To the End (Blur song)

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“To the End”
“To the End” cover
Single by Blur
from the album Parklife
Released 30 May 1994
Format 12" vinyl, cassette, 2 x CD
Recorded October 1993-January 1994
Genre Britpop
Length 4:05 (album version)
Label EMI, Food Records
Producer Stephen Hague
Blur singles chronology
"Girls & Boys"
(1994)		 "To the End"
(1994)		 "Parklife"
(1994)

"To the End" is a song by British rock band Blur and is featured on their third album, Parklife. This album was produced by Stephen Street, except for this particular song, produced by Stephen Hague.

It was released on 30 May 1994, as the second single from that album. The song describes a couple successfully overcoming a bad patch in a relationship. It has a full orchestral accompaniment and a choric refrain in French by a female singer (Laetitia Sadier from Stereolab).

The song was not one of Blur's major hits, charting only at #16 in the UK Singles Charts, despite that the singles released before and after both reached the Top 10 (see 1994 in British music).

Contents

[edit] To The End (La Comedie)

Blur later rerecorded "To the End" with Françoise Hardy, this new recording furthered the already grandiose production complementing it with verses sung in French. The recording mutated into a duet, now appropriately titled "To The End (La Comedie)". This recording was released as a single in France and included in the "Brit Pop Box Set" along with other Parklife-era singles. It was also released as a B-side to "Country House" and on French editions of The Great Escape.

[edit] To The End (French Version)

A version with the lead vocal re-recorded in French by Albarn himself was released as the third track on the 12" and CD2 editions of the Parklife single. This version has a relatively straightforward French translation of the original (English) lyrics and a slightly demo-ish sound.

[edit] Video

The promo video for To the End was shot in Prague in 1994. In keeping with the song's use of French, the video for the single release is a pastiche of the classic French New Wave film Last Year at Marienbad (1961). The 4 minute video imitates the cinematography and editing style of the film, and replicates numerous scenes from it. Enigmatic subtitles (not from the film) appear. The band takes the place of the characters from the film: Damon Albarn and Graham Coxon are the principal figures, both involved in a bizarre love triangle with a mysterious woman. The video was released on the DVD edition of Blur: The Best of.

[edit] Track listings

  • CD1 CDFOODS50
  1. "To the End"
  2. "Threadneedle Street"
  3. "Got Yer!"
  • CD2 CDFOOD50
  1. "To the End"
  2. "Girls & Boys" (Pet Shop Boys 7" Remix)
  3. "Girls & Boys" (Pet Shop Boys 12" Remix)
  • Cassette TCFOOD50
  1. "To the End"
  2. "Girls & Boys" (Pet Shop Boys 7" Remix)
  3. "Threadneedle Street"
  • 12" 12FOOD50
  1. "To the End"
  2. "Girls & Boys" (Pet Shop Boys 7" Remix)
  3. "Girls & Boys" (Pet Shop Boys 12" Remix)
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