12 Reasons Why Pulp Were The True Champions Of Britpop

Oasis? Blur? Naaaaahhh.

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I hate to break it to you but "Britpop" is officially 20 years old this year. That's right, seminal albums by Oasis (Definitely Maybe - August '94), Blur (Parklife - April '94), Suede (Dog Man Star - October '94), Manic Street Preachers (The Holy Bible - August '94) and Pulp (His n Hers - April '94) are all older than this years Freshers.

Looking back to Britpop, most people remember the battle between Oasis and Blur for the title of Britpop Champions. It was a simpler time when two of the worst songs by good groups battling for number one made the national news. It was a VERY. BIG. DEAL.

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However, later that year Pulp released "Different Class". An album that told stories of headboards banging in the night, posh birds sleeping with working class blokes (not just Common People, see also: I Spy), losing your mind in a field in Hampshire and the inevitable comedown.

Here are twelve reasons why Pulp were the true winners of the mid 90's.

1. They were impossible to hate

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As mentioned earlier, probably the most frequently asked question between 16-30 year olds in the mid 90s was "Blur or Oasis?". Well, the cool kids would all answer "Pulp, actually" with a sigh and an eye roll. Pulp were great because they united everyone, Blur fans liked them, Oasis fans liked them. No such nonsense as chart battles and slanging matches for our Pulp.

2. They really put the hours in

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Pulp had been around in various guises since Jarvis Cocker formed "Arabicus Pulp" with schoolfriends in 1978. The band toiled through the 80s with changing line-ups and erratic musical stylings (they were once described as "a cross between Abba and The Fall"), with Jarvis as the lynchpin. The band released three albums between 1983 and 1992, although most people assume their 1994 release "His 'n' Hers" was their debut.

3. They had a girl on keyboards

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By the time Britpop was in full swing it wasn't unusual to have a woman in the band (see: Louise Wener and her Sleeperblokes, Echobelly, Republica, Skunk Anansie, Garbage et al) but Pulp's keyboardist Candida Doyle had been quietly getting on with the important business of wearing fluffy jumpers and just being in the band since 1984. She's a style icon (just look at that pink tights and chunky shoe combo!) and a real role model for quiet girls who'd quite like to be popstars.

4. They dressed like hipsters before hipsters were even invented

Talking of dress sense, Pulp were way ahead of the times when it came to sartorial choices. Walk down any street in Dalston/Shoreditch/your own trendy equivalent today and you will surely see a lot of Jarv-a-likes in thick rimmed NHS specs, double breasted 1970s suits in various shades of brown and bottle green, awful jumpers, polyester shirts, hair that needs a good wash.....Jarvis did all that twenty years ago.

5. Russell Senior's eyes

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Pulp's guitarist and violinist Russell Senior has the most god damn piercing eyes in the world. He even said in an interview with Select (remember that?!) “I’ve got these mad staring eyes. At concerts people’d be dancing, but there’d be a pool of emptiness in front of me, with people looking terrified. I started wearing sunglasses so I wouldn’t disconcert people.” He even stated that in 1993 his biggest expense was sunglasses.

6. Jarvis Cocker: Lyrical genius and filthy get

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Jarvis has a magical way of writing about everyday life and it's twists and turns in a really honest way. Especially if everyday life concerns someone's mother, brother or lover.

He can be sweet (Something Changed), bitter (Razzmatazz), funny (Mile End) and sometimes - well, most of the time - downright filthy (Sheffield: Sex City, Acrylic Afternoons, Pencil Skirt, His n Hers.....I could go on.) He's so good he even gave a specially commissioned lecture on the role of lyrics in popular music as part of the Brighton Festival in 2008.

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7. You felt like you could be in their gang

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Pulp were like the cool, arty people you felt like you should be hanging out with, instead of lager swigging lads in trackies or mockneys having a knees up. If you were a bit weird or a bit nerdy, it didn't matter. You could be a Pulp Person.

8. They were arty without being pretentious

In Britain during the mid 90s art and music were often sneaking off behind the bikesheds together. Young artists such as Tracey Emin and Damien Hirst were as much a part of "Cool Britannia" as the bands.

Jarvis famously sang about attending St Martin's College, yet seemed to manage to stay delightfully down to earth (unlike others...ahem....Brett Anderson, I'm looking at you). Maybe it's because he's northern.

9. They pissed off SmugCheeseMonger Alex James from Blur

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Alex James in 2003:

''In a lot of ways, Pulp were even bigger c**ts than Oasis. They were in our birds knickers: devious little fuckers. We definitely tried to help them but they never had a kind word for us. I kind of object to them more than Oasis, actually. At least Oasis said were going to shag your bird. There was something a bit snidey about Pulp...And they got all the support slots''.

Alex accused the Pulp bassist of sleeping with his girlfriend, stating "Steve Mackey was shagging my bird, the c**t". Steve Mackey gave literally no fucks.

10. The Brits incident

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So, we've got this far without mentioning it. Here goes....

Firstly, Jarvis did NOT moon/bare his bottom at Michael Jackson. He really didn't. Watch the footage. He did a silly dance, lifted his top and mimed a fart.

The MJ incident is when Pulp well and truly invaded the mainstream. Jarvis explained why he did it in Melody Maker soon after:

"I'd seen the run-through and I'd found it extremely distasteful and crap. But it wasn't until he was going on and on that something within me snapped. Candida was there and she was egging me on. I was saying, 'Look, we could do something here, 'cos we're really near.'
"And she was saying, 'Oh, you'd never do it.' So she was egging me on. I blame her!"

Jarvis was arrested and later released without charge, but the incident helped seal his status as national treasure....except if you were a Jacko fan.

11. They put a naughty diagram on one of their single sleeves and caused middle England to shit themselves

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The artwork for 1995 single "Sorted For Es & Wizz" featured what appeared to be instructions on how to construct a paper wrap for drugs. That, combined with the subject matter of the track, caused a media furore.

The Mirror's pop columnist, Kate Thornton, told NME: "We wanted to see the sleeve pulled and we thought it was a crusade we would take up single-handedly. I think the sleeve is something that will concern our readers, although it may not concern yours"

Pulp later agreed to scrap the artwork, but copies still exist.

12. They stepped in and saved Glastonbury 1995

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Glastonbury 1995 was supposed to see the long awaited return of The Stone Roses. Fans had waited years for the second album and more gigs but John Squire and his broken collar bone forced the band to cancel their headline slot.

Enter Pulp who were drafted in as replacements and knocked it out of the field. Different Class had not yet been released, but the crowd were mesmerised and a triumphant performance of Common People sealed a place in Glasto history.

To Pulp!