Courteeners have shared a brand-new single, ‘Plus One Forever’ – you can listen to it below.
The track will feature on the Manchester group’s first ‘best of’ compilation, ‘God Bless The Band’, which is released on August 28 via Ignition.
“‘Plus One Forever’ is a song I’ve had (in various forms) for quite a while,” frontman Liam Fray wrote on social media. “Buzzing to finally share it with you all today.”
The love-struck anthem finds Fray wrapped up in a “new romance“, as he declares: “I think I’m falling in love / But is it enough?” He adds: “I clumsily danced and proceeded to fall over my words / It was absurd / But I wouldn’t change it for the world.
“Tell me girl, can I be your plus one forever? If you need me now or whenever, I swear I can pull it together…”
The single was produced by Fray and The Coral‘s James Skelly, following on from the recent song ‘The Luckiest Man Alive’.
In a previous statement about the compilation, Fray said: “In October it’s 20 years since our first gig, so with a couple of new songs fresh from the studio, the timing just seemed right for a ‘best of’.
“If we mean half as much to people as they have done to us over the years, then we’ve not done too bad. We look forward to seeing you down the front. God Bless The Fans x.”
Courteeners are set to play a huge homecoming concert at Manchester’s Wythenshawe Park next month, with support coming from The Vaccines, The Coral and more. They’ll also top the bill at Tramlines in Sheffield later this month, and make stops in Stoke-On-Trent and Leicester. A full UK arena tour will follow in November.
See the band’s full itinerary below, and find any remaining tickets here.
Courteeners’ 2026 UK tour dates are:
JULY
23 – Victoria Hall, Stoke-On-Trent
25 – Tramlines, Sheffield
AUGUST
27 – O2 Academy, Leicester
29 – Wythenshawe Park, Manchester
NOVEMBER
06 – First Direct Bank Arena, Leeds
07 – Utilita Arena, Cardiff
13 – M&S Bank Arena, Liverpool
14 – Alexandra Palace, London
20 – OVO Hydro, Glasgow
21 – Utilita Arena, Birmingham
In 2023, Courteeners’ debut album ‘St. Jude’ went to Number One in the UK – 15 years after its initial release. They then dropped a surprise new live record late last year, capturing their sold-out hometown arena gig at the Co-op Live.
The performance formed part of Courteeners’ 2024 UK arena tour in support of their seventh and latest studio album, ‘Pink Cactus Café’.
Speaking to NME in April, Fray took stock of the band’s legacy, survival and unfinished business, after marking their 20th anniversary with a tiny show at Manchester’s Night & Day Café.
“This little gig at Night & Day, it’s made my year. I fucking love that place,” he said. “Even that being part of the launch of the ‘best of’ and the story… 20 years is not to be sniffed at. This industry will kick the shit out of you, so to be still breathing and wanting to do it is a fucking miracle, if I’m honest.”
When asked why Courteeners had not only stood the test of time, but also now reached Gen Z audiences, Fray responded: “Maybe because we bubbled under the surface. There’s that little jealousy thing when you’re really young, ‘Oh, we should be up there’. No, you’ll be alright, keep doing what you’re doing and you’ll be OK.
“Maybe the fact that we weren’t in people’s faces as much at the beginning? I write fairly simple rhymes that are a bit relatable to people? I don’t know.”
The frontman discussed why now was the right time for a ‘best of’ compilation, too, telling NME: “I had these two new songs, but the truth is there wasn’t an album there. Sometimes you have these outliers that don’t fit your record.
“They felt really fresh to me. [Sometimes] you hold on to a song, it’s lost its spark and you’ve lost your respect for it. You know what? No, let’s put these out. I’ll be honest with you, the ‘best of’ is not that much work from our point of view. I say that – I spent about six weeks doing fucking artwork!”
