Alright (Supergrass song)


"Alright" is a song by British alternative rock band Supergrass. It was released with "Time" as a double A-side single, from their debut album I Should Coco. It was Supergrass's fifth single released on 3 July 1995. It was concurrently released on the soundtrack of the 1995 movie Clueless, which helped it become a big hit for the band. It peaked at number two on the UK Singles Chart, number six in Iceland, number eight in Ireland, number 30 in France and number 96 in Australia. It is the band's most successful single on the charts.

Music and lyrics

"Alright" received a great deal of airplay in the United Kingdom. The "bona fide teen anthem", with its upbeat lyrics and cheerful piano tune, seemed to epitomise British youth culture at the time, when Britpop was at its height. The band's youthful appearance added weight to the lyrics.
However, Coombes himself argued in an interview around October 1995, "it wasn't written as an anthem. It isn't supposed to be a rally cry for our generation. The stuff about 'We are young/We run green...' isn't about being 19, but really 13 or 14. and just discovering girls and drinking.
It's meant to be light hearted and a bit of a laugh, not at all a rebellious call to arms." with Danny Goffey also saying: "It certainly wasn't written in a very summery vibe. It was written in a cottage where the heating had packed up, and we were trying to build fires to keep warm."
The second A-side "Time" is a slower, more blues-driven track, with the song even incorporating a harmonica solo. The B-side, "Condition", is a cover of "Just Dropped In " by Mickey Newbury and originally a hit for Kenny Rogers. "Je Suis Votre Papa Sucre" is a short instrumental.

Reception

"Alright" was the fifth single to be released from I Should Coco. While "Caught by the Fuzz", "Mansize Rooster", "Lose It", and "Lenny" all charted and were warmly received by the critics, it was "Alright/Time" - the final release from the album - which proved to be their breakthrough single, largely due to the popularity of the song "Alright", which still receives airplay in the United Kingdom.
"Alright/Time" reached number two in the UK Singles Chart, making it Supergrass' highest charting single to date along with "Richard III". It remained in the top three for one month. The song became a huge hit with school leavers within the United Kingdom that summer, leading to a huge demand for the track back in the United Kingdom. The double A-side also peaked at number 96 on the Australian ARIA Singles Chart in October 1995. "Alright" by itself peaked at number eight in Ireland and number 30 in France.
In 1999, in an interview, Coombes joked "We don't play 'Alright' anymore. We should play it in a minor key, and in the past tense."

Music video

The success of the record was helped by a lively promotional video directed by Dom and Nic, featuring the band joyfully messing around on bicycles and a bed on wheels at Portmeirion in North Wales. Having seen the video, Steven Spielberg approached the band and proposed that they work together on a television series in the style of The Monkees.
The group turned him down, preferring to work on their second album In It for the Money. Troy Carpenter, co-director of Nude as the News, claims "the gesture says a lot about the band's personality – one which has stuck with the group throughout its career – which is basically that of a fun-loving rock group whose undeniable musical talent is sometimes overshadowed by the sheer ebullience of its music."

Track listing

Charts

Weekly charts

Year-end charts

Certifications

Covers and other versions