Bitter Sweet Symphony

by The Verve

Bitter Sweet Symphony cover art
  • Type: Single
  • Released: 16 June 1997
  • Label: Hut
  • Country: United Kingdom
  • Length: 23:17
  • Community rating: 4.13/5 from 4 ratings

Artists on this release: Owen Morris, The Verve, Andrew Loog Oldham, Youth, Richard Ashcroft, Christopher Marc Potter

Album Notes & Community Reviews

Defining the late Britpop era, this monumental track is anchored by a looped orchestral sample from an obscure Andrew Loog Oldham cover of the Rolling Stones' 'The Last Time'. Richard Ashcroft layered dense, swirling psychedelia over the sample, delivering existential lyrics regarding the inescapable grind of modern life. The track notoriously sparked a massive copyright lawsuit with former Stones manager Allen Klein, forcing the band to forfeit their royalties.

Genres

Descriptors: orchestral, existential, atmospheric, wall-of-sound, bombastic

Tracklist

  1. Bitter Sweet Symphony (6:00)
  2. Lord I Guess I'll Never Know (4:51)
  3. Country Song (7:50)
  4. Bitter Sweet Symphony - Radio Edit (4:35)

Credits

  • Nick McCabe - performer
  • Peter Salisbury - performer
  • Richard Ashcroft - performer, vocals, lyrics by, written-by
  • Simon Jones - performer
  • Simon Tong - performer
  • Wil Malone - arranged by [additional strings], conductor [additional strings]
  • Andrew Loog Oldham Orchestra - performer
  • Jagger-Richards - written-by

More from The Verve: full discography