In It for the Money is the second studio album by English alternative rock band Supergrass, released in 1997. NME called it "more fun than watching a wombat in a washing machine" and named it the 10th best album of the year. In 1998, Q readers voted it the 68th greatest album of all time, while in 2000 the same magazine placed it at number 57 in its list of the 100 Greatest British Albums Ever.

Recording and conception

Only two songs were written before entering Sawmills Studio, so most of the tracks were penned during recording itself.

Recording was often disrupted by the drummer Danny Goffey going back to London unplanned to record with his and Pearl Lowe's band Lodger. He was told by management that this was unacceptable behaviour. This, along with Gaz Coombes and Goffey's bickering in the music press about the underlying meaning of lyrics to "Going Out", put strain on the recording process.

It is speculated that Parlophone, the record label Supergrass were on, offered the band a sum of money to decide on a final name for the album, because they were taking too long to deliberate. However, the band themselves claim that they never received any of this money in return. Other suggestions considered for the title of the album included Hold on to the Handrail and Children of the Monkey Basket (which is now the name of the band's self-run website).

Reception

The album was critically acclaimed, and peaked at No. 2 in the UK Albums Chart, and sold 300,000 copies in the UK and over one million worldwide. "The fact that it has sold more worldwide than I Should Coco," said Gaz Coombes, "means we can sleep at night."

The album is included in the book 1001 Albums You Must Hear Before You Die.

Track listing

All tracks written by Supergrass/Rob Coombes.

CD & limited edition CD (with bonus CD) <small>CDPCS7388</small> / TC <small>TCPCS7388</small> / 12" <small>PCS7388</small>

  1. "In It for the Money"&nbsp;– 3:05
  2. "Richard III"&nbsp;– 3:13
  3. "Tonight"&nbsp;– 3:09
  4. "Late in the Day"&nbsp;– 4:43
  5. "G-Song"&nbsp;– 3:27
  6. "Sun Hits the Sky"&nbsp;– 4:55
  7. "Going Out"&nbsp;– 4:16
  8. "It's Not Me"&nbsp;– 2:56
  9. "Cheapskate"&nbsp;– 2:43
  10. "You Can See Me"&nbsp;– 3:40
  11. "Hollow Little Reign"&nbsp;– 4:08
  12. "Sometimes I Make You Sad"&nbsp;– 2:48

Limited edition bonus CD

  1. "Caught by the Fuzz" (acoustic)&nbsp;– 3:06
  2. "Sitting Up Straight" (alternative mix)&nbsp;– 2:22
  3. "Melanie Davis"&nbsp;– 2:46
  4. "Odd?"&nbsp;– 4:14 <small>Members of the band can be heard blowing bubbles into a bucket during the outro of this song.</small>
  5. "Wait for the Sun"&nbsp;– 4:11
  6. "Nothing More's Gonna Get in My Way"&nbsp;– 4:05
  7. "Sex!"&nbsp;– 2:38
  8. "20ft Halo"&nbsp;– 3:21
  9. "Je Suis Votre Papa Sucre"&nbsp;– 1:45

Personnel

Personnel adapted from In It for the Money CD booklet.

Supergrass

  • Gaz Coombes
  • Danny Goffey
  • Mick Quinn

Additional musicians

  • Rob Coombes
  • The Kick Horns – horns (1 & 7)
  • Hornography – horns (3 & 11)
  • Satin Singh – percussion (6 & 12)
  • Sam Williams – theremin (2)

Production

  • Supergrass – production, mixing
  • John Cornfield – production (all except 7), mixing (1–3, 5, 6, 8, 10–12)
  • Sam Williams – production (7), mixing (4, 7, 9)

Artwork

  • James Fry – cover photography
  • Matthew Burley – inner photography
  • Nick & Dom – video stills
  • The Designers Republic – design & image manipulation

Charts

Weekly charts

{| class="wikitable sortable plainrowheaders" style="text-align:center"

|+ 1997 chart performance for In It for the Money

! scope="col"| Chart (1997)

! scope="col"| Peak<br />position

|-

|-

|-

!scope="row"|European Albums Chart

| style="text-align:center;"|11

|-

|-

|-

|-

! scope="row"|Icelandic Albums (Tonlist)

| style="text-align:center;"|5

|-

!scope="row"|Irish Albums (IRMA)

| style="text-align:center;"|9

|-

|-

|-

|-

|-

|}

{| class="wikitable plainrowheaders"

|+ 2021 chart performance for In It for the Money

! scope="col"| Chart (2021)

! scope="col"| Peak<br />position

|-

|}

Year-end charts

{| class="wikitable sortable plainrowheaders" style="text-align:center"

|+ 1997 year-end chart performance for In It for the Money

! scope="col"| Chart (1997)

! scope="col"| Position

|-

! scope="row"| New Zealand Albums (RMNZ)

| 32

|-

! scope="row"| UK Albums (OCC)

| 56

|}

References

<!-- This is a licensed stream for the album, which is allowed under Wikipedia polices -->

  • In It for the Money at YouTube (streamed copy where licensed)