Man, if you were/are a fan of the90’s Brit pop band Blur, 2012 was your year. They started it off by getting the Outstanding Contribution to Music award from the Brit Awards, headlined a show at Hyde Park for the 2012 Olympics, re-released every single one of their studio albums with a ton of extras, and entered the studio to start recording new music. They ultimate scrap
ped plans for a new record, but life can’t be all rainbows and unicorns can it?
That fantastic Hyde Park show is finally available on DVD and CD with the release of Parklive (which comes in the deluxe 4 CD/1 DVD set or the more affordable double CD set). The band is still rockin’ like it’s the mid-90’s and the audience response is just as enthusiastic. On the two CD version, the group plows through 25 tracks including plenty of career greats (“Girls & Boys,” “Coffee & TV,” “Tender” and a slew of other great tracks you’ve likely forgotten).
The band is in top form, leading many (ok, me) to wonder why Oasis made a much bigger impact in the US in the 90s than the clearly more talented Blur. The Blur songs stand up a whole lot better over time.
Blur – Parklive: Live in Hyde Park/2 CDs/25 tracks/EMI Records/2012
