“Bitter Sweet Symphony” is a song by the English alternative rock band The Verve.
Released on 16 June 1997, it was the lead single from the band’s third album, Urban Hymns. Built around a prominent orchestral sample, the song combines Richard Ashcroft’s vocals with sweeping strings, guitar and a steady rhythm. Its instantly recognizable music video shows Ashcroft walking through a busy London street without changing his pace.
The song became one of the defining anthems of the Britpop era. It reached number two on the UK Singles Chart and number twelve on the US Billboard Hot 100. Its arrangement drew on the Andrew Oldham Orchestra’s version of the Rolling Stones song “The Last Time,” leading to a major copyright dispute.
The dispute initially resulted in songwriting credits and royalties being assigned to Mick Jagger and Keith Richards. In 2019, those rights were returned to Ashcroft. Radiohead, Blur and Oasis also had major alternative or Britpop-era songs, but “Bitter Sweet Symphony” is specifically associated with The Verve.