Teenage Fanclub was formed in 1989 in Glasgow, Scotland, by Norman Blake (vocals, guitar), Raymond McGinley (vocals, guitar), Gerard Love (vocals, bass) and Francis MacDonald (drums) under the influence of the 1986 British music scene, which became better known as C86.

The debut album, Catholic Education, released in 1990. This first album by the Scottish band fascinates with raw guitars and enchanting melodies. The King, considered the second album, was recorded for just one day and released in 1991 by Creation Records. The record was withdrawn from circulation less than a week after its release due to contractual issues with another label, in this case Matador Records. The King brought two unusual covers: "Like a Virgin" (Madonna's hit) and "Interstellar Overdrive" (Pink Floyd).

Teenage Fanclub achieved some commercial success with the third album, Bandwagonesque, which came out in 1991, and was elected by Spin magazine as the album of the year, beating Nevermind (Nirvana) and Out of Time (R.E.M.).

In 1993, the group released the album Thirteen, which did not receive good reviews from the music press. The successor Grand Prix (1995) was a critical and sales success in the United Kingdom. Liam Gallagher from Oasis even called the Teenage Fanclub "the second best band in the world". The first, according to Liam himself, was Oasis himself.

The album Songs from Northern Britain (1997) features more acoustic songs. As well as the Howdy! (2000). In 2005, the band released the album Man-Made, through the group's own label, PeMa. Their successor, Shadows came out in 2010. Six years later, in 2016, the band released Here, their eleventh studio album. In 2018, Gerard Love left the band. With Euros Childs (former member of the group Gorky Zygotic Mynci) in formation,the band released the album Endless Arcade in 2021.