"Postcards from a Young Man" is a song by Manic Street Preachers and the third single from their tenth album Postcards from a Young Man. It was released on February 28.. It entered the UK Midweek Charts at 36 but dropped to 54 when the official singles chart was announced at the end of the week. In January 2012 the vinyl version of the single was announced as the 10th best-selling 7" vinyl in the UK during 2011.

(Manics website exclusive format)

Postcards from a Young Man is the tenth studio album by Welsh alternative rock band Manic Street Preachers, which reached the number 3 spot on the UK Charts. The Manics began recording the album (provisionally titled It's Not War - Just the End of Love) in October 2009 at their Faster Studio in Cardiff. Released on 20 September 2010, the album was supported by the Manics' most extensive tour of the UK to date.James Dean Bradfield and Nicky Wire have both referred to the album as "one last shot at mass communication".

In an interview for the NME, Bradfield said that "We're going for big radio hits on this one ... It isn't a follow-up to Journal for Plague Lovers." Nicky Wire has said, "We've always been about infiltrating the mainstream. It was a conscious decision this time to want to hear ourselves on the radio. Our mantra at the start was, 'If you've got something to say, say it to as many people as possible'." In pre-release interviews, Wire also compared the album to the Aerosmith album Pump, saying that "It's going to be an amazing album...Send Away the Tigers was Permanent Vacation, this next one is our Pump."

Nicholas Allen Jones, known as Nicky Wire, is the lyricist, bassist and occasional vocalist with the Welsh rock band Manic Street Preachers.

Born Nicholas Allen Jones on January 20, 1969 in Blackwood,Wales, Wire is the younger brother of poet and author Patrick Jones. He attended Oakdale Comprehensive School with James Dean Bradfield, Sean Moore and Richey James Edwards. He excelled at football, was captain of the Welsh national schoolboys' team aged 14. Offered a trial at both Tottenham Hotspur and Arsenal football clubs, back and knee problems brought his career to an end. Wire took A-levels in politics and law. He later attended Portsmouth Polytechnic, and after one year transferred to the University of Wales Swansea, starting his course a year after Richey. He graduated with a Lower Second-Class Honours degree in Political History.

He was originally the band's rhythm guitarist, but changed to playing bass guitar after original bassist, Flicker, left the band. He co-wrote the band's lyrics with Richey James between 1989 and 1995, taking over sole responsibility following Edwards' disappearance. Some of Edwards' lyrics were used on 1996's Everything Must Go album, making 1998's This Is My Truth Tell Me Yours the first album with lyrics by Wire alone. He chose the pseudonym Wire because of his "wirey frame" (he is 6'3").

Manic Street Preachers are a Welsh alternative rock band formed in 1986 consisting of James Dean Bradfield (lead vocals, lead guitar), Nicky Wire (bass, lyrics), and Sean Moore (drums, percussion). The band is part of the Cardiff music scene and were at their most prominent during the 1990s. They are colloquially known as "The Manics" or simply "Manics". Manic Street Preachers were originally a quartet but primary lyricist and rhythm guitarist Richey Edwards vanished on 1 February 1995.

In 1992, the Manics released their debut album, Generation Terrorists. Their combination of androgynous glam punk imagery and critical social lyrics about "culture, alienation, boredom, and despair" soon gained them a loyal following and cult status. The band's later albums retained a leftist politicisation and intellectual lyrical style while adopting a broader alternative rock sound.

Following Edwards' disappearance, Bradfield, Moore, and Wire persisted with Manic Street Preachers and went on to gain critical and commercial success, becoming one of Britain's premier rock bands. Altogether, they have garnered eight Top 10 albums, fifteen Top 10 singles, and have reached number one three times with their 1998 This Is My Truth Tell Me Yours album, the 1998 "If You Tolerate This Your Children Will Be Next" single, and the 2000 "The Masses Against the Classes" single.

Julian Miles "Jools" Holland OBE, DL (born 24 January 1958) is an English pianist, bandleader, singer, composer, and television presenter. He was a founder of the band Squeeze (1974-1980 & 1985-1990) and his work has involved him with many artists including Sting, Eric Clapton, George Harrison, David Gilmour, Magazine and Bono.

Holland is a published author and appears on television shows besides his own and contributes to radio shows. In 2004, he collaborated with Tom Jones on an album of traditional R&B music. He currently hosts Later... with Jools Holland, a music-based show aired on BBC2, on which his annual show Hootenanny, is based.

His great grandfather came from Ireland.

Holland played as a session musician before finding fame, and his first studio session was with Wayne County & the Electric Chairs in 1976 on their track "F*ck Off."

Holland was a founding member of the British pop band Squeeze, formed in March 1974, in which he played keyboards until 1981 and helped the band to achieve millions of record sales, before pursuing his solo career.