Different Class (Deluxe Edition)

With 1995’s Different Class, Pulp and its frontman Jarvis Cocker catapulted themselves to center stage in the Brit Pop movement that also included Oasis and Blur. Cocker could write about the social classes with the same sizzling wit as Ray Davies, as the album’s masterpiece, “Common People,” brilliantly reports on a young socialite who slums with the lower classes. But it isn’t just Cocker’s lyrical acuity that puts Pulp at the front of the movement, but also his knack for strong melodies and his group’s ability to turn even the quiet moments (“Pencil Skirt”) into beautifully ornate meditations on style and substance. Cocker never shies from the role of the rock star and he sings tunes such as “I Spy” and “Disco 2000” with just the right amount of cocky self-assurance to make the stage his natural setting. The “Deluxe Edition” includes fancy demos of “We Can Dance Again” and the epic “Catcliffe Shakedown” and a captivating glam-pop version of “Whiskey in the Jar,” a traditional Irish tune originally converted to rock power by Thin Lizzy.