In this period the band had gone on a tour of the US which they greatly detested[citation needed], especially as the country was the home of grunge and audiences were not receptive to their music.

David Balfe, the head of the band's record company, commissioned this song as the original album did not have any hit singles.

[2] The single cover of the two World War II fighter planes was used by the band as a sense of Britishness.

The song charted at number 28 in the UK[4] in its first week of release, a position matched by Blur's next single, "Chemical World".

[9] The music video for "For Tomorrow", directed by British director Julien Temple, was filmed in a classic black and white style and featured Northern Irish actress Kathy Kiera Clarke.

Some repeated scenes include: The video ends with Albarn rolling down Primrose Hill with Kathy Kiera Clarke.

On 10 May 2023, marking the 30th anniversary of Modern Life Is Rubbish , a 4K colour version of the video became available on the Blur YouTube channel.