‘Beautiful Ones’: How Suede constructed their seminal hit
As one of the most enduring British rock bands of the 1990s, Suede were no strangers to hit singles. Rising in notoriety during the Britpop era – though the band hated the term – Suede witnessed early success with tracks like ‘Metal Mickey’ and ‘Animal Nitrate’. With legions of dedicated fans, the debate around which song takes the title of Suede’s greatest hit is ongoing, but ‘Beautiful Ones’, in particular, cannot escape the conversation.
One of the best new bands of the early 1990s, Suede gained popularity for their glam-rock-influenced post-punk sound. Formed at University College London, with a line-up originally including Justine Frischmann of Elastica, Suede were in the right place at the right time to witness the Britpop boom and take full advantage.
Throughout the ’90s, London was awash with guitar-based bands desperate to contribute to the ‘Cool Britannia’ scene happening at the time. A reaction against the anger of American grunge music, Britpop was the term coined to describe the musical movement these bands were a part of. Soon enough, groups like Blur, Oasis and Pulp became national stars, although Pulp had been releasing music for years before the mainstream musical change arrived.
Not only were Suede involved in the new wave of bands infiltrating the charts, but they are often credited with its widespread acclaim. Their self-titled debut album quickly became the fastest-selling debut album in the history of the UK, establishing them as a relentlessly creative outfit capable of balancing the perilous line of commercial and critical triumph.
Despite their undeniable role in the success of Britpop, the band have repeatedly spoken about their detest of the term. Frontman Brett Anderson, in particular, took issue with the idea and was outraged to find himself on the cover of Select magazine with an enormous Union Jack forming the backdrop, “For me, it felt quite distasteful,” he said of Britpop, “It felt nationalistic, it felt like there was, sort of, quite a strong thread of misogyny and I didn’t think Suede should be part of that”.
Whatever their thoughts on Britpop were, Suede could not escape the success it brought. At the peak of the scene, in 1996, the group managed a number three single in ‘Trash’. There was little doubt that their follow-up single would likely be a hit too, but nobody could be prepared for the intense success of ‘Beautiful Ones’.
Their defining track arose from a riff Richard Oakes had been toying with for some time. After bassist Matt Osman jokingly told the guitarist he would be given a dead leg if he didn’t drum up another hit, the group got to work. With Anderson building the lyrics around the riff, the song – affectionally given the working title ‘Dead Leg’ – came together relatively quickly. The frontman later said that the track was meant “to be a celebration of the madness of our lives”, and it certainly achieved that feat.
Spending eight weeks in the singles charts, ‘Beautiful Ones’ quickly became the band’s seminal hit, cementing them as a household name across the country. Currently sitting at the top of their Spotify page, its enduring success is clear. Featuring the usual Bowie-esque vocals of Anderson and the optimistic 1960s-influenced guitar pop that Britpop became synonymous with, the song is notably less moody than a lot of Suede’s previous efforts. So, while fans can continue to argue the case for why ‘Animal Nitrate’ or ‘Saturday Night’ is the group’s finest work, ‘Beautiful Ones’ undoubtedly holds the spot for their most impactful track.
