Morrissey A-Z: "The Last of the Famous International Playboys"

[Fire Drill At Wool Hall]

Upon its release, Playboys was a mid week chart placing of 3 in the UK and this truly looked like it might have become Morrissey's first UK number one single.

Having had no new Morrissey material in seven months, this glam rock sounding single was an event at the time, especially when it became clear that it was almost a Smiths reunion.

However, the main man on this single was session guitarist Neil Taylor (Tears For Fears) who played the distinctive riff. None of Morrissey's guitarists since then have played this riff correctly when they performed a Playboys in concert :

 

[Thewlis]

Very interesting! Never knew this.
And a bit T.Rex-y definitely.

 

[gashonthenail]

Such a great song.
It's clearly a prison-sex fantasy about being spit-roasted whilst sharing a cell with Reggie and Ronnie Kray.

 

[ZOOM FROM GLOOM]

It's clearly a prison-sex fantasy about being spit-roasted whilst sharing a cell with Reggie and Ronnie Kray.

I don’t think so, but you have a right to that interpretation.

 

[Musician]

I don’t think so, but you have a right to that interpretation.

It is quite obvious in a tongue-in-cheek way, so don’t worry about your hero. An even funnier song than Girlfriend in a coma.

 

[Hangover At Wool Hall]

The 12" of this has quite stunning fidelty, warmth and heft. It's probably Stephen Street's finest moment, sonically, as an engineer / producer with Morrissey and The Smiths.

Playboys could've easily fitted on Strangeways. Whilst Viva Hate will always be my favourite Morrissey studio album and only just behind Strangeways as an album featuring Morrissey, one can't help wondering how great a second studio album would have been if it had gone ahead and featured Playboys, Lisp, Drug, Ouijja, At Amber and Such a little thing, among other Street/Morrissey compositions.

 

[Was I ever any good]

Didn’t Mozz get the all clear from one of the Kray twins for the release of this song?

 

[Famous when dead]

Didn’t Mozz get the all clear from one of the Kray twins for the release of this song?

No.
Reggie is cited via the off-site Wiki to have commented on the single, which is actually from:
Reg Kray - Born Fighter.
"In a way, we are like museum pieces, relics of the past, especially since we are not around the streets to be seen. People still visualize us as we were, physically and mentally. This too creates an enigma type of picture. Is it not right that the more exclusive the club is, the more they want to become members or to see the show? That applies to Ron and me because we are shut away. There was even a hit single about us, Morrissey’s The Last of the Famous International Playboys, in January 1989. I liked the tune, but I thought the lyrics in their entirety were lacking a little. They came quite close . . ."
FWD.