Up the Bracket (song)

"Up the Bracket" is the second single from the Libertines and their first from debut album Up the Bracket.

"Up the Bracket"
Single by The Libertines
from the album Up The Bracket
Released	30 September 2002
Genre	Garage rock indie rock
Length	2:38
Label	Rough Trade Records
Songwriter(s)	Pete Doherty and Carl Barât.
Producer(s)	Mick Jones
The Libertines singles chronology
"What a Waster" (2002) "Up the Bracket" (2002) "Time for Heroes" (2003)

The song alludes to London street crime: the "two shadow men on the Vallance Road" who the protagonist defies are a reference to the Kray brothers, two notorious London gangsters of the 1960s; the title is a slang term used by comedian Tony Hancock for a punch to the throat; while "two crooked fingers" refers to the V-sign.[1][2][3] "Joseph bloody in the hole" is a reference to Genesis, chapter 37.

In May 2007, NME magazine placed "Up the Bracket" at number 47 in its list of the 50 Greatest Indie Anthems Ever.[4]

Track listing

All songs written by Pete Doherty and Carl Barât.

CD 1

1. "Up the Bracket" - 2:41
2. "Boys in the Band" - 3:41
3. "Skag & Bone Man" - 1:46

CD 2

1. "Up the Bracket" - 2:41
2. "The Delaney" - 2:39
3. "Plan A" - 3:22

7"

1. "Up the Bracket" - 2:41
2. "Boys in the Band" - 3:41

Chart performance

Chart (2002)	Peak position[5]
UK Singles Chart	29

References

1. Wright, Lisa. "The Libertines – Every Track". NME. Retrieved 24 July 2016.
2. Davies, Hugh (21 December 2005). "Stone me! Tony Hancock is Pete Doherty's hero". The Daily Telegraph. Retrieved 3 March 2016.
3. Anthony Thornton; Roger Sargent (23 May 2013). The Libertines Bound Together: The Story of Peter Doherty and Carl Barat and how they changed British Music. Little, Brown Book Group. p. 33. ISBN 978-0-7515-5330-7.
4. "The Greatest Indie Anthems Ever - countdown continues". NME. 1 May 2007. Retrieved 2 May 2007.
5. "Libertines Up The Bracket @ Top40-Charts.com". top40-charts.com. Retrieved 26 October 2007.