Australia (Manic Street Preachers song)

"Australia"
Single by Manic Street Preachers
from the album Everything Must Go
Released	2 December 1996
Format	CD, cassette
Genre	Alternative rock, Britpop
Length	4:05 (album version) 3:42 (edit)
Label	Epic
Manic Street Preachers singles chronology
"Kevin Carter" (1996) "Australia" (1996) "If You Tolerate This Your Children Will Be Next" (1998)

"Australia" was released by Manic Street Preachers on 2 December 1996 through Epic and was the fourth and final single release from the Everything Must Go album of May that same year. The song peaked on number 7 in the UK Singles Chart,^[1] and it was the fourth consecutive top 10 hit for the band.

Background

The sentiment of the song is that Australia is just about the furthest one can go to get away from their home in Wales and is a metaphor for Nicky Wire's desire to escape from the emotional turmoil caused by the disappearance of his close friend and co-lyricist, Richey Edwards.^[2]

The music helps the lyrics convey the sense of freedom, featuring heavy guitar sound coupled with a raw emotion, and a crescendo bolstered by Sean Moore's drumming.^[3]

Release

On 14 December 1996, "Australia" reached number seven in the UK charts, giving the Manics their fourth consecutive top ten hit. It charted for 9 weeks in the UK charts. With this, all singles from Everything Must Go charted within the top 10 in the UK.^[1] It also made an appearance as track number seven on Forever Delayed, the band's greatest hits album, released in November 2002, however like many other songs, the single was edited in order to fit on the album, it has 3:42, while the album version has 4:05.^[4]

The first CD included "Velocity Girl", "Take the Skinheads Bowling" and "Can't Take My Eyes Off You" (all three being cover versions of songs originally performed by Primal Scream, Camper Van Beethoven and Frankie Valli, respectively) and the cassette featured a live recording of "A Design for Life". All 3 of the CD cover versions would later feature on the Lipstick Traces compilation album in 2003 (although "Take the Skinheads Bowling" was re-recorded).^[5] The lack of original Manics material for the single's extra tracks was attributed to Nicky Wire having a case of writer's block as he approached writing material for the band's next album. He attributed this to the fact that it was the first time he had written a whole album without Richey's help.^[6]

Legacy

In October 2011, NME placed "Australia" at number 150 on its list "150 Best Tracks of the Past 15 Years".^[7]

The song was the theme tune to the Nickelodeon UK sitcom Renford Rejects and has also been used in adverts for the Australian Tourist Board.^[6]

Track listing

All music written by James Dean Bradfield and Sean Moore; except where indicated. All lyrics written by Nicky Wire; except where indicated.

Charts

References

External links

• Lyrics of this song at MetroLyrics