''Grand Prix'' is the fifth album by Scottish

alternative rock Alternative rock, or alt-rock, is a category of rock music that emerged from the independent music underground of the 1970s and became widely popular in the 1990s. "Alternative" refers to the genre's distinction from Popular culture, mainstre ...

band

Teenage Fanclub Teenage Fanclub are a Scottish alternative rock band formed in Bellshill near Glasgow in 1989. The group were founded by Norman Blake (vocals, guitar), Raymond McGinley (vocals, lead guitar) and Gerard Love (vocals, bass), all of whom shared ...

, released in May 1995 via Creation Records.

Album cover

The now-defunct

Formula One Formula One (also known as Formula 1 or F1) is the highest class of international racing for open-wheel single-seater formula racing cars sanctioned by the Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile (FIA). The World Drivers' Championship, ...

racing team

Simtek Simtek (Simulation Technology) was an engineering consultancy firm and Formula One racing team. The Formula One (F1) engineering consultancy arm, Simtek Research, was founded in 1989 by Max Mosley and Nick Wirth. It originally was involved i ...

provided the car that appears on the front cover.''Grand Prix'' sleeve notes

Reception

Upon release, ''Grand Prix'' received almost unanimous critical acclaim. Writing for ''

The Independent ''The Independent'' is a British online newspaper. It was established in 1986 as a national morning printed paper. Nicknamed the ''Indy'', it began as a broadsheet and changed to tabloid format in 2003. The last printed edition was publis ...

'', Andy Gill called it "winsome and reflective", while Angela Lewis of the same publication described ''Grand Prix'' as a "breathtakingly superb (album) with finely honed dynamics, nagging harmonies and deceptively simple lyrics". In 2000, '' Q'' placed ''Grand Prix'' at number 72 in its list of the "100 Greatest British Albums Ever". It was voted number 624 in the 3rd edition of

Colin Larkin Colin Larkin (born 1949) is a British writer and entrepreneur. He founded, and was the editor-in-chief of, the ''Encyclopedia of Popular Music'', described by ''The Times'' as "the standard against which all others must be judged". Along wit ...

's ''

All Time Top 1000 Albums ''All Time Top 1000 Albums'' is a book by Colin Larkin, creator and editor of the ''Encyclopedia of Popular Music''. The book was first published by Guinness Publishing in 1994. The list presented is the result of over 200,000 votes cast by the ...

'' (2000). In 2004, it made number 72 on '' The Observer Music Monthlys top 100 British albums list. In 2013, ''

NME ''New Musical Express'' (''NME'') is a British music, film, gaming, and culture website and brand. Founded as a newspaper in 1952, with the publication being referred to as a 'rock inkie', the NME would become a magazine that ended up as a f ...

'' ranked it at number 282 in its list of the 500 Greatest Albums of All Time.

Track listing

;Notes *All bonus tracks produced by Teenage Fanclub. Tracks 1 and 2 recorded at Protocol Studios, London, engineered by Giles Hall, assisted by Delphine Carrier. Track 3 recorded at Protocol Studios, London, engineered by Giles Hall, and at The Greenhouse, London, engineered by Nick Wollage. Track 4 recorded at Riverside Studios, Glasgow, engineered by Duncan Cameron. Track 5 recorded at home by Norman Blake. ;''Grand Prix'' bonus 7" single ;Note *First vinyl pressing with limited edition bonus 7".

Personnel

Charts

References

{{Authority control Teenage Fanclub albums 1995 albums Creation Records albums Country rock albums by Scottish artists