| Pablo Honey | ||||
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| Released | 22 February 1993 (1993-02-22) | |||
| Recorded | 1992 | |||
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| Genre | ||||
| Length | 42:11 | |||
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| Radiohead chronology | ||||
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| Singles from Pablo Honey | ||||
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Pablo Honey is the debut studio album by the English rock bandRadiohead, released on 22 February 1993 in the UK byParlophone and on 20 April 1993 in the US byCapitol Records. It was produced bySean Slade,Paul Q. Kolderie and Radiohead's co-manager Chris Hufford.[1]
Radiohead formed in 1985 atAbingdon School inAbingdon, Oxfordshire, and signed a recording contract withEMI in 1991. Their debut EP,Drill (1992), achieved little success. For their debut album, Radiohead's management targeted the American market and chose American producers.Pablo Honey was recorded in three weeks atChipping Norton Recording Studios inOxfordshire in 1992. The recording was hampered by Radiohead's lack of studio experience.
The singles "Creep", "Anyone Can Play Guitar" and "Stop Whispering" initially made little impact. However, "Creep" gradually gained international radio play, reaching number seven on theUK singles chart after it was reissued in 1993. Radiohead embarked on an aggressive promotional tour in the US supportingBelly andPJ Harvey, followed by a European tour supportingJames. In May 1995, a live video,Live at the Astoria (1995), was released onVHS.
Pablo Honey reached number 22 on theUK Albums Chart. It wascertified gold in the UK in 1994 and double platinum in 2013. In the US, it was certified platinum in 1995.Pablo Honey received generally favourable reviews, but some found it underdeveloped or derivative. Though it is less acclaimed than Radiohead's later work, some retrospective reviews have been positive and it has appeared in lists of the greatest albums. The members of Radiohead have criticised it, citing weaker songwriting and their studio inexperience. "Creep" remains Radiohead's most successful single.
The members ofRadiohead met while attendingAbingdon School inAbingdon, Oxfordshire.[2] In 1985, they formed On a Friday, the name referring to their usual rehearsal day in the school's music room.[1] They recorded demo tapes, including a cassette unofficially titledManic Hedgehog, which featured versions of the futurePablo Honey tracks "You", "I Can't" and "Thinking About You".[3]
One demo attracted the attention of a local producer, Chris Hufford.[4] He and his business partner, Bryce Edge, became the band's managers after attending a concert at theJericho Tavern, Oxford.[4] In late 1991, On a Friday signed a six-album recording contract withEMI and changed their name at EMI's request.[5][6] Their name was taken from theTalking Heads song "Radio Head" from the 1986 albumTrue Stories.[7]
Radiohead released their debut EP,Drill, in 1992. It was produced by Hufford in his studio, Courtyard Studios, in Oxfordshire.[8] It reached number 101 on theUK singles chart; theGuardian later described it as an "inauspicious start" that drew little attention.[9] Hufford said producing the EP himself was a mistake, as it created a conflict of interest and generated friction in the studio.[8]
Hufford and Edge resolved to find different producers for Radiohead's next recording.[8]Independent labels dominated theindie charts in the UK, but EMI was amajor label. Hufford and Edge therefore planned to have Radiohead use American producers and tour aggressively in America, then return to build a following in the UK.[10] They considered hiringSteve Albini, but he had not yet worked with major acts and EMI felt it was too risky.[10]
Around this time, the American producersPaul Kolderie andSean Slade, who had worked with bands including thePixies andDinosaur Jr,[1] were in the UK looking for work.[11] The EMIA&R director,Nick Gatfield, gave them a selection of acts to consider.[10] They agreed to produce Radiohead after he played them "Stop Whispering".[10] Kolderie was particularly impressed byThom Yorke's vocals.[12] Upon meeting the band, Kolderie was struck by their youth, but also their unity and closeness.[12] He described "a seriousness of purpose and a seriousness of trying to create music that was a little different".[12] He was initially more impressed by Hufford and Edge than by Radiohead, calling them "crafty mothers ... I don't think I've ever met two guys who had more of a plan."[13]
Radiohead recordedPablo Honey atChipping Norton Studios inChipping Norton, Oxfordshire.[3] They first attempted to record two songs that EMI was considering for Radiohead's debut single, "Inside My Head" and "Lurgee".[8] They made little progress; Kolderie described Radiohead as "desperately inexperienced", and neither they nor the producers liked the choice of songs. Kolderie said "Inside My Head" was "not very melodic" and lacked the power of Radiohead's other songs.[8] Hufford described the results as "overblown bombastic rock".[8]
During rehearsals, Radiohead unexpectedly played another song, "Creep". They considered it a "throwaway" track, but it impressed the producers.[14] At Kolderie's suggestion, they recorded a take, after which everyone in the studio burst into applause.[8] EMI were persuaded to make "Creep" Radiohead's debut single. According to Kolderie, "everyone [at EMI] who heard Creep just started going insane" and he and Slade were hired to produce the album.[8] Radiohead took elements of "Creep" from the 1972 song "The Air That I Breathe". AfterRondor Music took legal action, the songwriters,Albert Hammond andMike Hazelwood, were given shared royalties and songwriting credits.[15][16]
Pablo Honey was recorded in three weeks. Kolderie described it as a struggle, and said: "It was their first record and they wanted to bethe Beatles, and the mix had to have noreverb, and they had all the ideas they'd ever come up with in 20 years of listening to records."[8] Kolderie noted the band's studio inexperience and difficulty in finishing tracks, but said he enjoyed the work due to the small group and joking atmosphere.[17] He saidPablo Honey was "not cheap", and estimated that it had cost more than £100,000 to record.[17]
Yorke,Jonny Greenwood andEd O'Brien overdubbed the same guitar parts multiple times to create a distorted "wall of sound".[18] For the introduction to "Anyone Can Play Guitar", Kolderie had everyone in the studio, including the cook, create sounds on guitar. "The idea was to live up to the title: anyone can play guitar," he said.[3] Greenwood used a paintbrush for his part.[3] Radiohead did not like the version of "Lurgee" they recorded with Kolderie and Slade, and used an earlier version, recorded with Hufford at Courtyard, for the album.[14]
The album title comes from aprank call sketch by the American comedy act theJerky Boys in which the caller poses as the victim's mother and says: "Pablo, honey? Please come to Florida." Yorke said it was appropriate as the band were "mothers' boys".[3] Asample of the sketch appears during the guitar solo on "How Do You?"[3]
Pablo Honey has been described asalternative rock[19][20] andgrunge,[19][21][22] but alsostadium rock,[23]progressive rock,[22]college rock,[19]post-grunge,[24] andjangle pop.[19] The album drew comparisons toNirvana,Dinosaur Jr.,Sugar,[25]U2,[26][27]the Smiths,[27][28]the Cure,[27][28]the Who[29] andthe Jam.[29]
O'Brien later describedPablo Honey as a "hedonistic" album that "you might put on in an open-top car on a Saturday night going to a party".[1]Stephen Thomas Erlewine ofAllMusic described it as a blend of the anthemic rock of U2 with "atmospheric" instrumental passages.[23] TheSalon journalistAnnie Zaleski said it featured "distortion-blurred guitar lines that twisted like a kite in the wind".[30] Gary Walker, writing forGuitar.com, described it as "nakedly naive and unguarded" compared to Radiohead's more complex later work.[31] He wrote that it captured the "embryonic dynamic" between the three guitarists and described Greenwood's guitar work as an "exhilarating melange of tremolo-picked soundscapes, chunky octaves, screaming high-register runs and killswitch antics".[31] The opening track, "You", moves between major and minor chords and alternatingtime signatures.[32] "Blow Out" combines elements ofbossa nova andkrautrock; it starts with "tense, jazzy" drumming and raked chords and concludes with ashoegaze section.[30][31][32]
Zaleski said thePablo Honey lyrics express anger at the status quo, the feeling of being an outsider, and worry for the future.[30] "Creep" features a quiet verse and a loud chorus, with "blasts" of guitar noise from Greenwood.[33] Yorke described it as a "self-destruct song".[34] The lyrics were inspired by a woman that Yorke followed around who unexpectedly attended a Radiohead performance.[33] The lyrics of "Stop Whispering" are aboutoppression, and the frustration from failing to explain it.[30] Yorke wrote the line "Grow my hair, I wanna beJim Morrison", from "Anyone Can Play Guitar", in response to people in the music business who "think they have to act like fucking prats in order to live up to the legend".[34] According to Zaleski, "Ripcord" is about the "experience of hurtling into the unknown".[30] "Lurgee" ends with a "meandering" solo.[30]
"Creep" was released as the leadPablo Honey single on 21 September 1992.[8][35] It initially received little airplay and sold around 6,000 copies, reaching number 78 on theUK singles chart.[8] The 1993 singles "Anyone Can Play Guitar" and "Stop Whispering", plus the non-album single "Pop Is Dead", were unsuccessful.[36] Only "Anyone Can Play Guitar" and "Pop Is Dead" charted in the UK.[36] Radiohead rerecorded "Stop Whispering" for the US single as they were not happy with the album version. O'Brien said the new version was "more atmospheric", likening it toJoy Division.[3]
Pablo Honey was released in February 1993 and received little press.[8] It reached number 25 in 1993'sUK Albums Chart.[37] However, "Creep" became a hit in Israel, where it was played frequently by the radio DJYoav Kutner. In March, Radiohead were invited to Tel Aviv for their first overseas show.[38] Around the same time, "Creep" rose to number two on the USModern Rock chart,[39] andPablo Honey was selling well on import.[40] "Creep" reached number 34 on theBillboardHot 100 chart,[8] and reached number seven on the UK singles chart when EMI rereleased it in September 1993.[41] In the UK,Pablo Honey wascertified silver in February 1994, gold in April 1994, platinum in June 1997, and double platinum in July 2013.[42] In the US, it was certified gold in September 1993 and platinum in September 1995.[43]
In late 1992, Radiohead toured the UK withKingmaker andthe Frank and Walters.[40] That September, they performed at the UK EMI conference. They impressed the EMI promoter Carol Baxter, who said: "This funny little band came on and they obviously had something. This was a hideous record company do but Thom gave it everything."[8] That Christmas,NME published a review of a Radiohead performance that dismissed them as "a pitiful, lily-livered excuse for a rock 'n' roll group".[8]
In June 1993, Radiohead began their first North American tour.[44] In July, they gave a performance of "Anyone Can Play Guitar" live onMTV Beach House in which Yorke screamed the improvised lyrics "fat, ugly, dead!", before breaking down on camera and jumping into a pool. Yorke was holding a live microphone and narrowly avoided electrocuting himself.[45][46]
Radiohead cancelled an appearance at the 1993Reading Festival after Yorke became ill; he toldNME, "Physically I'm completely fucked and mentally I've had enough."[47] According to some reports, EMI gave Radiohead six months to "get sorted" or be dropped. EMI's A&R head, Keith Wozencroft, denied this, saying: "Experimental rock music was getting played and had commercial potential. People voice different paranoias, but for the label [Radiohead] were developing brilliantly fromPablo Honey."[47]
In September 1993, after "Creep" was reissued, Radiohead performed it on the British music programmeTop of the Pops[48][49] and as the first musical guests on the American talk showLate Night with Conan O'Brien.[50] EMI's American arm, Capitol, wanted to continue promotingPablo Honey and build on the momentum.[8] Radiohead declined an offer to tour the US in support ofDuran Duran, as their managers felt they could earn more credibility by supportingBelly.[8] They also opened forPJ Harvey in New York City and Los Angeles.[51] On 13 May 1995, a live video,Live at the Astoria, was released onVHS, with performances ofPablo Honey songs such as "Creep", "You" and "Anyone Can Play Guitar".[52][53]
Radiohead struggled with the tour. Yorke disliked dealing with American music journalists and tired of the songs.[8] The band members appeared in promotional material they later regretted, such as fashion shoots forIceberg jeans and the magazineInterview.[8] According to Radiohead's agent, the promotional work triggered "a lot of soul-searching about why they were in a group at all".[8] Jonny Greenwood said they "spent a year being jukeboxes ... We felt in a creative stasis because we couldn't release anything new."[8] The American tour was followed by a European tour supportingJames andTears for Fears.[8][40] Kolderie credited thePablo Honey tours for turning Radiohead "into a tight band".[17]
| Review scores | |
|---|---|
| Source | Rating |
| Calgary Herald | B[54] |
| Entertainment Weekly | B[27] |
| Los Angeles Times |    [28] |
| NME | 7/10[55] |
| Q | [25] |
| Select | 3/5[56] |
Pablo Honey failed to make a critical impact upon its initial release.[57]NME'sJohn Harris referred to Radiohead as "one of rock's brightest hopes".[55] Harris said the track "How Do You?" "breaks the [album's] momentum... horribly", but describedPablo Honey as "satisfying" despite its flaws.[55]NME later named it the 35th-best album of the year.[58]Q wrote that "British teenagerhood has never been grumpier" and describedPablo Honey as a good album with moments that rivalled Nirvana, Dinosaur Jr. and Sugar.[25]
In the United States, "Creep" drew parallels with Nirvana, with some describing Radiohead as the "British Nirvana".[59]Billboard said the lyrics had "enough bite to make it on their own" despite the U2 comparisons.[26] In a mixed review, Mario Mundoz of theLos Angeles Times wrote that it "doesn't really deliver anything you haven't heard before" but "does offer clever lyrics and good hooks".[28]Robert Christgau ofThe Village Voice did not recommend the album, but named "Creep" a "choice cut".[60]Rolling Stone wrote that the album's charm originates from its guitar work, song structures, melodies, and choruses that invoke a "pop appeal".[29]
| Review scores | |
|---|---|
| Source | Rating |
| AllMusic | [23] |
| The A.V. Club | B−[61] |
| Blender | [62] |
| The Encyclopedia of Popular Music | [63] |
| The Irish Times | [64] |
| Pitchfork | 5.4/10[65] |
| Q | [66] |
| Rolling Stone | [67] |
| The Rolling Stone Album Guide | [68] |
| Uncut | [69] |
AlthoughPablo Honey did not receive the acclaim of Radiohead's later albums,[70] it received praise in retrospective coverage. In 2018, the musician and journalist Phil Witmer wrote that "Pablo Honey is endearing because we now know the band that made it would become something extraordinary not even five years later".[32] He chose "You" and "Blow Out" as the most sophisticated tracks, pointing towards Radiohead's later work.[32] ThePremier Guitar writer Shawn Hammond also highlighted "Blow Out" as a "glimpse of future brilliance".[71]
According toStephen Thomas Erlewine ofAllMusic, the songwriting does not always match Radiohead's sound, but when it does, it achieves "a rare power that is both visceral and intelligent".[23] Kenny EG Perry ofNME described the album as "the sound of one of the best bands of this or any other generation playing the music that taught them all their good early lessons".[72]Clash said that it "points towards everything that [Radiohead] would go on to be".[73]
In a 2008 review, Al Spicer ofBBC Music describedPablo Honey as Radiohead's "exploration of suburban, adolescent self-awareness" and "one of rock's most impressive debuts".[22] In 2009,PopMatters' Mehan Jahasuriya criticisedPablo Honey as "a hodgepodge of half-baked grunge, jangle-pop and stadium-ready alternative rock ... nearly indistinguishable from other early '90s college rock throwaways, save for a few hints of greatness".[19] Reviewing the 2009 reissue forPitchfork, Scott Plagenhoef praised "Creep", "You", "Stop Whispering" and "Prove Yourself", but described "How Do You?", "I Can't", "Ripcord" and "Vegetable" as "run of the mill at best".[65] InUncut, Sam Richards wrote thatPablo Honey "isn't as completely cack-handed as many would have you believe. It's lumpy and uneven and often sounds like a band pulling in five different directions – but that last quality was, and occasionally remains, part of Radiohead's appeal."[69] In 2025,GQ namedPablo Honey the worst Radiohead album, calling it "an uneven, unsteady beast" that might have been forgotten without "Creep".[74]
After the success of "Creep", Radiohead grew to resent it.[75] In 1993, Yorke said: "It's like it's not our song any more ... It feels like we're doing a cover."[75] The success almost led to Radiohead's breakup,[75] and Radiohead stopped performing "Creep" for several years.[30] Though Radiohead achieved greater commercial and critical success with later albums, "Creep" remains their most successful single.[76] Their frustration influenced their second album,The Bends (1995).[8] The album title, a term fordecompression sickness, references Radiohead's rapid rise to fame; Yorke said "we just came up too fast".[39] Unhappy with thePablo Honey cover art, Yorke enlisted his friendStanley Donwood to help create the artwork for future Radiohead releases.[77] Based on their work onPablo Honey, the American bandHole hired Slade and Kolderie to produce their 1994 albumLive Through This.[78]
In 2007,Pitchfork wrote that, withPablo Honey, "Radiohead didn't so much ride the coattails of grunge to mass success as stumble over them, and they've been apologising for it ever since."[79] In 1996, the bassist,Colin Greenwood, said, "I'd give [Pablo Honey] a seven out of 10 – not bad for an album recorded in just two and a half weeks."[80] In 1997, O'Brien said the guitar arrangements were "boring", with all three guitarists playing similar parts.[18] He saidPablo Honey was derivative of Dinosaur Jr. and the Pixies,[81] and described it as "a collection of our greatest hits as an unsigned band".[82] Jonny Greenwood said in 1998 that it "lacked freedom", and was hindered by Radiohead's fear and inexperience.[1] O'Brien said in 2020 thatPablo Honey was "pretty shit [...] but we worked hard and became good. That's one of the things I've held onto: you don't have to have all the answers straight away."[83]
In 1998,Pablo Honey was voted the 100th-best album of all time in a poll held byVirgin[84] and 61st in a poll byQ.[85] The journalistColin Larkin placed it 301st in the third edition ofAll Time Top 1000 Albums (2000).[86] As part of its 2007 list of the "500 Greatest Lost Tracks",Q included "Lurgee" and "Blow Out" in a list of 20 essential lesser-known Radiohead songs.[87] In 2006,Classic Rock andMetal Hammer namedPablo Honey one of the 20 greatest albums of 1993.[88] In 2008,Blender ranked it 82nd in its list of "100 Albums You Must Own".[89]
Radiohead left EMI after their contract ended in 2003.[90] In 2007, EMI releasedRadiohead Box Set, a compilation of albums recorded while Radiohead were signed to EMI, includingPablo Honey.[90] In 2009, EMI reissuedPablo Honey in a "Collector's Edition" with theDrill EP tracks, B-sides and alternative takes.[65] Radiohead had no input into the reissues and the music was not remastered.[91]
In February 2013, Parlophone was bought byWarner Music Group (WMG).[92] In April 2016, as a result of an agreement with the trade groupImpala, WMG transferred Radiohead's back catalogue toXL Recordings. The EMI reissues, released without Radiohead's consent, were removed from streaming services.[93] In May 2016, XL reissued Radiohead's back catalogue on vinyl, includingPablo Honey.[94]
All lyrics are written byThom Yorke; all music is composed byRadiohead, except "Creep", written by Radiohead,Mike Hazlewood andAlbert Hammond.[note 1]
| No. | Title | Length |
|---|---|---|
| 1. | "You" | 3:29 |
| 2. | "Creep" | 3:56 |
| 3. | "How Do You?" | 2:12 |
| 4. | "Stop Whispering" | 5:26 |
| 5. | "Thinking About You" | 2:41 |
| 6. | "Anyone Can Play Guitar" | 3:38 |
| 7. | "Ripcord" | 3:10 |
| 8. | "Vegetable" | 3:13 |
| 9. | "Prove Yourself" | 2:25 |
| 10. | "I Can't" | 4:13 |
| 11. | "Lurgee" | 3:08 |
| 12. | "Blow Out" | 4:40 |
| Total length: | 42:11 | |
Note
Adapted from theliner notes,[95] except where noted.
Weekly charts[edit]
| Year-end charts[edit]
|
| Region | Certification | Certified units/sales |
|---|---|---|
| Argentina (CAPIF)[110] | Gold | 30,000^ |
| Australia (ARIA)[111] | Gold | 35,000^ |
| Belgium (BRMA)[112] | Platinum | 50,000* |
| Canada (Music Canada)[113] | 2× Platinum | 200,000^ |
| Italy (FIMI)[114] (Since 2009) | Gold | 25,000‡ |
| Netherlands (NVPI)[115] | Gold | 50,000^ |
| United Kingdom (BPI)[116] | 2× Platinum | 600,000^ |
| United States (RIAA)[118] | Platinum | 1,520,000[117] |
* Sales figures based on certification alone. | ||
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