"Stereotypes" is a song by English alternative rock

Alternative rock

Alternative rock is a genre of rock music and a term used to describe a diverse musical movement that emerged from the independent music underground of the 1980s and became widely popular by the 1990s...

 band Blur

Blur (band)

Blur is an English alternative rock band. Formed in London in 1989 as Seymour, the group consists of singer Damon Albarn, guitarist Graham Coxon, bassist Alex James and drummer Dave Rowntree. Blur's debut album Leisure incorporated the sounds of Madchester and shoegazing...

 and is the opening track to their fourth studio album, The Great Escape. It was released on 12 February 1996 as the third single

Single (music)

In music, a single or record single is a type of release, typically a recording of fewer tracks than an LP or a CD. This can be released for sale to the public in a variety of different formats. In most cases, the single is a song that is released separately from an album, but it can still appear...

 from that album, charting at #7 in the UK Singles Chart

UK Singles Chart

The UK Singles Chart is compiled by The Official Charts Company on behalf of the British record-industry. The full chart contains the top selling 200 singles in the United Kingdom based upon combined record sales and download numbers, though some media outlets only list the Top 40 or the Top 75 ...

 (see 1996 in British music

1996 in British music

This is a summary of 1996 in music in the United Kingdom, including the official charts from that year.-Summary:This year saw the start of an increase in the number of number 1 singles. 24 hit the top spot this year, the highest since 1980, which had an equal number.The first number 1 single of the...

). It was originally intended to be the album's first single.

"Tame", one of the single's B-sides, is sometimes viewed as Blur's first push into the sound that they would develop greatly on their next album, Blur.

Music video

The music video

Music video

A music video or song video is a short film integrating a song and imagery, produced for promotional or artistic purposes. Modern music videos are primarily made and used as a marketing device intended to promote the sale of music recordings...

 which was directed by Matthew Longfellow features live footage. Whereas the previous live video promo "End of a Century

End of a Century

"End of a Century" is a song by Blur. It was the last single to be released from their third album Parklife and reached #19 on the UK Singles Chart in 1994. The video is a live performance recorded at Alexandra Palace....

" was live in picture and sound, "Stereotypes" is simply live footage edited to fit the album track recording.

Track listings

• Pink 7" and cassette

1. "Stereotypes"
2. "The Man Who Left Himself"
3. "Tame"

• CD

1. "Stereotypes"
2. "The Man Who Left Himself"
3. "Tame"
4. "Ludwig"

• International CDs

1. "Stereotypes"
2. "The Horrors"
3. "A Song"
4. "St Louis"

Production credits

• "Stereotypes" produced by Stephen Street
• "The Man Who Left Himself", "Tame" and "Ludwig" produced by Blur and John Smith
• "The Horrors", "A Song" and "St Louis" produced by Blur