End of a Century explained

End of a Century
Cover:	End of a Century.jpg
Type:	single
Artist:	Blur
Album:	Parklife
B-Side:	"Red Necks" "Alex's Song"
Genre:	Britpop
Length:	2:46
Label:	Parlophone Food
Producer:	Stephen Street
Prev Title:	Parklife
Prev Year:	1994
Next Title:	Country House
Next Year:	1995

"End of a Century" is a song by English alternative rock band Blur. Released in November 1994 by Food Records, it was the last single to be released from their third album, Parklife (1994). The song reached number 19 on the UK Singles Chart, considered a disappointment by Andy Ross of Food.^[1] Damon Albarn later stated that "End of a Century" may not have been the best choice for the album's fourth single, and that "This Is a Low" would have been a better alternative.

Lyrical content

Damon Albarn stated that the song is about "how couples get into staying in and staring at each other. Only instead of candle-light, it's the TV light." The opening line, "she said there's ants in the carpet", refers to an infestation of ants that Albarn and his then-girlfriend Justine Frischmann suffered in their then-home in Kensington. The lyrics seem to emphasise the then upcoming millennium change and the fact that people contemplate the future rather than take care of the present. Producer Stephen Street saw the song as "Damon getting the art of songwriting really sorted".

Critical reception

Terry Staunton from Melody Maker wrote, "The fourth gem from Parklife in this, the year of the Blur. Forging the best bits of mid-era Beatles with wry Ray Davies observation, this has more charm than a lorryload of Lucy Claytons and should sound fantastic on the radio."^[2]

Music video

The video is a live performance recorded at Alexandra Palace. As with their later video to "Tender", it uses the audio track of the live performance, rather than overdubbing the audio of the studio take.

Track listings

• 7-inch and cassette single^{[3] [4]}

1. "End of a Century" (Albarn, Coxon, James and Rowntree; lyrics by Albarn) – 2:47
2. "Red Necks" (Albarn, Coxon, James, Rowntree; lyrics by Coxon) – 3:04

• CD and mini-CD single^{[5] [6]}

1. "End of a Century" (Albarn, Coxon, James, Rowntree; lyrics by Albarn) – 2:47
2. "Red Necks" (Albarn, Coxon, James, Rowntree; lyrics by Coxon) – 3:04
3. "Alex's Song" (James) – 2:42

Personnel

• Damon Albarn – lead vocals, organ
• Graham Coxon – acoustic and electric guitars, clarinet, backing vocals
• Alex James – bass guitar
• Dave Rowntree – drums

Charts

Weekly charts

Chart (1994–1995)	Peak position
Europe (Eurochart Hot 100)^[7]	69
Iceland (Íslenski Listinn Topp 40)^[8]	2

Year-end charts

Release history

Region	Date	Format(s)	Label(s)
United Kingdom	7 November 1994			^[10]
Japan	21 December 1994	Mini-CD		^[11]

Notes and References

1. Cavanagh. David. Stuart Maconie. How did they do that?. Select. July–August 1995.
2. Terry. Staunton. Singles. Melody Maker. 5 November 1994. 42. 18 November 2023.
3. End of a Century. Blur. 1994. UK 7-inch single sleeve. Parlophone, Food Records. FOODS 56.
4. End of a Century. Blur. 1994. UK cassette single sleeve. Parlophone, Food Records. TCFOOD 56.
5. End of a Century. Blur. 1994. UK, European & Australian CD single liner notes. Parlophone, Food Records. CDFOOD56, 7243 8 81823 2 4.
6. End of a Century. Blur. 1994. Japanese mini-CD single liner notes. Parlophone, Food Records. TODP-2488.
7. Eurochart Hot 100 Singles. Music & Media. 11. 48. 15. 26 November 1994. 31 May 2020.
8. News: Íslenski Listinn Topp 40 (25.6. '95 – 1.7. '95). Dagblaðið Vísir. is. 26. 24 June 1995. 31 May 2020.
9. News: Árslistinn 1996. Dagblaðið Vísir. is. 16. 2 January 1996. 31 May 2020.
10. Single Releases. Music Week. 23. 5 November 1994.
11. Web site: エンド・オブ・ア・センチュリー ブラー. End of a Century Blur. Oricon. ja. 20 January 2024.