Meshing 60s-styled guitar pop with an understated 80s dance beat, the Stone Roses defined the British guitar pop scene of the late 80s and early 90s. After their eponymous 1989 debut album became an English sensation, countless other groups in the same vein became popular, including the Charlatans UK, Inspiral Carpets, and Happy Mondays. However, the band was never able to capitalize on the promise of their first album, waiting five years before they released their second record and slowly disintegrating in the year and half after its release.

The Stone Roses emerged from the remains of English Rose, a Manchester-based band formed by schoolmates John Squire (guitar) and Ian Brown (vocals). In 1985, the Stone Roses officially formed, as Squire and Brown added drummer Reni (born Alan John Wren), guitarist Andy Couzens, and bassist Pete Garner. The group began playing warehouses around Manchester, cultivating a dedicated following rather quickly. Around this time, the group was a cross between classic British 60s guitar pop and heavy metal, with touches of goth rock. Couzens left the group in 1987, followed shortly afterward by Garner. Garner was replaced by Mani (born Gary Mounfield) and the group recorded its first single, So Young, which was released to little attention by Thin Line Records. At the end of 1987, the Stone Roses released their second single, Sally Cinnamon, which pointed the way toward the bands hook-laden, ringing guitar pop. By the fall of 1988, the band secured a contract with Silvertone Records and released Elephant Stone, a single that set the bands catchy neo-psychedelic guitar pop in stone.