A cover of Union City Blues by Radiohead has been hailed by fans as a “ragged and expressive” triumph of a song.
The Blondie track featured as part of Radiohead’s Black Session in 1995. Also featured were the likes of High and Dry, Fake Plastic Trees, and Creep. The full setlist has been shared online, as has a clip of the band’s performance in Paris, France. Not everyone was convinced by Radiohead’s performance of Union City Blues, though one fan found much to love in the “ragged” performance from the Thom Yorke-fronted group. They wrote: “It’s a ragged and expressive version of Blondie.” Others were unconvinced by the performance, with some suggesting it was well below par for Radiohead and what they could do as a group.
One person wrote: “I try to refrain from posting negative comments but this is brutal. Sorry!” Another fumed: “How did they manage to butcher one of the greatest intros in pop-rock?” A third added: “Suede do it better.”
Despite the negative reception to the song, it marks a fascinating cover by the band, one they would never repeat again. A full setlist of their Black Session in Paris, France, can be found below.
- The Bends
- Just
- Anyone Can Play Guitar
- Bones
- High and Dry
- Fake Plastic Trees
- Street Spirit (Fade Out)
- You
- Planet Telex
- Union City Blues (Blondie cover)
- Creep
- My Iron Lung
- Banana Co.
- Prove Yourself
It marks a massive difference to the recent setlists the band put together for their 2025 reunion shows. Though no further dates have been announced by the group, the shows received rave reviews and were fully sold out before the performances began. A setlist of the band’s final date at the Royal Arena in Copenhagen, Denmark, can be found below.
- 2 + 2 = 5
- Airbag
- The Bends
- All I Need
- Ful Stop
- Nude
- Reckoner
- Separator
- Weird Fishes/Arpeggi
- Pyramid Song
- You and Whose Army?
- Sit Down. Stand Up.
- The Gloaming
- No Surprises
- Paranoid Android
- Bodysnatchers
- Exit Music (for a Film)
- Street Spirit (Fade Out)
- Let Down
- Idioteque
- Myxomatosis
- Present Tense
- Jigsaw Falling into Place
- There There
- Karma Police
In a statement to fans, drummer Philip Selway shared further details. He said: “Last year, we got together to rehearse, just for the hell of it. After a seven-year pause, it felt really good to play the songs again and reconnect with a musical identity that has become lodged deep inside all five of us.
“It also made us want to play some shows together, so we hope you can make it to one of the upcoming dates. For now, it will just be these ones but who knows where this will all lead.” It’s a hugely different set from the one Radiohead played in their previous show seven years ago.
The set was filled with hits from the band’s discography, as well as a few rarities and even their rejected James Bond theme song, Spectre. It was a set which provided the Wells Fargo Centre crowd in Philadelphia with two encores and a selection of greatest hits from the band. The setlist below was performed on the second night of a two-date stop off at the Wells Fargo Centre.
You can listen to Radiohead’s cover of Union City Blues below.
