Decisive · Britpop & UK Indie
Pulp
Sheffield band formed in 1978. After a long underground period, Different Class (1995) put Jarvis Cocker’s class-satire lyrics and glam-tinged arrangements on UK charts alongside Oasis and Blur.
Landmark
Common People · 1995
Class satire over a driving pulse; Different Class key single.
Opened
Sheffield Britpop; lyric as social detail and spoken narrative.
01 / 06
Class satire on Different Class
Common People (1995) moves from verse reportage to a chant chorus. The lyric treats class tourism as a pop story with named detail. Different Class sits on UK charts beside Oasis and Blur as Sheffield’s observational Britpop document.
02 / 06
Senior era to peak five-piece
Russell Senior adds violin and angular guitar through Different Class; he exits in 1997 before This Is Hardcore. Doyle’s keyboards and Mackey’s bass stay the harmonic bed. Nick Banks (drums from 1991) completes the peak five-piece with Mark Webber on guitar.
03 / 06
Observational lyric into later UK indie
Pulp’s writing habits—character names, social detail, spoken verses—appear in later Sheffield and UK indie. Arctic Monkeys are often linked to that continuity. Glam keyboards and satire remain identifiable features of the peak records.
04 / 06
Babies
His ’n’ Hers–era single; spoken narrative over keyboard swell.
05 / 06
Common People
Verse reportage into chant chorus; class-tourism lyric on Different Class.
06 / 06
Disco 2000
Jarvis name-checks Deborah; keyboard-led mid-tempo Britpop radio single.
01 / 06
Class satire on Different Class
Sheffield band formed in 1978. After a long underground period, Different Class (1995) put Jarvis Cocker’s class-satire lyrics and glam-tinged arrangements on UK charts alongside Oasis and Blur.
Lineup versions
Different Class peak
Peak1994–1997
Cocker narration and Doyle keys; peak Britpop observational lineup.
- Jarvis CockerVocals
- Candida DoyleKeys
- Steve MackeyBass
- Mark WebberGuitar
- Nick BanksDrums
- Russell SeniorGuitar, Violin
Quotes
“Common People is a class song disguised as a disco single.”
— Jarvis Cocker, 1995 · Press interview excerpt
“We spent years being unfashionable. Then fashion caught up.”
— Candida Doyle, 1996 · Archive interview excerpt
Scenes
| Year | Track | On stage | Tags |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1992 | BabiesHis ’n’ Hers–era single; spoken narrative over keyboard swell. | Jarvis Cocker, Russell Senior, Candida Doyle, Steve Mackey | |
| 1995 | Common PeopleVerse reportage into chant chorus; class-tourism lyric on Different Class; UK Top 2. | Jarvis Cocker, Russell Senior, Candida Doyle, Steve Mackey, Nick Banks | |
| 1995 | Disco 2000Keyboard-led mid-tempo single; lyric name-checks Deborah. | Jarvis Cocker, Candida Doyle, Steve Mackey, Nick Banks |