Up the Bracket explained

Up the Bracket
Type:studio
Artist:The Libertines
Cover:Upthebracket.jpg
Released:14 October 2002
Recorded:August 2002
Studio:RAK, London
Genre:Indie rock, punk rock, garage rock revival, garage punk
Length:36:33
Label:Rough Trade
Producer:Mick Jones
Next Title:The Libertines
Next Year:2004

Up the Bracket is the debut album by English indie rock band The Libertines, released in October 2002. It reached #35 in the UK Albums Chart. The album was part of a resurgence for the British indie/alternative scene and received widespread praise from critics and has quickly become considered one of the greatest albums of the 2000s.

The album's cover is based on an image of riot police squaring up to protesters during the Argentine economic crisis of 1999–2002.[1]

Title

The title Up the Bracket alludes to a phrase used by English comedian Tony Hancock, of whom the Libertines' Pete Doherty is an avid fan. In Hancock's Half Hour, "Up The Bracket" is a slang term meaning a punch in the throat.[2] Hancock is also referenced in the opening track, "Vertigo" – "lead pipes, your fortune's made", being a line from the Half Hour episode "The Poetry Society".[3]

Release

The album was re-released on 8 September 2003 with an additional track, "What a Waster" and DVD featuring the promotional videos for the singles: "Up the Bracket", "Time for Heroes" and "I Get Along".

Reception

Upon release, Up the Bracket received generally favourable reviews. Online music magazine Pitchfork placed Up the Bracket at number 138 on their list of top 200 albums of the 2000s,[4] and it was placed 44 on a similar list by Uncut.[5] NME placed the album tenth in a list of the greatest British albums ever,[6] as well as calling it the second greatest album of the decade.[7] NME also placed the album number 70 on its list of the 500 Greatest Albums of All Time. Rolling Stone placed the album number 61 on its list of the 100 Greatest Debut Albums of All Time and number 94 on its list of the 100 Greatest Albums of the 2000s.

In April 2008, BBC Radio 1 DJ Zane Lowe chose the album as one of his Masterpieces, playing the album in full with interviews from the band members, fans and fellow musicians who were influenced by the album.[8]

Track listing

All songs written by Pete Doherty and Carl Barât.

  1. "Vertigo" – 2:37
  2. "Death on the Stairs" – 3:24
  3. "Horror Show" – 2:34
  4. "Time for Heroes" – 2:40
  5. "Boys in the Band" – 3:42
  6. "Radio America" – 3:44
  7. "Up the Bracket" – 2:40
  8. "Tell the King" – 3:22
  9. "The Boy Looked at Johnny" – 2:38
  10. "Begging" – 3:20
  11. "The Good Old Days" – 2:59
  12. "I Get Along" – 2:51
Bonus tracks

Notes and References

  1. Web site: 11 years on: 11 facts about The Libertines' debut, Up The Bracket. Gigwise.
  2. News: Stone me! Tony Hancock is Pete Doherty's hero . . 21 December 2005 . 3 March 2016 . Davies . Hugh.
  3. Web site: lead pipes, fortune made is from Hancock's half-hour, the poetry society episode ... . . 13 February 2013 . 3 March 2016 . Barât . Carl . Carl Barât.
  4. Web site: The Top 200 Albums of the 2000s: 200–151 . . 28 September 2009 . 1 October 2009 . 19 July 2012 . https://web.archive.org/web/20120719204452/http://pitchfork.com/features/staff-lists/7707-the-top-200-albums-of-the-2000s-150-101/2/ . dead .
  5. Web site: Log into Facebook – Facebook. Facebook.
  6. NME's best British album of all time revealed . . 1 October 2009 . https://web.archive.org/web/20060206022644/http://www.nme.com/news/arctic-monkeys/22062 . 6 February 2006 . dead .
  7. News: NME's The Top 100 Greatest Albums of The Decade . . 1 October 2009.
  8. Web site: BBC – Radio 1 – Zane Lowe – Masterpieces – The Libertines – 'Up The Bracket'. BBC. bbc.co.uk.

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