The new millennium. The 21st century. The two thousands. The noughties. Here we go. Off with a bang.
The Masses Against the Classes, by Manic Street Preachers (their 2nd and final #1)
1 week, from 16th – 23rd January 2000
Could it be any more Manic to combine rushing punk rock, some of the most instant chord progressions of this entire year’s run of #1s, and extracts from Noam Chomsky and Albert Camus? All in a song named after a quote by Victorian-era Prime Minister William Gladstone.
Whatever you make of the their politics (the sleeve art for this was literally the Cuban flag), you can hopefully admire the way the Manics unashamedly used it in creating some of the day’s best rock music. Their first chart-topper ‘If You Tolerate This…’ referenced the Spanish Civil War, but the band had also received criticism from some of their die-hard fans for allegedly selling out with a softer, more pop-leaning sound.
Which means that ‘The Masses Against the Classes’ works as a socialist anthem, but also as a middle finger to those that accused them of discarding their punk roots. Hello it’s us again… sneers James Dean Bradfield, after a distorted rip-off of the Beatles’ ‘Twist and Shout’… We’re still so in love with you… Success is an ugly word, Especially in your tiny world… It all culminates, as the guitars splinter and distort, with that Camus quote: A slave begins by demanding justice, And ends by wanting to wear a crown… Which, if you think about it, is the best description of toxic fandom going.
For such an influential genre, punk rock has been very poorly served at the top of the charts. Which makes sense, for what could be less punk than having commercial success? I have at various points argued for ‘School’s Out’, ‘Pretty Fly (For a White Guy)’, and even Mr. Blobby, being the most punk number ones. Add to that stellar list, then, ‘The Masses Against the Classes’. Punk aside, it’s just nice to hear some freaking guitars back at the top of the charts!
Not this record’s success indicates in any way that the year 2000 is going to see a rock resurgence after the pop-heavy late-nineties. Sorry, things are going to stay just as poppy over the course of this year’s forty-two chart-toppers (a record turnover of #1s). The Manic Street Preachers were one of the few guitar acts that could break through to the top at this time, and they did so by releasing in dead mid-January, and by publicly deleting the single from production on the Monday it was released (which is also very punk, to be fair).
All this also means that it stands out as a bit of an oddity in the Manics’ back-catalogue. One of their two #1s, that very few casual listeners could sing the chorus to. There are far better known songs by the band that didn’t make it so high in the charts, but then isn’t that the way with so many acts? They would go on scoring Top 20 hits until the early 2010s, and are releasing their 15th studio album later this month. I feel a Manic Street Preachers’ ‘Best of the Rest’ is a post I’ll be doing soon enough…
The only video made was this live version, recorded in Cardiff on the Millennium’s Eve…
The studio version…
The UK Number Ones Blog 
Quite a banger. I recently included the Manics’ more pop-oriented “Motorcycle Emptiness” in a Sunday post – after I had been reminded of them by a post you had done about “If You Tolerate This Your Children Will Be Next.” I’ve yet to listen to the Manics in a more organized fashion rather than random songs. I think Manic Street Preachers is a cool band name.
Definitely worth exploring! I’ll do a post on their biggest non-number one singles sometime soon
Good to have some goddamn rock and roll at the top of the pops again. Cherish these moments because it won’t happen that often during the 2000s and after the 2000s it will be exceptionally rare. This is a cool slice of glam punk. I like the lo-fi, distorted, and compressed sound of the vocals, sounds a bit like Lou Reed and Julian Casablancas of The Strokes, though more sincere and earnest and not as cool, nonchalant and detached.
Yes, good spot. It does sound much more like the rock music to come in the 2010s, rather than the rock music of the 90s.
As ever in case the comment box doesn’t work…
This reminds me just how out of touch I had become with contemporary pop by the new millennium.. I’d heard of the record and the band, but never even got round to hearing it before reading this post. As mentioned above, at last a bit of full-blooded rock’n’roll hellfire at No 1 again! I can see what the critics meant by selling out. ‘If You Tolerate This…’ was a bit too easy-listening despite the subject matter, but from the ersatz ‘Twist and Shout’, this one’s a blast.
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Thanks John!Both comments came through. Not sure what is up with the comments box…
Yes, a good blast of rock n roll to blow away the cobwebs. I’m always a bit wary of acts writing songs about the ‘critics’, as it can come across as self-righteous and paranoid. But to write one this sneery about your fans, and then have said fans make it a number one single, is pretty cool. And pretty punk.
Not one of my fave Manics tracks, I prefer the more Spector-ish vibes with more of a tune, but I like that they mix it up. Even after the hits dried up they could still drop banging singles and I have been to see them in concert while they were having a revival good-new-album tour in the late 00’s.
I like the guitar and the drive…I just don’t like socialism so I can’t go with the message. I can’t believe this was number 1 right after that other group.