Lipstick Traces (A Secret History of Manic Street Preachers)

Lipstick Traces (A Secret History of Manic Street Preachers) is an album of various B-sides, rarities and cover versions by Welsh rock band Manic Street Preachers released in 2003. It is named after the Greil Marcus book Lipstick Traces: A Secret History of the 20th Century and shares its title with a bootleg album of Manics rarities (more simply titled "Lipstick Traces").

Background

The album consists mainly of previously released material, except for "4 Ever Delayed" (recorded originally for Forever Delayed but unused due to complications), "Judge Yr'self" (a track recorded in 1995 for the Judge Dredd film soundtrack but never used), "Been a Son" (recorded for a BBC Radio One session) and "Last Christmas", which was performed by James Dean Bradfield on the UK TV programme TFI Friday. It also featured a newly re-recorded version of the track "Take the Skinheads Bowling", and not the version that had originally featured on the "Australia" CD single. The reason for the re-recording is still unknown.

The album received a far more positive reception from fans than the Forever Delayed greatest hits album, which was heavily criticised for favouring the band's more commercially successful singles. The only recurring criticism of Lipstick Traces was the exclusion of the infamous fan favourite "Patrick Bateman", from the "La Tristesse Durera (Scream to a Sigh)" single. The band explained that it was excluded mainly because it was almost seven minutes long and simply would not fit on the album. Bradfield has also been very critical of the song in the past, saying that it had great lyrics but the music was dreadful. Fans also missed "Too Cold Here", from the "Revol" single. The song was very successful in fans voting on the official site.

The sleeve was designed principally by Nicky Wire which contrasted greatly from the simple, graphically precise covers designed by Farrow Design, who have done the majority of design work for the band since 1996. The DIY leopard print cover was symbolic of the band going back to their punk roots. Initial copies came in a gatefold sleeve with a basic inlay; further inserts could be downloaded and printed off from the band's official website.

As part of the promotion for the album, the band did a signing tour around the UK. At the final signing session in London, they also played a short set of tracks from the album.

Tracklisting

Disc One

B-sides and rarities.

1. "Prologue to History" – 4:47 (from "If You Tolerate This Your Children Will Be Next")
2. "4 Ever Delayed" – 3:38 (previously unreleased)
3. "Sorrow 16" – 3:46 (from "Motown Junk")
4. "Judge Yr'self" – 3:03 (previously unreleased)
5. "Socialist Serenade" – 4:15 (from "You Stole the Sun from My Heart")
6. "Donkeys" – 3:13 (from "Roses in the Hospital")
7. "Comfort Comes" – 3:29 (from "Life Becoming a Landslide")
8. "Mr Carbohydrate" – 4:16 (from "A Design for Life")
9. "Dead Trees and Traffic Islands" – 3:45 (from "A Design for Life")
10. "Horses Under Starlight" – 3:10 (from "Kevin Carter")
11. "Sepia" – 3:56 (from "Kevin Carter")
12. "Sculpture of Man" – 1:55 (from "Faster/P.C.P.")
13. "Spectators of Suicide" (Heavenly Records version) – 5:06 (from "You Love Us (Heavenly Version)")
14. "Democracy Coma" – 3:45 (from "Love's Sweet Exile/Repeat")
15. "Strip It Down" (live) – 2:42 (from "You Love Us (Heavenly)")
16. "Bored Out of My Mind" – 2:57 (from "Motorcycle Emptiness")
17. "Just a Kid" – 3:36 (from "Ocean Spray")
18. "Close My Eyes" – 4:29 (from "The Masses Against the Classes")
19. "Valley Boy" – 5:10 (from "The Everlasting")
20. "We Her Majesty's Prisoners" – 5:22 (from "Motown Junk")

Disc Two

Cover versions.

1. "We Are All Bourgeois Now" (originally by McCarthy) from "Know Your Enemy" – 4:35
2. "Rock 'N' Roll Music" (originally by Chuck Berry) from "The Masses Against the Classes" – 2:55
3. "It's So Easy" (live) (originally by Guns N' Roses) from "You Love Us" – 2:54
4. "Take the Skinheads Bowling" (originally by Camper Van Beethoven) re-recorded version, originally from "Australia" – 2:30
5. "Been a Son" (originally by Nirvana) – 2:28
6. "Out of Time" (originally by the Rolling Stones) – 3:34
7. "Raindrops Keep Fallin' on My Head" (originally by B. J. Thomas) from "Everything Must Go" – 2:58
8. "Bright Eyes" (live) (originally by Art Garfunkel) from "A Design for Life" – 3:14
9. "Train in Vain" (live) (originally by The Clash) from "You Stole the Sun from My Heart" – 3:16
10. "Wrote for Luck" (originally by Happy Mondays) from "Roses in the Hospital" – 2:43
11. "What's My Name" (live) (originally by The Clash) from "La Tristesse Durera (Scream to a Sigh)" – 1:45
12. "Velocity Girl" (originally by Primal Scream) from "Australia" – 1:41
13. "Can't Take My Eyes Off You" (originally by Frankie Valli) from "Australia" – 3:13
14. "Didn't My Lord Deliver Daniel" (traditional, famously recorded by Paul Robeson) from "Let Robeson Sing" – 2:07
15. "Last Christmas" (live) (originally by Wham!) – 2:05

Missing Tracks

• "Suicide Alley" (from "Suicide Alley" and "Little Baby Nothing")
• "UK Channel Boredom" (from "UK Channel Boredom")
• "Tennessee (I Get Low)" (from "Suicide Alley" and "La Tristesse Durera (Scream to a Sigh)")
• "New Art Riot" (from "New Art Riot")
• "Last Exit on Yesterday" (from "New Art Riot")
• "Teenage 20/20" (from "New Art Riot")
• "You Love Us (Heavenly Recording)" (from "You Love Us (Heavenly Version)")
• "Starlover" (from "You Love Us (Heavenly Version)" and "From Despair to Where")
• "R.P. McMurphy" (from "Stay Beautiful")
• "Soul Contamination" (from "Stay Beautiful")
• "A Vision of Dead Desire" (from "You Love Us")
• "Ain't Going Down" (from "Slash 'n' Burn")
• "Under My Wheels" (originally by Alice Cooper) (from "Motorcycle Emptiness")
• "Sleeping with the NME" (from "Theme from M.A.S.H. (Suicide Is Painless)")
• "Never Want Again" (from "Little Baby Nothing")
• "Dead Yankee Drawl" (from "Little Baby Nothing")
• "Hibernation" (from "From Despair to Where")
• "Patrick Bateman" (from "La Tristesse Durera (Scream to a Sigh)")
• "Roses in the Hospital" (Single Version) (from "Roses in the Hospital")
• "Us Against You" (from "Roses in the Hospital")
• "Slash N' Burn (live at Club Citta, Kawasaki, Japan)" (from "Gold Against the Soul (Japanese version)")
• "Crusafix Kiss (live at Club Citta, Kawasaki, Japan)" (from "Gold Against the Soul (Japanese version)")
• "Motown Junk (live at Club Citta, Kawasaki, Japan)" (from "Gold Against the Soul (Japanese version)")
• "Tennessee (live at Club Citta, Kawasaki, Japan)" (from "Gold Against the Soul (Japanese version)")
• "You Love Us (live at Club Citta, Kawasaki, Japan)" (from "Gold Against the Soul (Japanese version)")
• "Are Mothers Saints" (from "Life Becoming a Landslide EP")
• "Charles Windsor" (originally by McCarthy) (from "Life Becoming a Landslide EP")
• "The Drowners" (originally by Suede) (from "She Is Suffering")
• "Stay with Me" (originally by Faces) (from "She Is Suffering")
• "Too Cold Here" (from "Revol")
• "Love Torn Us Under" (from "She Is Suffering")
• "Dead Passive" (from "A Design for Life")
• "Black Garden" (from "Everything Must Go")
• "Hanging On" (from "Everything Must Go")
• "No One Knows What It's Like to Be Me" (from "Everything Must Go")
• "First Republic" (from "Kevin Carter")
• "Montana/Autumn/78" (from "If You Tolerate This Your Children Will Be Next")
• "Black Holes for the Young" (featuring Sophie Ellis-Bextor) (from "The Everlasting")
• "Buildings for Dead People" (from "Tsunami")
• "Locust Valley" (from "Found That Soul")
• "Ballad of the Bangkok Novotel" (from "Found That Soul")
• "Pedestal" (from "So Why So Sad")
• "Groundhog Days" (from "Ocean Spray")
• "Little Trolls" (from "Ocean Spray")
• "Masking Tape" (from "Let Robeson Sing")
• "Fear of Motion" (from "Let Robeson Sing")
• "Automatik Teknicolour" (from "There by the Grace of God")
• "It's All Gone" (from "There by the Grace of God")
• "Unstoppable Salvation" (from "There by the Grace of God")
• "Happy Ending" (from "There by the Grace of God")