Damon Albarn and Graham Coxon have made up, and the smartest, funniest Brit-pop band is back (woo-hoo!). But Blur haven't recorded any new music yet (boohoo). So here's a two-disc best-of to coincide with their shows this summer, balanced nicely between their cheeky-monkey side (Albarn) and their later weird-guitar side (Coxon). The best bits ("Song 2") have elements of both. Blur went from wanna-be's ("Popscene") to provocateurs ("Parklife") to artistes ("Beetlebum") to world travelers ("Good Song"), and, rare moments of torpid dross aside, remained fascinating with each mood change.

“1999”

“I don’t consider myself a great poet,” Prince told Rolling Stone. “I just know I’m here to say what’s on my mind.” In the case of the apocalyptic party anthem “1999,” he was worried about then-president Ronald Reagan’s foreign policies. The song’s melody is based on a riff borrowed from the Mamas and Papas’ “Monday, Monday,” and Prince originally envisioned the first verse with three-part harmony but later split the vocals between himself and members of the Revolution. Because Warner Bros., with whom Prince was locked in a contractual battle, owned the original’s masters, Prince rerecorded the song and appropriately released that version in 1999.