Manic Street Preachers "you can draw some pretty obvious conclusions from the lyrics." Wire, who admitted finding the task of editing this song "pretty choking", eventually composed the music and sang lead vocals after Bradfield found himself unsuited to the task. Bradfield commented that "Journal for Plague Lovers" was an attempt to finally secure the legacy of their former member Richey Edwards and the result was that, during the recording process, it was as close to feeling his presence since his disappearance: "There was a sense of responsibility to do his words justice. That was part of the whole thing of letting enough
Stay Beautiful (Manic Street Preachers song) B-sides for all formats included "R.P. McMurphy", with the CD and 12" versions adding "Soul Contamination". The title of "R.P. McMurphy" is based on the protagonist of Ken Kesey's 1962 novel "One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest" (which was subsequently made into a film). The title of "Stay Beautiful" was used by Renault in a television advertisement for a car in reference to the song. There is also a bar/club in London named Stay Beautiful in reference to the song. During his solo tour, bassist Nicky Wire performed there. Stay Beautiful (Manic Street Preachers song) "Stay Beautiful" is a song