Rewind: Manic Street Preachers - If You Tolerate This Your Children Will Be Next

Released exactly 20 years ago today. It's no secret that I loved the Britpop and loved growing up during that period. But I actually prefer the music of the "post-Britpop" era, those more interesting years of 1997-2000. The 24th August 1998 was a key day in post-Britpop history, since it is the day that Mansun released 'Being A Girl' as a single and Babybird released the astonishing and underrated album 'There's Something Going On'. It is also the day that one of the greatest bands of all time released one of the greatest singles of all time. One of the greatest Number 1 singles too. It is in fact also the longest-titled Number 1 single in history (if you don't include brackets like Meatloaf did). I had become a fan of the Manic Street Preachers a couple of years before, when their fourth album 'Everything Must Go' catapulted them into the Premier League of British music. Their fifth LP 'This Is My Truth Tell Me Yours' was a highly anticipated record, and the sombrely anthemic 'If You Tolerate This Your Children Will Be Next' was the first single to be released from it. Two random things I love about this track: 1. The soaring guitar solo 2. The final "aaaand" in the last chorus. 

Just in case you didn't know, the Manics released their 13th album earlier this year. The mighty 'Resistance Is Futile' is a reminder of why the Welsh trio remain one of the UK's best-loved bands.