Morrissey Central "LYRIC PRIDE" (July 10, 2024)

songs from which Morrissey feels most lyrical self-fulfilment

1. IRISH BLOOD, ENGLISH HEART
2. HOW SOON IS NOW?
3. LAST NIGHT I DREAMT THAT SOMEBODY LOVED ME
4. SMILER WITH KNIFE
5. SEASICK, YET STILL DOCKED
6. TROUBLE LOVES ME
7. PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE LET ME GET WHAT I WANT
8. PAINT A VULGAR PICTURE
9. ONCE I SAW THE RIVER CLEAN
10 REBELS WITHOUT APPLAUSE
11 GIRLFRIEND IN A COMA
12 HOLD ON TO YOUR FRIENDS
13 FIRST OF THE GANG TO DIE
14 WE'LL LET YOU KNOW
15 WHY DON'T YOU FIND OUT FOR YOURSELF
16 A RUSH AND A PUSH AND THE LAND IS OURS
17 ASLEEP
18 READER MEET AUTHOR
19 I WISH YOU LONELY
20 LIFE IS A PIGSTY
21 HOME IS A QUESTION MARK
22 YES, I AM BLIND
23 I WILL SEE YOU IN FAR-OFF PLACES
24 EVERYDAY IS LIKE SUNDAY
25 THAT'S HOW PEOPLE GROW UP
26 THE HEADMASTER RITUAL
27 THE GIRL FROM TEL-AVIV WHO WOULDN'T KNEEL
28 THE FATHER WHO MUST BE KILLED
29 JACKY'S ONLY HAPPY WHEN SHE'S UP ON THE STAGE
30 BECAUSE OF MY POOR EDUCATION
31 I'M NOT A MAN
32 LET ME KISS YOU
33 SPENT THE DAY IN BED
34 I'M THROWING MY ARMS AROUND PARIS
35 THE NEVER-PLAYED SYMPHONIES
36 MY LIFE IS A SUCCESSION OF PEOPLE SAYING GOODBYE
37 ISTANBUL
38 SPEEDWAY
39 GANGLORD
40 SCANDINAVIA

LYRIC PRIDE - MESSAGES FROM MORRISSEY - MORRISSEY CENTRAL - LYRIC PRIDE

MESSAGES FROM MORRISSEY on MORRISSEY CENTRAL

www.morrisseycentral.com

 

[Phranc & Open]

The next cathedral in France is on fire, so expect Notre Dame back in the setlist and perhaps soon again in the "Best Lyrics" section. Stay tuned!

 

[BookishBoy]

I couldn't give two shits about this list, we all have our different views of favourite lyrics, etc, but this:

"songs from which Morrissey feels most lyrical self-fulfilment"

...is just terrible, terrible writing.

 

[Girlmostlikely]

What about "People are the Same Everywhere ??

 

[ZOOM FROM GLOOM]

What about "People are the Same Everywhere ??

another favorite of mine! Yeah, there’s a lot of different ones I would have put on this list, if I wrote these songs.

 

[TheSmiths_1985]

I contend that Smiler With Knife is autobiographical, hence why it means so much to him. Remember the time he went around wearing baggy trousers?

All the cool dudes are wearing them.

 

[ZOOM FROM GLOOM]

I couldn't give two shits about this list, we all have our different views of favourite lyrics, etc, but this:

"songs from which Morrissey feels most lyrical self-fulfilment"

...is just terrible, terrible writing.

I heard that he was most Central comment fulfilled after writing that!

 

[Gut]

Every sensible Child misses Nowhere Fast

 

[Juan Dulces]

Cambridge dictionary definition of self-fulfillment:
“a feeling of satisfaction that you have achieved what you wanted“

So I guess he really does think these are his best lyrics. Or most accomplished, at least. That is if he uses the word correctly.

Have you read List of the Lost?? He's using the word correctly, alright!

 

[OhDeirdreMozDoneAWhoopsie]

Interesting that he knows what his best song writing is but is still happy with songs like Notre Dame and Kerouac's Crack, if he's comparing them to The Headmaster's Ritual he must think 'Yeah this is shite'

 

[gashonthenail]

Some interesting choices. Smiler with Knife has been discussed on Solo before - lyrically it is one of those songs that could easily stand alone as poetry. Moz started off in The Smiths wanting to write like Shelagh Delaney. In the solo years he started to want to write like Jean Genet.

Lyrics to Smiler With Knife

Anyone else who thinks that the lyrics to Smiler with knife may be the best thing Morrissey has ever written? Both the form and content of it is nearly perfect. It is the first real or "classic" poem he has written with both rhymed verse and a metre (the first in his œuvre?). Most of the lines...

www.morrissey-solo.com

 

[Ashley_TakeABow]

Some interesting choices. Smiler with Knife has been discussed on Solo before - lyrically it is one of those songs that could easily stand alone as poetry. Moz started off in The Smiths wanting to write like Shelagh Delaney. In the solo years he started to want to write like Jean Genet.

Lyrics to Smiler With Knife

Anyone else who thinks that the lyrics to Smiler with knife may be the best thing Morrissey has ever written? Both the form and content of it is nearly perfect. It is the first real or "classic" poem he has written with both rhymed verse and a metre (the first in his œuvre?). Most of the lines...

www.morrissey-solo.com

Interesting you say that because I've never heard this song before, but I did read the lyrics yesterday. They were very poetic.

 

[The Alchemist]

My favourite lines from any song ever (and something of a personal mantra to me) are: 'It's so easy to laugh, it's so easy to hate/It takes strength to be gentle and kind'. This thought has got me through some really bad times, so I'm a bit sad not to see I Know It's Over on the list.

Agree, another incredible omission.

Oh mother, I can feel the soil falling over my head...

One of his best ever lyrics for me, and one of the most emotive. In just one short line he encapsulated what it's like to feel you are being buried alive by this world, with all of the connotations that brings.

And the way he sings it, too. That song is just magical.

Which makes me even more confused about this list. I'm not sure I can take it seriously and I do think he could be trolling.

 

[Orange Crush]

My favourite lines from any song ever (and something of a personal mantra to me) are: 'It's so easy to laugh, it's so easy to hate/It takes strength to be gentle and kind'. This thought has got me through some really bad times, so I'm a bit sad not to see I Know It's Over on the list.

I think Johnny Marr wrote that one, to be fair.

 

[Juan Dulces]

Agree, another incredible omission.

Oh mother, I can feel the soil falling over my head...

One of his best ever lyrics for me, and one of the most emotive. In just one short line he encapsulated what it's like to feel you are being buried alive by this world, with all of the connotations that brings.

And the way he sings it, too. That song is just magical.

Which makes me even more confused about this list. I'm not sure I can take it seriously and I do think he could be trolling.

I like what you said here. And I'm not kidding - right away it stood out to me that both Seasick and We'll Let You Know are on the list but I Know It's Over is not. Much better solo lyrics than Seasick: Lazy Sunbathers, Little Man What Now, I could name more. Much better Smiths lyrics than Seasick: Most. What makes Seasick a keeper is the phrasing of his singing/the timing/nautical feel of the music/the flow. Since the 90s...by the end of Seasick, I'm tired of the lyrics and they just kind of trail off. Of course, that's just my opinion. Some weirdos may 'live or die' by Seasick, but I am not that kind of weirdo!

 

[The Alchemist]

I like what you said here. And I'm not kidding - right away it stood out to me that both Seasick and We'll Let You Know are on the list but I Know It's Over is not. Much better solo lyrics than Seasick: Lazy Sunbathers, Little Man What Now, I could name more. Much better Smiths lyrics than Seasick: Most. What makes Seasick a keeper is the phrasing of his singing/the timing/nautical feel of the music/the flow. Since the 90s...by the end of Seasick, I'm tired of the lyrics and they just kind of trail off. Of course, that's just my opinion. Some weirdos may 'live or die' by Seasick, but I am not that kind of weirdo!

It's a good song, and the title alone speaks volumes. But as you say, others are far greater. We'll just have to accept this list for what it is - a list posted without a full explanation or context.

 

[Seymour Glass]

I wonder if he really is crazy enough to suggest that That's How People Grow Up, I'm Not A Man, and Throwing My Arms Around Paris are better lyrically than The Hand That Rocks The Cradle and I Know It's Over.

Exactly. How can you take a list like this seriously without I Know It's Over??

 

[Ashley_TakeABow]

I'm not sure I can take it seriously and I do think he could be trolling.

Am I the only one who thinks that he puts some of these things on Central just to read Solo for our reactions; in a way.. connecting with us? I can't help but wonder. I sometimes think he is among us here on this site, also making posts, perhaps just as an anonymous.

 

[BookishBoy]

Am I the only one who thinks that he puts some of these things on Central just to read Solo for our reactions; in a way.. connecting with us? I can't help but wonder. I sometimes think he is among us here on this site, also making posts, perhaps just as an anonymous.

Bowie used to do that, didn't he, on some fan forums?

I can't imagine Moz doing it on here given the...issues he's had with this site in the past, but it's still fun to think about!

 

[DaveJCarr]

Am I the only one who thinks that he puts some of these things on Central just to read Solo for our reactions; in a way.. connecting with us? I can't help but wonder. I sometimes think he is among us here on this site, also making posts, perhaps just as an anonymous.

I cannot imagine a more maddening experience than visiting a forum that is populated by affectionate worshippers of you, acerbic critics and everyone in between. Personally, I take him at the word of his "f*** morrissey-solo.com" t-shirts

 

[Ashley_TakeABow]

I cannot imagine a more maddening experience than visiting a forum that is populated by affectionate worshippers of you, acerbic critics and everyone in between. Personally, I take him at the word of his "f*** morrissey-solo.com" t-shirts

Very true.. it is maddening, and it even upsets me sometimes how people talk about him on here... but since we are here talking about him, and since the discussions are so raw and so utterly human, I bet he gets curious from time to time! Maybe he finds the maddening things we say humourous! He seems to have a dry sense of humor like that.