The Smiths song Morrissey wrote about “complete loneliness”
Deciphering the definitive song by The Smiths has divided fans since they split in 1987. From hit tracks to cult classics, in their short five years of existence, the Manchester band provided great quality and influential material, so the debate continues to rage on.
The familiar exhibits such as the chimes of ‘This Charming Man’, the brooding atmosphere of ‘What Difference Does It Make?’, and, of course, the almost automated groove of ‘How Soon Is Now?’ are the three most prominent songs that lodge claims to be the quartet’s finest offering. Still, the mention of these barely scratches the surface of what The Smiths delivered in their brief time in the sun.
From ‘These Things Take Time’ to ‘Stop Me If You Think You’ve Heard This One Before’, The Smiths are considered one of the most significant acts of their era because of the mass of great material they produced. One particularly brilliant effort some deem their best is their debut single, 1983’s ‘Hand in Glove’. The raw, harmonica-featuring cut blended rumbling punk and folk to full effect, recalling the Irish backgrounds of all four members.
Despite the track being a classic moment in the history of The Smiths and their explicit pride at what they deemed as the perfect final product, it failed to land outside of indie circles, peaking at a measly 124 on the UK Singles Chart. However, the remixed version remains a staple of their 1984 self-titled debut album.
Much of its brilliance is the interplay between frontman Morrissey’s lyrics and Johnny Marr’s busy guitar work, a partnership which was always the band’s weapon of choice. According to the vocalist, the track is also about “complete loneliness”. He told Star Hits: “I just wanted to use the theme of complete loneliness. It was important to me that there’d be something searingly poetic in it, in a lyrical sense, and yet jubilant at the same time.”
Ironically, Marr would later tell biographer Simon Goddard that he assumed Morrissey wrote the song about their friendship “purely because we were the only people hanging out with each other at the time”. He has since maintained that he deems the lyrics some of Morrissey’s best due to what he believes is its ode to love and fellowship.
Morrissey also explained that “Though we may be hidden by rags / we have something they’ll never have” is his favourite Smiths lyric. He said: “It’s how I felt when I couldn’t afford clothes and used to dress in rags but I didn’t really feel mentally impoverished.”
Listen to ‘Hand in Glove’ below.
