The song had its live premiere february 21st 1994:

The band had just been to see Jeff Buckley play a set, and when they got back into the studio, Thom recorded the vocals in two takes and broke down in tears.

A rough mix of 'Fake Plastic Trees' was included on this august 1994 work-in-progress tape compilation. The handwriting is Thom's. Side A of the cassette appears to contain both finished versions as well as a few rough mixes and also lists some working titles:

According to Thom, this song is about Canary Wharf in London. The acoustic version was used in the film Clueless. This song has remained in setlists ever since it was released and has been played on most dates of every tour.