Do You Remember the First Time?

"Do You Remember The First Time?"
Single by Pulp
from the album His 'n' Hers
Released	21 March 1994
Format	7" vinyl, 12" vinyl, CD single, cassette single
Recorded	Do You Remember the First Time?: October 1993 to February 1994, Britannia Row Studios, London. B-sides: December 1993, The War Room, Milo Studios, London. Acoustic songs: 22 March 1994, BBC GLR, London)
Genre	Britpop
Label	Island
Songwriter(s)	Jarvis Cocker, Russell Senior, Steve Mackey, Nick Banks and Candida Doyle.
Pulp singles chronology
"Lipgloss" (1993) "Do You Remember The First Time?" (1994) "'The Sisters EP'" (1994)
"Lipgloss" (1993) "Do You Remember the First Time?" (1994) The Sisters EP (1994)

"Do You Remember the First Time?" is a song by British rock band Pulp, taken from their 1994 album His 'n' Hers. It was released 21 March 1994 as the second single from the album, charting at #33 in the UK Singles Chart (see 1994 in British music).^[1] It was the first Pulp single to reach the UK Top 40.

The song's lyrics are not necessarily about first sexual encounters, but rather a plea from the singer for his lover not to return to her partner, no matter how much it "makes good sense" for her and her straight-laced partner to be together. In the end, the singer resigns himself to losing his lover, if only for the night, as long as she "saves a piece" of her heart for him.

Sometimes a "sanitised" version of the song was aired on TV and radio, with the lyric "I don't care if you screw him" changed to "I don't care if you knew him".

The b-sides to the French single - acoustic versions of "Joyriders", "Dogs are Everywhere" and "Razzmatazz" - were later released in the UK as the b-sides of CD2 of "Common People".

To promote the release of the track, lead singer Jarvis Cocker asked fans to recount stories of their own "first time" sexual experiences. A short film was produced by Cocker and Steve Mackey, featuring loss of virginity stories from celebrities including Justine Frischmann, Jo Brand and John Peel. This was made available on the Sorted for Films & Vids video, and later the Pulp Hits DVD.

"Do You Remember The First Time?" was covered by British singer-songwriter Sophie Ellis-Bextor for a BBC Radio 2 evening session to celebrate 20 years of Britpop. The song was performed and recorded at the Maida Vale Studios on 10 April 2014.

Track listings

All songs written and composed by Jarvis Cocker, Russell Senior, Steve Mackey, Nick Banks and Candida Doyle; except where noted.

7 vinyl / cassette single

1. "Do You Remember the First Time?" – 4:23
2. "Street Lites" – 5:55

12" vinyl / CD single

1. "Do You Remember the First Time?" – 4:23
2. "Street Lites" – 5:55
3. "The Babysitter" – 4:58

Limited edition French CD single

1. "Do You Remember the First Time?" – 4:23
2. "Razzmatazz" (acoustic version) – 4:05
3. "Joyriders" (acoustic version) – 3:31
4. "Dogs Are Everywhere" (acoustic version) (Jarvis Cocker, Russell Senior, Candida Doyle, Magnus Doyle, Peter Mansell) – 3:05

Personnel

• Jarvis Cocker: Vocals, Piano
• Russell Senior: Guitars
• Candida Doyle: Synthesizers
• Steve Mackey: Bass Guitar
• Nick Banks: Drums

References