-out track from the album, including as a selected highlight by All Music Guide, who describe the track as a "swirling, epic closer" [7].

It is also very popular within the band, this is proved by the surprise inclusion on Blur's Best Of compilation album. "This Is a Low" was the only album track included on the album, selected ahead of some a-sides. The tracklisting was selected by the band memebers. Its popularity is further highlighted by the above quote from bassist Alex James.

As of July 2008, it is also the second highest-rated song by the band on Rate Your Music. [8]

The song has been performed live many times, most notably as the final song at Blur's most famous concert, Mile End stadium gig of 1995 [9], as well as Glastonbury 1994, where the song was voted by fans on the festival's website to appear on the compilation DVD Glastonbury Anthems.

References

  1. ^ Parklife album booklet, page 16
  2. ^ Alex James (2007). Bit of a Blur. p. 110-111.
  3. ^ This is a Low lyrics [1] Last accessed: 16 July, 2008
  4. ^ Blur- last.fm [2] Last accessed: 21 July, 2008
  5. ^ Channel 4's 100 Greatest albums [3] Last accessed: 16 July, 2008
  6. ^ Q and HMV's Best British albums [4] Last accessed: 21 July, 2008
  7. ^ Parklife- All Music Guide [5] Last accessed: July 21, 2008
  8. ^ Rate Your Music- Blur's Singles [6] Last accessed: 16 July, 2008
  9. ^ All Music Guide- A Knees Up at Mile End [7] Last accessed: 16 July, 2008


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