Editing Pulp (band) (section)

===Commercial height: 1993–1996===
{{Listen
 |filename     = Do You Remember The First Time Sample.ogg
 |title        = "Do You Remember the First Time?"
 |description  = "[[Do You Remember the First Time?]]" was one of the preceding releases to ''[[His 'n' Hers]]''. To promote the release a short film was produced featuring loss of virginity stories from celebrities including [[Justine Frischmann]], [[Jo Brand]] and [[John Peel]].}}
After one final Gift single in February 1993 with [[Razzmatazz (song)|"Razzmatazz,"]] Island would fully take over releasing, with "[[Lipgloss (song)|Lipgloss]]" and the band's first [[UK singles chart|UK top 40]] hit "[[Do You Remember the First Time?]]"<ref name="uk_charts">Roberts, David (editor) (2006) [1977]. ''[[British Hit Singles & Albums]]'' (19th edition). London: [[HiT Entertainment]]. p. 442. {{ISBN|1-904994-10-5}}.</ref> These singles were followed by the [[Ed Buller]]-produced album ''[[His 'n' Hers]]'' (1994), which reached number nine on the [[UK Albums Chart]] and was nominated for the [[Mercury Music Prize]].<ref name="uk_charts" />

This sudden increase in popularity was helped by the massive media interest in [[Britpop]] alongside acts such as Suede, [[Oasis (band)|Oasis]] and [[Blur (band)|Blur]], with Pulp supporting the latter in a 1994 tour of the United States. 1995 saw the peak of Pulp's fame, with the release of their number two single on the UK Singles Chart, "[[Common People (song)|Common People]]",<ref name="uk_charts" /> in May 1995 and their performance in June at the [[Glastonbury Festival line-ups#1995|Glastonbury Festival]] (standing in for [[The Stone Roses]] at the last minute). A double A-side single, "[[Sorted for E's & Wizz|Sorted for E's & Wizz/Mis-Shapes]]", was to precede the release of their next album, ''[[Different Class]]'' (1995). Upon the release of "Sorted for E's and Wizz", the ''[[Daily Mirror]]'' printed a front-page story headed "BAN THIS SICK STUNT" alongside a story by [[Kate Thornton]] which said the song was "pro-drugs" and called for the single to be banned.<ref>"Ban This Sick Stunt". ''The Daily Mirror''. 20 September 1995.</ref> The single had an inlay which showed how to conceal amphetamines in a [[DIY]] 'wrap'. Cocker released a statement two days later saying: "...'Sorted' is not a pro-drugs song. Nowhere on the sleeve does it say you are supposed to put drugs in here but I understand the confusion. I don't think anyone who listens to 'Sorted' would come away thinking it had a pro-drugs message." The single reached number two on the UK Singles Charts.<ref name="uk_charts" />

Released in October 1995, ''Different Class'' garnered significant critical praise and debuted at the top of the UK Album Chart.<ref name="uk_charts" /> This was the first album featuring Pulp fan-club president [[Mark Webber (guitarist)|Mark Webber]], who became a permanent member of the band on guitar and keyboards. The album followed similar themes to their previous work with observations of life expressed through Cocker's sexualised, sometimes dark and witty lyrics. Other singles released from ''Different Class'' were "[[Disco 2000 (song)|Disco 2000]]" and "[[Something Changed]]", which reached numbers seven and ten respectively in the UK.<ref name="uk_charts" /> In September 1996, ''Different Class'' won the Mercury Music Prize.{{citation needed|date=November 2024}}

It was at this time that Cocker gained significant media exposure due to a notorious prank at the 1996 [[BRIT Awards]], where he invaded the stage in protest during pop singer [[Michael Jackson]]'s performance of "[[Earth Song]]" and "wiggled his backside" at the audience.  After complaints by Jackson and his entourage, Cocker spent the night in Kensington Police Station charged with [[actual bodily harm]] and assaulting the child performers. However, with British comedian and former solicitor [[Bob Mortimer]] acting as legal representation, he was released without charge.<ref>"[http://news.bbc.co.uk/hi/english/static/events/brit_awards/jarvis.htm The Highs and Lows of the Brit Awards]". BBC News. Retrieved on 31 March 2009.</ref> This incident propelled Cocker into great controversy in the UK and elsewhere, and Pulp's record sales soared as a result. The event also coincided with the beginning of their first arena tour and the ''Daily Mirror'', who had attacked the band months earlier, set up a "Justice for Jarvis" campaign backing his actions and carried out a stunt at Pulp's [[Sheffield Arena]] gig on 29 February, handing out free T-shirts. The ''NME'' described Cocker's actions as a "great publicity stunt" which was "creative, subversive and very, very funny",<ref name="NME March 1996">Mulvey, John. "Fiasco 2000!". ''NME''. 2 March 1996.</ref> while ''[[Melody Maker]]'' described Cocker as, "arguably the Fifth Most Famous Man in Britain"<ref name="MM March 1996">Simpson, Dave. "Fame Fatale". ''Melody Maker''. 30 March 1996.</ref> and suggested he should be [[knighthood|knighted]].

In March 1996, a compilation of Pulp's early recordings on Fire Records entitled ''[[Countdown 1992–1983]]'' was released on the Nectar Masters label. It received largely negative reviews, but due to the band's popularity at the time it reached the top 10 of the UK charts. Cocker, whose permission was not sought before release, urged fans not to purchase the album, comparing it to "a garish old family photograph album".<ref name="MM March 1996" /> Later in 1996, Pulp gained minor international recognition on the back of the inclusion of the track "Mile End" on the [[Trainspotting (soundtrack)|''Trainspotting'' soundtrack]]. In August, the band played their last public performance for almost two years as headliners of the 1996 [[V Festival#V96|V Festival]].