Articulate, broodingly charismatic frontman Morrissey and supple guitarist Johnny Marr made the Smiths one of the most significant English bands of the '80s. (Rolling Stone)


Tuesday, March 4, 2008

The Smiths: There Is A Light That Never Goes Out

The Smiths: The Queen Is DeadAlbum: The Queen Is Dead (1986)
Produced by Morrissey and Johnny Marr
Label: Rough Trade Records

Track 9: There Is A Light That Never Goes Out
Words by Morrissey
Music by Johnny Marr


Video: The Smiths - There Is A Light That Never Goes Out


Lyrics: The Smiths - There Is A Light That Never Goes Out

Take me out tonight
where there's music and there's people
who are young and alive
driving in your car
I never never want to go home
because I havent got one
anymore
take me out tonight
because I want to see people and I
want to see lights
driving in your car
oh please dont drop me home
because it's not my home, it's their
home, and Im welcome no more
and if a double-decker bus
crashes into us
to die by your side
such a heavenly way to die
and if a ten ton truck
kills the both of us
to die by your side
the pleasure and the privilege is mine
take me out tonight
oh take me anywhere, I dont care
and in the darkened underpass
I thought Oh God, my chance has come at last
(but then a strange fear gripped me and I
just couldnt ask)
take me out tonight
take me anywhere, I dont care
just driving in your car
I never never want to go home
because I havent got one
I havent got one

there is a light and it never goes out

"There Is a Light That Never Goes Out" is a song by the English rock group The Smiths, written by Morrissey and Johnny Marr. It was originally featured on their 1986 album The Queen Is Dead, but despite its enduring popularity it was not released as a single until 1992, after The Smiths split up. Morrissey re-released the song as a double A-side live single (with his cover of Patti Smith's "Redondo Beach") in 2005, which reached #11 in the UK singles chart.

The song lyrically utilises a first-person narrative concerning yearning, anxiety, and implied romance. Morrissey assumes the role of a person who has, one could infer from the lyrics, been kicked out of home, so seeks solace and company in the form of the person the song addresses - the car's driver.

Musically, the song begins with a staccato bridge similar to that heard on "Hitch Hike" by Marvin Gaye and "There She Goes Again" by The Velvet Underground, which recurs as a musical motif throughout the song. With synthesized strings, a balladesque arrangement and yearning lyrics, many listeners have viewed "There Is a Light That Never Goes Out" as a straightforward love song despite some ambiguity in the lyrics themselves.

Source: Wikipédia