Originally called "Arabicus Pulp" (although they shortened it to Pulp within a year), the band achieved sudden success some thirteen years after their formation and became known during the Britpop era as much for their music as for frontman Cocker's antics (notably conducting a stage invasion during Michael Jackson's performance of Earth Song at the 1996 BRIT Awards).
Achieving little success off the back of a Peel session in 1981, Pulp were finally able to release their debut album, It, in 1983. This album and its 1986 follow-up, Freaks, showcased a Pulp keen on Nick Drake (notably on the It single, My Lighthouse), with strong folk roots and little sign of the tendencies for storytelling and acid house music which would eventually bring forth success.
After the release and commercial flop of "Freaks", the band disbanded for a year, but reformed a year later to record a third album, Separations. Delayed for three years after its recording, Separations showed Cocker's increasing exposure to acid house, featuring multiple synths, and a hit single, My Legendary Girlfriend, which helped Pulp's career start to rocket.
Their next single, Babies, which would eventually feature on their 1994's commercial breakthrough His 'n' Hers, and it was the first example of the Pulp-sound most listeners associate with the band--cheap synths, rolling guitars, and Cocker's deadpan vocals telling a story. "His 'n' Hers" in sound, was lumped in with the Britpop movement of the time, receiving commercial and critical acclaim. However, it was the 1995 single Common People, which finally saw them become known, eventually charting at number 2 in the UK charts. Awash with Britpop guitars, catchy keyboard lines and that trademark Cocker vocal performance it has remained a favorite. A successful appearance at Glastonbury that summer cemented their fame, and their success was subsequently confirmed by the release of Different Class, which arrived at the peak of the Britpop movement and featured this song and other UK hits as Disco 2000 and Sorted for E's & Wizz.
Their last two albums, 1998's darker This Is Hardcore, -an album that marked the end of the Britpop era- and 2001's more downbeat We Love Life were commercial successes, but Pulp were no longer as famous or trendy as they had been in the height of Britpop. Following their curation of a music festival, Auto, in 2002, the band announced that they would be embarking on an "indefinite hiatus".
In 2003, Jarvis Cocker released an album as Relaxed Muscle and then two solo efforts, 2006's Jarvis and 2009's Further Complications.
On 8th November 2010, it was announced that the band with its most relevant lineup will reform to play a series of gigs in summer 2011.
Discography:
It 1983
Freaks 1986
Separations 1992
His 'n' Hers 1994
Different Class 1995
This Is Hardcore 1998
We Love Life 2001
Official website:
http://www.pulppeople.com
Catcliffe Shakedown
Pulp Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
It's a fare and a half; they're having a larf
Everybody's broken or they're a dwarf
Mirror mirror on the wall who is the ace-est of them all?
The Catcliffe girl who gets out before her 18th birthday
There's a little old man by the side of the road
He's so picturesque
a physical wreck
a dirty old bloke with no self-respect
Ow!
Oh god!
You'd better leave town
before you get caught in the Catcliffe Shakedown
Yeah
It's a step to the left; a step to the right
You do the Catcliffe Shakedown with all of your might
Oh, baby, shakedown shakedown shakedown
Pudgy 12 year-olds in Union Jack shorts addicted to coffee-whitener and frankfurters. And those boys who said "Mister we just want your car 'cos we're taking a girl to the reservoir" are outside the pub. Fine figures of men; exercising and dieting just doesn't suit them.
Have a meal in a glass
we're having a laugh
just come over here and your face we will smash Oh!
Oh god!
You'd better leave town
before you get caught in the Catcliffe Shakedown
Yeah
Shakedown
Shakedown
Shakedown
Oh no, it's not that bad really: Not if you've been living in Bosnia for the last year. Homebrew is still big news round these parts - no airing cupboard should be without it. They were going to open an airport - can you imagine it? "Whilst in the area why not stock up on string or try some of our duty-free Parkin?" Oh yeah. Let's go.
See the rainbow high above the viaduct,
glowing with all the colours of a bottle of spilt milk
Oh, it's so beautiful, but I don't know what it means
Oh, rainbow high above - what exactly are you advertising?
And our idea of sophisticated humour is setting fire to our farts with disposable lighters. Why not try our delicious lager-style drink with a chocolate-flavoured candy-covered biscuit? "Look at those buttercups over there mummy!" "Hold one under your chin." "What's butter mummy?" "Oh, it's just a different make of margarine"
See the rainbow high above the viaduct,
glowing with all the colours of a bottle of spilt milk
Oh, it's so beautiful, but I don't know what it means
Oh, rainbow high above - what exactly are you advertising?
The film now cuts to reveal who is watching this docudrama. A middle class couple sit in wonder as the titles roll. "All nicotine stains and beer-bellies in this programme were real."
But upstairs in his room, amongst the Airfix planes, is a small boy. He sits in the dark, listening for the sound of the train that crosses the viaduct at four o'clock every morning. The train that carries the dismembered remains, the dismembered remains of Matchstick Men and Matchstick Cats & Dogs, and it's coming, and it's coming, coming... Oh yeah.
"What you looking at?"
"I don't know - label's fell off"
"I'm going aht"
"Am I so beautiful you can't stop looking at me?"
"Am I so beautiful?"
"You don't scare me"
"I'll take you all on"
"You and whose army?"
"Me - me and my fist-y"
Catcliffe you don't intimidate me, your Parkway and your shopping centre, your Panda Pops and pottery, your motorway junction, overwhelming stench of failure. Lives that never left first base, stunted by vapours from the cooling towers And I will do everything, everything in my power to get way from you.
Oh yeah
"Catcliffe Shakedown" is a song by British band Pulp from their 1998 album "This Is Hardcore." The song tells the story of a rundown industrial town in South Yorkshire, England, and the hardships faced by the people who live there. The lyrics describe a bleak, hopeless situation where everyone seems broken, addicted, or mentally unstable, and where there is no opportunity for escape or improvement. The chorus warns the listener to leave town before getting caught in the Catcliffe Shakedown, which is described as a dance with violent, physical movements.
The song creates a vivid picture of a marginalized, forgotten community that has been left behind by progress and modernization. The singer's voice is sarcastic and bitter, but also empathetic towards the people he describes. The lyrics also contain elements of social commentary, touching on issues like poverty, addiction, crime, and ambition. The rainbow mentioned in the song can be interpreted as a symbol of hope or a fleeting moment of beauty in an otherwise grim setting.
Line by Line Meaning
Straight down the Parkway follow your nose to a place where nobody wants to go
Take the main road and walk into a nearby town that is not preferred by anyone.
It's a fare and a half; they're having a larf Everybody's broken or they're a dwarf
This place is really expensive, and people are making fun while everyone here is either suffering or extremely short.
Mirror mirror on the wall who is the ace-est of them all? The Catcliffe girl who gets out before her 18th birthday
Who is the best here? It is the girl from Catcliffe who can escape before she is 18.
There's a little old man by the side of the road Just where he came from nobody knows He's so picturesque a physical wreck a dirty old bloke with no self-respect Ow!
An old man, with bruises on his face, is sitting at the side of the road with an injured body and no dignity.
Oh god! You'd better leave town before you get caught in the Catcliffe Shakedown Yeah Shakedown Shakedown Shakedown
You should run away soon, or else you will be trapped in Catcliffe's trouble.
It's a step to the left; a step to the right You do the Catcliffe Shakedown with all of your might Oh, baby, shakedown shakedown shakedown
Moving a step left, moving a step right, the Catcliffe people are going crazy dancing with all their power. Baby, dance like hell.
Pudgy 12 year-olds in Union Jack shorts addicted to coffee-whitener and frankfurters. And those boys who said "Mister we just want your car 'cos we're taking a girl to the reservoir" are outside the pub. Fine figures of men; exercising and dieting just doesn't suit them.
Adolescents in Union Jack shorts consuming coffee-whitener and frankfurters. The boys who asked to borrow someone's car to take their girlfriend to the reservoir are also there. Their idea of good looks is different, and exercise won't help them achieve that.
Have a meal in a glass we're having a laugh just come over here and your face we will smash Oh!
Come enjoy an entertainer drink that is also called a meal in a glass. We are having fun, and we will hit your face for no reason at all. Oh!
See the rainbow high above the viaduct, glowing with all the colours of a bottle of spilt milk Oh, it's so beautiful, but I don't know what it means Oh, rainbow high above - what exactly are you advertising?
Look at the beautiful rainbow in the sky that has the same colors as spilt milk. It is very enchanting, but the significance is unclear. What message are you trying to send by showing up in the sky?
But upstairs in his room, amongst the Airfix planes, is a small boy. He sits in the dark, listening for the sound of the train that crosses the viaduct at 4 o'clock every morning. The train that carries the dismembered remains, the dismembered remains of Matchstick Men and Matchstick Cats & Dogs, and it's coming and it's coming, coming... Oh yeah.
On the other hand, there is a boy playing with Airfix planes in the upstairs room. He listens for the train's sound every morning at 4 o'clock, which carries the dead bodies of Matchstick Men and Matchstick Cats and Dogs. The train is coming and coming so fast.
"What you looking at?" "I don't know - label's fell off" "I'm going aht" "Am I so beautiful you can't stop looking at me?" "Am I so beautiful?" "You don't scare me" "I'll take you all on" "You and whose army?" "Me - me and my fist-y"
- Two people catching eyes. The other person can't see what his partner is looking at. Then comes a warning, 'I'm leaving.' One asks if he is being looked at, which is responded with, 'Do I? You don't scare me.' The other warns to fight with his fist against both of them if they are trying to make something happen.
Catcliffe you don't intimidate me, your Parkway and your shopping centre, your Panda Pops and pottery, your motorway junction, overwhelming stench of failure. Lives that never left first base, stunted by vapours from the cooling towers And I will do everything, everything in my power to get way from you. Oh yeah.
You don't frighten me, Catcliffe. None of your things from Parkway to shopping centers, from Panda Pops to pottery, or your motorway junctions, or your odor can scare me. People here have never succeeded in anything, and the smoke from the cooling towers has hampered their existence. I will do my best to escape from you. Oh yeah.
Contributed by Makayla A. Suggest a correction in the comments below.