Urban Hymns is the third studio album by English rock band the Verve, released on 29 September 1997 on Hut Records. The group had broken up while promoting A Northern Soul in August 1995, though they reformed two weeks later without guitarist Nick McCabe. Frontman Richard Ashcroft moved to Bath, Somerset, where he made demos; Simon Tong joined the group soon afterwards. Following aborted recording sessions with producers John Leckie and Owen Morris, the band sought a new guitarist, contacting former Suede guitarist Bernard Butler, who played with them for a week before departing amidst creative differences. In 1996, The Verve started recording at Olympic Studios in London, first with producer Martin "Youth" Glover, followed by engineer Chris Potter. Ashcroft contacted McCabe in early 1997, inviting him back into the band, which McCabe accepted. Several songs were re-recorded to allow for the inclusion of McCabe's guitar parts, with sessions continuing into May 1997.
"Bitter Sweet Symphony" was released as the lead single from Urban Hymns in June 1997; the track suffered from a debate over its writing credits due to its use of a sample of the Rolling Stones. "The Drugs Don't Work" followed as the second single from the album in September 1997, which was promoted with three supporting dates for Oasis in London. "Lucky Man" appeared as the third single from the album in November 1997. Nike, Inc. used "Bitter Sweet Symphony" in an advertisement for three months, which in turn helped promote Urban Hymns. "Sonnet" was released as the fourth single from the album in March 1998. The Verve played a hometown show at the Haigh Hall in Wigan to an audience of 40,000 in May 1998. The following month, "The Rolling People" was issued as the fifth and final single from the album as a US radio-only release. Citing stress, McCabe sat out of further touring commitments and was replaced by B. J. Cole. They went on a US tour in July and August 1998, leading up to a show at Slane Castle in Co. Meath, near Dublin, Ireland, before breaking up.
Urban Hymns received widespread praise from music critics, many of whom praised Ashcroft's role in making the album; several saw it in the context of Britpop; and others touched on the overall quality of the writing. Retrospective reviews focused on how the Verve mixed their new sound with their old sound and on McCabe's role in the album. It peaked at number one in Ireland, New Zealand, Sweden, and the UK and reached the top 10 in Australia, Austria, Finland, France, Italy, Norway, and Portugal. Initially selling 250,000 copies in its first week of release, Urban Hymns went on to become the fifth fastest-selling album in the UK and has been certified 11-times platinum in the UK by the British Phonographic Industry (BPI). The album's first three singles peaked within the top ten of the UK Singles Chart, with "The Drugs Don't Work" peaking the highest at number one. The BPI have subsequently certified the album's songs: "Bitter Sweet Symphony" at quadruple platinum; "The Drugs Don't Work" and "Lucky Man" at platinum; and "Sonnet" at gold.
At the 1998 Brit Awards, the Verve won Best Album for Urban Hymns and Best Producer alongside Youth and Potter. Melody Maker, NME, and The Village Voice included the album on their lists of the year's best releases; NME also included it on their list of the 500 best albums of all time, while author Colin Larkin featured it in his book All Time Top 1000 Albums (2000). It has appeared on best-of lists for the Britpop genre by Musikexpress, Pitchfork, and The Village Voice. Urban Hymns, alongside OK Computer (1997) by Radiohead, is seen as leading to the end of Britpop and influencing post-Britpop acts such as Travis. "Bitter Sweet Symphony" was Britpop's last anthem, while "The Drugs Don't Work" has become a cross-generational song.
Background
The Verve released their second studio album, A Northern Soul, in July 1995 through Hut Records,Egan 1998, pp. 126–127, 207 peaking at number 13 in the UK Albums Chart.Baker 2008, p. 86 Its three singles – "This Is Music", "On Your Own", and "History" – all charted within the top 40 of the UK Singles Chart, with "History" reaching the highest at number 24. In the lead-up to the album, the culture of the 1990s had shifted with the emergence of new lad and Loaded magazine, as well as the continual evolution of football cultureBaker 2008, p. 76 and Britpop becoming a mainstream movement.Clarke 1998, p. 65 Initial promotion consisted of a one-off show in Newcastle, a supporting slot for Oasis in Scotland, a performance at Phoenix Festival, and a US tour.Egan 1998, pp. 137, 139, 143 The strained relationships between the band members came to a head when they performed at T in the Park in August 1995;Baker 2008, p. 87 at its conclusion, frontman Richard Ashcroft announced his departure from the band.Baker 2008, p. 88 Bassist Simon Jones saw the situation as an argument rather than a breakup, though the event was reported in press outlets as the latter.Egan 1998, p. 149
When the departure was made public, the press could not reach Ashcroft as he was on a camping trip in Cornwall.Egan 1998, p. 146 Unlike the other members of the Verve, Ashcroft was not concerned about his future career path. Being known as the main songwriter in the band, he was seen as a viable option by Hut. Ashcroft's reputation for offering soundbites to publications appealed to even people who had no interest in the Verve, giving the label an ideal starting point for a solo career.Egan 1998, p. 151 Following the breakup, Ashcroft spent time in hotels, at friends' residences, and at his mother's home. Co-manager Jane Savage said Ashcroft showed up at the offices of their PR company, Savage & Best, saying that he was going to work with different people and at one point planned to form a six-person band.Egan 1998, p. 152 Within two weeks of the split, Ashcroft started collaborating with Jones and drummer Peter Salisbury again. Author Trevor Baker, in his book Richard Ashcroft – The Verve, Burning Money & The Human Condition (2008), said this made the public think that the reported breakup was nothing more than a method to get guitarist Nick McCabe out of the band.
Development and aborted sessions Ashcroft and his wife Kate Radley relocated to Bath, Somerset, renting a flat not far from the residence of Radley's parents, where Ashcroft began to get creative. Jones, Salisbury, and Tong moved to London, where they waited for Ashcroft to say he was ready to start recording. In the meantime, Ashcroft made nine demos, which included versions of "Bitter Sweet Symphony", "The Drugs Don't Work", "Sonnet", and "Space and Time".Egan 1998, pp. 152–153 Ashcroft asserted that they were not the Verve without McCabe, deciding that the studio time would be for his debut solo album or they would name themselves something else. They drafted Simon Tong, a friend they met at Winstanley College, who was expected to play a keyboard and to accompany Ashcroft's guitar parts. Tong had taught Ashcroft and Jones their first chords on guitar some years prior. Co-manager John Best said Ashcroft had accumulated enough songs, that by September 1995, recording was already underway. Sessions were held at Real World Studios in Bath, Somerset, with producer John Leckie, where they made 32 demo recordings, albeit in unfinished states.Baker 2008, p. 94 Leckie explained that nothing was completed because they were too familiar with one another.Egan 1998, p. 153 Ashcroft did not give Hut permission to release the songs, as he was unhappy with them.Ilic 1997, p. 38
Due to the absence of McCabe, who was previously the foundation of the band's sound, Ashcroft had to learn how music worked. One such idea saw him coming up with tempos with hand clapping or using a piano and going from there. He struck the instrument, from which he built rhythms. Throughout 1996, Ashcroft hung out with Oasis, becoming interested in how the members worked together. He solely supported Oasis at the Madison Square Garden in New York City; the reception from the crowd convinced him that he could not handle being a solo musician and that he needed a band backing him. MTV reported that the Verve were recording in February 1996. In May 1996, the band started working with producer Owen Morris, who produced A Northern Soul, at Rockfield Studios in Wales, though they were unable to remake the chemistry that fuelled the A Northern Soul sessions.Egan 1998, p. 155 It was expected to last a week, but they only made it to two days. As Best noted, they lacked a guitarist. When he later asked who they were going to get, the four of them responded, It's got to be an amazing guitarist!' And I'm like, 'Who are the best guitarists? It's [former Stone Roses member] John Squire, [former Suede member] Bernard Butler, these sort of people. Both of these had left their previous acts, giving the Verve the opportunity to ask either of them. Ashcroft and Best were later at a party with Squire in attendance, though Ashcroft did not wish to approach him.
Ashcroft then met with Butler, at Best's suggestion; Butler had previously collaborated with David McAlmont until that partnership dissolved. Best knew him through his prior work with Suede and asked Geoff Travis of Rough Trade Records about getting him for the quartet. Travis did not think Butler would be interested in the endeavour, but to Best's surprise, he agreed. Ashcroft was unsure about the situation, as he had only previously played with childhood friends and saw Butler, despite his reputation, as a stranger. After a week, Butler contacted Best about what was happening, prompting him to get a taxi for Ashcroft in order to meet Butler.Baker 2008, p. 95 The band and Butler jammed for a week, working on "The Drugs Don't Work" and "Sonnet", though Ashcroft brushed aside these sessions, saying that it was only two days in a practice room and that there was no chemistry between them and Butler. Despite him considering Butler a perfect guitarist, the arrangement was deemed a disappointment as Butler wished to contribute his songs in addition to working on Ashcroft's own.Ilic 1997, p. 41 Best, putting the lack of a guitarist situation aside, set about finding another producer for them. He thought that Ashcroft's bohemian, devotional personality could work well with Martin "Youth" Glover from Killing Joke. Youth owned The Butterfly studio, which was located in Brixton, London; they met him at the location, chalking up a rapport with him. Ashcroft played the recently written "Lucky Man" for Youth, who was enthusiastic about it.
Recording Youth sessions and Big Life management