I Started Something I Couldn't Finish (single)
| THE SMITHS Single | |
|---|---|
| Name | I Started Something I Couldn't Finish |
| Release | 2 November 1987 |
| Total Length | 3:46 |
| Recorded | Spring 1987 |
| Writer/composer | Morrissey / Johnny Marr |
| Producer | Stephen Street Assisted by Morrissey / Johnny Marr |
| Art work | Cover star: Avril Angers film still from "The Family Way" (1966) Layout: Caryn Gough |
| Vinyl Etching | "MURDER AT THE WOOL HALL" (x) STARRING SHERIDAN WHITESIDE YOU ARE BELIEVING, YOU DO NOT WANT TO SLEEP |
| Publisher | Rough Trade Records (UK) |
| Format(s) | 7" Vinyl, 12" Vinyl, Cassette |
| Chart position | UK #23 |
| Single chronology | |
| Girlfriend In A Coma ← I Started Something I Couldn't Finish → Stop Me If You Think You've Heard This One Before
| |
Information
Track list
7" Vinyl
UK - [Rough Trade RT 198]
- I Started Something I Couldn't Finish – 3:46 (Morrissey/Marr)
- Pretty Girls Make Graves (Troy Tate version) – 3:35 (Morrissey/Marr)
12" Vinyl
UK - [Rough Trade RTT 198]
- I Started Something I Couldn't Finish – 3:46 (Morrissey/Marr)
- Pretty Girls Make Graves (Troy Tate version) – 3:35 (Morrissey/Marr)
- Some Girls Are Bigger Than Others (live) – 5:03 (Morrissey/Marr)
Cassette
UK - [Rough Trade RTT 198C]
- I Started Something I Couldn't Finish – 3:46 (Morrissey/Marr)
- Pretty Girls Make Graves (Troy Tate version) – 3:35 (Morrissey/Marr)
- Some Girls Are Bigger Than Others (live) – 5:03 (Morrissey/Marr)
- What's The World? (live) – 2:07 (James)
Lyrics
The lanes were silent
with nothing or no one around for miles
I doused our friendly venture
with a hard-faced
three-word gesture
I started something
I forced you into a zone
and you were clearly
never meant to go
hair brushed and parted
typical me, typical me
typical me
I started something
...and now I'm not too sure
I grabbed you by the guilded beams
that's what Tradition means
and I doused another venture
with a gesture
that was...absolutely vile
I started something
forced you to a zone
and you were clearly
never meant to go
Hair brushed and parted
typical me, typical me
typical me
I started something
...and now I'm not too sure
I grabbed you by the guilded beams
that's what Tradition means
and now eighteen months' hard-labour
seems...fair enough
I started something
forced you to a zone
and you were clearly
never meant to go
hair brushed and parted
typical me, typical me
typical me
I started something
and now I'm not too sure
Music Video (UK)
Credits
- Directed by Tim Broad
Live History
Play count (The Smiths concert): 0
Play count (Morrissey concert): 21
Morrissey live history:
- Portland, Oregon 2017-10-31 (Morrissey concert)
- Seattle, Washington 2017-11-02 (Morrissey concert)
- San Francisco, California 2017-11-04 (Morrissey concert)
- Los Angeles, California 2017-11-10 (Morrissey concert)
- Los Angeles, California 2017-11-11 (Morrissey concert)
- Phoenix, Arizona 2017-11-16 (Morrissey concert)
- Salt Lake City, Utah 2017-11-18 (Morrissey concert)
- Denver, Colorado 2017-11-20 (Morrissey concert)
- St. Louis, Missouri 2017-11-22 (Morrissey concert)
- Chicago, Illinois 2017-11-25 (Morrissey concert)
Appears On
- How Soon Is Now? (single)
- Strangeways, Here We Come
- I Started Something I Couldn't Finish (single)
- Singles
- The Very Best Of The Smiths
- The Sound Of The Smiths
- Complete
Appears On Covers Compilation
Cover Versions
Mentioned In
Discogs Information
Credits
- Art Direction [Art Co-ordination] - Jo Slee
- Bass - Andy Rourke
- Drums - Mike Joyce
- Guitar - Johnny Marr
- Layout - Caryn Gough
- Mastered By - Tim Young
- Model [Cover Star] - Avril Angers
- Sleeve - Morrissey
- Voice - Morrissey
- Written-By - Johnny Marr
- Written-By - Morrissey
Notes
RTT 198 printed in white at top right-hand corner of dark green, die-cut inner sleeve.
"I Started Something I Couldn't Finish" Recorded in Bath, March 1987. Mastered at CBS. Taken from the LP "Strangeways, Here We Come". "Some Girls Are Bigger Than Others" Recorded at Brixton Academy, December 12, 1986.
Cover Star: Avril Angers © 1966 Weintraub Entertainments
Side A: © 1987 Warner Bros. Music Ltd. ℗ Rough Trade Records 1987 Side B: © 1983 & 1986 Warner Bros. Music Ltd. Made in England.
Images
- I Started Something I Couldn't Finish - Discogs master release: https://www.discogs.com/master/21109
- I Started Something I Couldn't Finish (12" 45 RPM EMI Pressing) - Discogs release: https://www.discogs.com/release/464985-The-Smiths-I-Started-Something-I-Couldnt-Finish
Discogs information (additional release)
Notes
Recorded at Bath, March 1987 Cover Star: Avril Angers © 1966 Weintraub Entertainments Track 3: Recorded at Brixton Academy, London, 12 December 1986. Track 4: Recorded in Glasgow, September 1985.
Images
- I Started Something I Couldn't Finish (Single) - Discogs release: https://www.discogs.com/release/1139185-The-Smiths-I-Started-Something-I-Couldnt-Finish
Wikipedia Information
 |
"I Started Something I Couldn't Finish" is a song by the English rock band The Smiths, written by singer Morrissey and guitarist Johnny Marr and released on the group's 1987 album Strangeways, Here We Come. Featuring a glam rock-inspired guitar riff, the song emerged from a jam during the "Sheila Take a Bow" sessions. Though not originally planned to be released as a single, "I Started Something I Couldn't Finish" was released as the album's second single after "Stop Me If You Think You've Heard This One Before" was banned by the BBC for references to mass murder after the Hungerford Massacre. Released in November 1987, it reached number 23 in the UK Singles Chart, a relative commercial underachievement. It was the first single released after the band had announced their split. "I Started Something I Couldn't Finish" has seen critical acclaim for Marr's guitar work and Morrissey's witty lyricism. It has since appeared on multiple compilation albums.
Related Forum Threads
- The Smiths A-Z: "I Started Something I Couldn't Finish" - Morrissey-solo (Mar 11, 2022)