"What For" is a 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...

 by Mancunian

Manchester

Manchester is a city and metropolitan borough in Greater Manchester, England. According to the Office for National Statistics, the 2010 mid-year population estimate for Manchester was 498,800. Manchester lies within one of the UK's largest metropolitan areas, the metropolitan county of Greater...

 band James

James (band)

James are a British rock band from Manchester, England. They formed in 1982 and were active throughout the 1980s, but most successful during the 1990s. Their hit singles include "Come Home", "Sit Down", and "She's a Star" as well as their American College Radio hit "Laid"...

, released in 1988 by Sire Records

Sire Records

Sire Records is an American record label, owned by Warner Music Group and distributed through Warner Bros. Records.-Beginnings:The label was founded in 1966 as Sire Productions by Seymour Stein and Richard Gottehrer, each investing ten thousand dollars into the new company. Its early releases as a...

, the first after an enforced eighteen-month hiatus and also the first release featuring material off their forthcoming album Strip-mine

Strip-mine

Strip-mine was the second album from English band James, released in September 1988. The album was produced by Hugh Jones, except "Riders" and "Refrain" which were produced by Steve Power and Steve Lovell...

. Both the title track and one of the two additional tracks, "Not There" were included on Strip-mine, while the other track, "Island Swing" remains otherwise unreleased. "What For" was also included on the compilation Just Say Yo and reached the 33^rd spot on John Peel

John Peel

John Robert Parker Ravenscroft, OBE , known professionally as John Peel, was an English disc jockey, radio presenter, record producer and journalist. He was the longest-serving of the original BBC Radio 1 DJs, broadcasting regularly from 1967 until his death in 2004...

's Festive Fifty

Festive Fifty

The Festive Fifty was originally an annual list of the year's fifty best songs compiled at the end of the year and voted for by listeners to John Peel's BBC Radio 1 show...

of 1988.

Track listing

7" single

1. "What For"
2. "Island Swing"

12" EP, cassette

1. "What For (Climax Mix)"
2. "Island Swing"
3. "Not There"