Blur- 10 Year Anniversary Box Set (1999) MP3 & FLAC -For sradams777-

"I met him in a crowded room where people go to drink away their gloom. He sat me down and so began the story of a charmless man."

Originally a fair to middling Shoegaze band who had arrived too late in the game to be successful purveyors of the Manchester sound that dominated their early efforts, Blur eventually re-invented themselves as Brit-pop revivalists, and in the process, became one of the most important and influential U.K. bands of the nineties. Blur- and before that Seymour until they changed their name at the behest of their record company, in hindsight, a very wise move- were little more than scene-jumpers with a tepid first single, "She's So High," until coming under the influence of producer Stephen Street, who was best known at the time for his engineering and production work with The Smiths. Under Street's tutelage, Blur came up with their breakthrough single, "There's No Other Way"; however, internally, things were disintegrating: while Blur were quickly outgrowing their dependence on the Manchester scene for inspiration, Food Records was very resistant to a change in direction, as they were evidently more interesting in milking the Manchester sound for as long as possible. Things eventually came to a head on the ensuing U.S. tour in support of the band's debut L.P., Leisure, during which relations between band members began to disintegrate and homesickness reached epidemic proportions, as Damon Albarn recalls, "I just started to miss really simple things [....] I missed everything about England, so I started writing songs which created an English atmosphere." Thus, the seeds for Blur's transformation were sown. Despite an occasionally nationalistic tone, especially in interviews, Blur's decision to foreground the "Englishness" of their music was not unlike The Kinks' decision, 25 years earlier, to move from Mersey-Beat-influenced Garage-Rock to Ray Davies' psychedelic-tinged explorations of traditional British culture, with the irony being that in Blur's case, it made them superstars (at least on their side of the pond), while for The Kinks, despite resulting in unprecedented artistic heights for the band, it considerably diminished their mainstream commercial appeal (if only temporarily). With albums such as Modern Life Is Rubbish, Parklife, and The Great Escape, Blur were at the forefront of a British guitar-pop revival that included bands such as Suede, Pulp, The Boo Radleys, Elastica, and arch-rivals, Oasis, to name but a few. During these years, Blur cultivated a well-publicized rivalry with Oasis that, at times, verged on a feud; however, what distinguished Blur's brand of Brit-Pop from that of bands like Oasis was its post-modern sensibilities, not the least of which was the ability to sound simultaneously tongue-in-cheek, even humorous, and viciously satirical in a socio-political sense. Another aspect of the band that contrasted sharply with the competition was their penchant for artistic re-invention, a characteristic largely attributable to guitarist Graham Coxon. During their Brit-Pop years, Blur was quite dismissive of and staunchly resistant to the influence of American indie music on the British music scene, leading Albarn to claim at one point, "If punk was about getting rid of hippies, then I'm getting rid of grunge." Nevertheless, by the mid-nineties, Coxon was falling under the influence of various American Lo-Fi and Noise-Rock bands and consequently had no interest in continuing in the vein of The Great Escape, something that very nearly spelled the end for Blur, as his band-mates were initially not eager to re-invent themselves at the height of their commercial and critical appeal. However, they eventually came around to Coxon's idea of making music "to scare people again." The result was Blur, which Albarn termed, "English slacker," an album that largely redefined the band's sound by assimilating American Lo-Fi influences such as Beck and Pavement and garnered the band critical acclaim while (at least initially) alienating their fan-base. Blur's final album of the decade, 13, saw the band move even further afield of their Brit-Pop past by ending their long-standing relationship with Stephen Street and enlisting William Orbit as producer, who reportedly gave Coxon free-reign in the studio and encouraged Albarn to explore his crush on gospel music. As a result, 13 stands as Blur's most stripped down and darkest album, but also its most self-indulgent. When all is said and done, Blur was probably the most consistently great British band of the nineties, which is even more impressive given the fact that, stylistically, they were not a band to rest on their laurels.

10 Year Anniversary Box Set  

(Food ~ 1999/1990-1999 ~ 22 Disc Box Set)

 

Disc 1: She's So High / I Know (Single- 1990)

Tracklist-

1. She's So High (Edit)  (3:49)

2. I Know  (3:31)

3. Down  (5:56)

4. Sing  (6:00)

5. I Know (Extended  (6:25)

Disc 2: There's No Other Way (Single- 1991)

Tracklist- 

1. There's No Other Way  (3:14)

2. Inertia  (3:51)

3. Mr. Briggs  (3:59)

4. I'm All Over  (2:00)

5. There's No Other Way (Blur Remix)  (5:04)

6. Won't Do It  (3:19)

7. Day Upon Day (Live, Bath Moles)  (4:01)

8. There's No Other Way (Extended Version)  (4:04)

Discs 1 & 2- MU: Lossy (MP3@320)

Discs 1 & 2- MU: Lossless (FLAC)

Disc 3: Bang (Single- 1991)

Tracklist-

1. Bang  (3:34)

2. Explain  (2:44)

3. Luminous  (3:13)

4. Berserk  (6:52)

5. Bang (Extended)  (4:27)

6. Uncle Love  (2:30)

Disc 4: Popscene (Single- 1992)

Tracklist-

1. Popscene  (3:12)

2. Mace  (3:24)

3. Badgeman Brown  (4:47)

4. I'm Fine  (3:01)

5. Garden Central  (5:58)

Discs 3 & 4- MU: Lossy (MP3@320)

Discs 3 & 4- MU: Lossless (FLAC)

Disc 5: For Tomorrow (Single- 1993)

Tracklist-

1. For Tomorrow (Single Version)  (4:20)

2. Into Another  (3:54)

3. Hanging Over  (4:27)

4. Peach  (3:57)

5. Bone Bag  (4:03)

6. When the Cows Come Home  (3:49)

7. Beachcoma  (3:37)

8. For Tomorrow (Acoustic Version)  (4:41)

9. For Tomorrow (Visit to Primrose Hill Extended)  (6:00)

Disc 5- MU: Lossy (MP3@320) 

Disc 5- MU: Lossless (FLAC)

Disc 6: Chemical World (Single- 1993)

Tracklist-

1. Chemical World (Single Edit)  (3:54)

2. Young and Lovely  (5:04)

3. Es Schmecht  (3:38)

4. My Ark  (5:58)

5. Maggie May  (4:05)

6. Chemical World (Reworked)  (3:46)

7. Never Clever (Live, Glastonbury 1992)  (2:28)

8. Pressure on Julian (Live, Glastonbury 1992)  (5:00)

9. Come Together (Live, Glastonbury 1992)  (3:30)

Disc 6- MU: Lossy (MP3@320)

Disc 6- MU: Lossless (FLAC)

Disc 7: Sunday Sunday (Single- 1993)

Tracklist-

1. Blur- Sunday Sunday  (2:37)

2. Seymour- Dizzy  (3:24)

3. Seymour- Fried  (2:34)

4. Seymour- Shimmer  (4:40)

5. Seymour- Long-Legged  (2:23)

6. Seymour- Mixed Up  (3:01)

7. Seymour- Tell Me Tell Me  (3:37)

8. Blur- Daisy Bell (A Motorcycle Made for Two)  (2:48)

9. Blur- Let's All Go Down the Strand  (3:42)

Disc 8: Girls & Boys (Single- 1994)

Tracklist-

1. Girls & Boys  (4:20)

2. Magpie  (4:15)

3. Anniversary Waltz  (1:23)

4. People in Europe  (3:28)

5. Peter Panic  (4:22)

Discs 7 & 8- MU: Lossy (MP3@320)

Discs 7 & 8- MU: Lossless (FLAC)

Disc 9: To the End (Single- 1994)

Tracklist-

1. To the End  (3:52)

2. Girls & Boys (Pet Shop Boys 7" Mix)  (4:04)

3. Girls & Boys (Pet Shop Boys 12" Mix)  (7:16)

4. Threadneedle Street  (3:19)

5. Got Yer!  (1:48)

Disc 10: Parklife (Single- 1994)

Tracklist-

1. Parklife  (3:06)

2. Beard  (1:46)

3. To the End (French Version)  (4:06)

4. Supa Shoppa  (3:02)

5. Theme from an Imaginary Film  (3:35)

Discs 9 & 10- MU: Lossy (MP3@320) 

Discs 9 & 10- MU: Lossless (FLAC) 

Disc 11: End of a Century (Single- 1994)

Tracklist-

1. End of a Century  (2:47)

2. Rednecks  (3:04)

3. Alex's Song  (2:42)

Disc 12: Country House (1995- Single)

Tracklist-

1. Country House  (3:58)

2. One Born Every Minute  (2:18) 

3. Blur & Françoise Hardy- To the End (La Comedie)  (5:06)

4. Country House (Live, Mile End Stadium 1995)  (5:01)

5. Girls & Boys (Live, Mile End Stadium 1995)  (5:08)

6. Parklife (Live, Mile End Stadium 1995)

7. For Tomorrow (Live, Mile End Stadium 1995)

Discs 11 & 12- MU: Lossy (MP3@320) 

Discs 11 & 12- MU: Lossless (FLAC)

Disc 13: The Universal (Single- 1995)

Tracklist-

1. The Universal  (4:00)

2. Ultranol  (2:42)

3. No Monsters in Me  (3:38)

4. Entertain Me (Live It! Remix)  (7:19)

5. The Universal (Live, BBC Radio One 1995)  (4:11)

6. Mr. Robinson's Quango (Live, BBC Radio One 1995)  (4:17)

7. It Could Be You (Live, BBC Radio One 1995)  (3:17)

8. Stereotypes (Live, BBC Radio One 1995)  (3:12)

Disc 14: Stereotypes (Single- 1996)

Tracklist-

1. Stereotypes  (3:11)

2. The Man Who Left Himself  (3:21)

3. Tame  (4:47)

4. Ludwig  (2:24)

Discs 13 & 14- MU: Lossy (MP3@320)

Discs 13 & 14- MU: Lossless (FLAC)

Disc 15: Charmless Man (Single- 1996)

Tracklist-

1. Charmless Man  (3:33)

2. The Horrors  (3:18)

3. A Song  (1:44)

4. St. Louis  (3:12)

Disc 16: Beetlebum (Single- 1997)

Tracklist-

1. Beetlebum  (5:05)

2. All Your Life  (4:11)

3. A Spell for Money  (3:31)

4. Beetlebum (Mario Caldato Jr. Mix)  (5:04)

5. Woodpigeon Song  (1:41)

6. Dancehall  (3:11)

Discs 15 & 16- MU: Lossy (MP3@320) 

Discs 15 & 16- MU: Lossless (FLAC) 

Disc 17: Song 2 (Single- 1997)

Tracklist-

1. Song 2  (2:02)

2. Bustin' + Dronin'  (6:31)

3. Country Sad Ballad Man (Live Acoustic Version)  (4:59)

4. Get Out of Cities  (4:02)

5. Polished Stone  (2:42)

Disc 18: On Your Own (Single- 1997)

Tracklist-

1. On Your Own  (4:27)

2. Chinese Bombs (Live at Peel Acres, 1997)  (1:14)

3. Movin' On (Live at Peel Acres, 1997)  (3:20)

4. M.O.R. (Live at Peel Acres, 1997)  (2:59)

5. Popscene (Live at Peel Acres, 1997)  (3:04)

6. Song 2 (Live at Peel Acres, 1997)  (1:50)

7. On Your Own (Live at Peel Acres, 1997)  (4:46)

Discs 17 & 18- MU: Lossy (MP3@320) 

Discs 17 & 18- MU: Lossless (FLAC)

Disc 19: M.O.R. (Single- 1997)

Tracklist-

1. M.O.R. (Alan Moulder Road Version)  (3:14)

2. Swallows in the Heatwave  (2:33)

3. Movin' On (William Orbit Remix)  (8:00)

4. Beetlebum (Moby's Minimal House Mix)  (6:16)

Disc 20: Tender (Single- 1999)

Tracklist-

1. Tender  (7:41)

2. All We Want  (4:33)

3. Mellow Jam  (3:55)

4. French Song  (8:19)

5. Song 2  (2:02)

Discs 19 & 20- MU: Lossy (MP3@320) 

Discs 19 & 20- MU: Lossless (FLAC)

Disc 21: Coffee & TV (Single- 1999)

Tracklist-

1. Coffee & TV (Radio Edit)  (5:19)

2. Trade Stylee (Alex's Bugman Remix)  (5:59)

3. Metal Hip Slop (Graham's Bugman Remix)  (4:27)

4. X-Offender (Damon / Control Freak's Bugman Remix)  (5:42)

5. Coyote (Dave's Bugman Remix)  (3:48)

Disc 22: No Distance Left to Run (Single- 1999)

Tracklist-

1. No Distance Left to Run  (3:28)

2. Tender (Cornelius Remix)  (5:23)

Discs 21 & 22- MU: Lossy (MP3@320) 

Discs 21 & 22- MU: Lossless (FLAC)