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True Faith works on many levels. You can listen to it, you can dance to it, you can watch the very interesting video, and come away with something a little different each time.

The song itself is about heroin addiction. From Wikipedia:

As is the case for many New Order songs, the words in the title do not appear anywhere in the lyrics.

The song is about heroin addiction. This is more obvious in the original lyrics, which contain the line, “They’re all taking drugs with me,” in place of, “They’re afraid of what they see.” The line was changed at the last minute due to pressure from label executives, but the original line is often used when the band performs the song live.

The band was surprised by the fact that the single widened their audience with younger children, because the video’s characters were reminiscent of children’s programming, even though the real theme of the song is adult.

And from SongMeanings:

this is from the songwriter, Bernard Sumner himself, during an interview for Q magazine in 1999.

“(True Faith) is about drug dependency. I don’t touch smack but when I wrote that song I tried to imagine what it’s like to be a smackhead and nothing else matters to you except that day’s hit. There’s a line in the song, ‘When I was a very young boy, very young boys played with me/Now we’ve grown up together, they’re afraid of what they see.” The original was, ‘Now they’re taking drugs with me,’ but Stephen Hague our producer made us change it because he said it wouldn’t be a hit if we kept that line in. He was right. It was a very big hit, but we chickened out. I change it back sometimes live.”

Personally, I dig it because it’s a good song. It does have a good beat; you can dance to it, but it’s also very listenable, like most of New Order’s best songs.

Here’s a link to the video

And of course, the lyrics:

I feel so extraordinary
Something’s got a hold on me
I’ve got this feeling I’m in motion
A sudden sense of liberty
I don’t care ‘cos I’m not there
And I don’t care if I’m here tomorrow
Again and again I’ve taken too much
Of the thing that costs you too much

(* repeat)

I’m the Man is a classic and fairly timeless song about a huckster–or rather, the huckster–that sells “everything from a thin safety pin to a pork pie hat”.

The song isn’t just a classic for it’s subject matter, but also because it’s a great sounding song. The pounding, slightly manic beat plays aids and abets the angry, sardonic lyrics nicely. And it’s got a good beat and you can dance to it.

Here’s a link to the video

And of course, the lyrics:

Pretty soon now
Yknow I’m gonna make a comeback
And like the birds and the bees in the trees
Its a sure-fire smash
Ill speak
To the masses throughout the media
And if you got anything to say to me
You can say it with cash
cause I got the trash and you got the cash
So baby we should get along fine
So give me all your money cause I know you think I’m funny
Cant you hear me laughing
Cant you see me smile

I’m the man
I’m the man that gave you the hula-hoop
I’m the man
I’m the man that gave you the yo-yo

Sheila Take A Bow might not be the Smiths best known song, or even their best song, but it’s a very good song, with a very good melody.

There’s a fair amount of contention as regards the song’s origins and meanings. I got the following from SongMeanings:

“Interesting enougth this film is about a teenage pregnant girl and her realationship with a young gay man.Thay love each other but in the end the pressures from the outside (mostly the girl’s mum) forces them to separate. ”
Mark Simpson has a very interesting theory in his book “Saint Morrissey” that Morrissey identified strongly with the main character of the play - the girl, Jo. From what I know about the play and the character, it seems quite probable: she has an overbearing mother, she is bored in school and generally unhappy, then, wishing some excitement in life, she has a one-night stand (with a black sailor who she would not see again) which leaves her pregnant. Then she finds real love as non-sexual love. Unhappy teenager, sick of school and family, trying to escape an overbearing parent, looking for love - sounds a lot like “Shakespeare’s Sister” as well as “Sheila Take A Bow”.

Sheila is probably a nod to Shelagh Delaney, and I totally agree that the girl Sheila is the imagined “female Morrissey” (kind of like the girl in the “Everyday Is Like Sunday” video, don’t you think?) and that all he tells her can be said to him as well. He seems to be speaking to himself in several of his songs, adivising himself: Accept Yourself, Handsome Devil (”there’s more to life than books you know”, in Moz’s words the song is aimed at a scholar who should get more physical instead of jsut reading), Sheila Take A Bow, you migh say Ask as well.

She might also be his ideal partner:
“Take my hand and off we stride/ You’re a girl and I’m a boy”
/Take my hand and off we stride / I’m a girl and you’re a boy ” - the switching of gender roles back and forth (nicked by Massive Attack 10 years later in Protection LOL) is very much in tune with Morrissey’s views, too. In Girl Afraid we see that traditional gender roles hinder understanding and contact between two people who like each other. Here we see that traditional gender roles should be disposed of,, in order for people to trully understand themselves and each other.

From Wikipedia:

The single’s cover features actress Candy Darling from the film Women in Revolt (1971). Candy Darling was a transwoman born James Lawrence Slattery and part of Andy Warhol’s entourage.

Perhaps there was some empathy for the things that Candy Darling likely went through. I don’t know myself. I do know that I think it’s a really good song.

Here’s a link to what was likely a performance on Top of The Pops or some similar show

And of course, the lyrics:

Is it wrong to want to live on your own ?
No, it’s not wrong - but I must know
How can someone so young
Sing words so sad ?

Sheila take a, Sheila take a bow
La …
Throw your homework onto the fire
Come out and find the one that you love
Come out and find the one you love

Girls On Film is easily my favorite Duran Duran song. I love the guitar riffs, the bass line, and I think this is also one of Simon Le Bon’s best vocal outings as well. The song, about the exploitative and voyeuristic qualities of the fashion industry, particularly pertaining to the relationships between photographers and models, moves along at a funky pace that’s quite enjoyable.

It’s also got a good beat, and you can dance to it.

Here’s a link to the video (the tame version–anyone can search for the uncensored version).

And of course, the lyrics:

See them walking hand in hand
Across the bridge at midnight
Heads turning as the lights flashing out
Are so bright
And walk right out to the four line track
There’s a camera rolling on her back
On her back
And I sense the rhythms humming in a frenzy
All the way down her spine

Girls on Film (she’s more than a lady)
Girls on Film
Girls on Film (see you together)
Girls on Film
Girls on Film (see you later)
Girls on Film
Girls on Film (two minutes later)
Girls on Film

Ebeneezer Goode is–say it with me kids–a fun song. It’s got a great beat and you can dance to it. And it’s fun. Really fun. F to the U to the N.

Okay, enough self-parody. This is a good (no pun intended) song. It’s got a good, upbeat feeling, and it’s enjoyable to listen to as well.

I’d never really considered what the song was about before (I preferfed to just let my butt do thinking when I listen to this one), but according to Wikipedia, it’s most likely about the drug ecstasy:

The song is best known for its chorus, “‘Eezer Goode, ‘Eezer Goode/He’s Ebeneezer Goode”, which has been construed as a drug reference: “E’s are good, E’s are good”.[1] The lyrics present the advantages of Ecstasy use with a warning about the drugs abuse thrown in: “But go easy on old ‘Eezer, he’s the love you could lose. Extraordinary fellow, like Mister Punchinello, he’s the kind of geezer who must never be abused”.

The song also contains references to rolling a spliff with the lines “Has anybody got any Veras?”, a reference to ‘Vera Lynns’, the rhyming slang for skins or rolling papers and “Got any salmon?”, which is a reference to ’salmon and trout’ the rhyming slang for ’snout’, a prison word for tobacco.

Here’s a link to the video

And of course, the lyrics:

There’s a guy in the place
He’s got a bittersweet face
And he goes by the name of Ebeneezer Goode
His friends call him Eezer and he is the main geezer
And he’ll vibe about the place
Like no other man could
He’s refined, sublime, he makes you feel fine
Though very much maligned and misunderstood
But if you know Eezer he’s a real crowd pleaser
He’s ever so good, he’s Ebeneezer Goode
You can see that he’s mysterious,
Mischievious and devious
As he circulates amongst the people in the place
But once you know he’s fun
And something of a genius
He gives a grin that grows around
From face to face to face
Backwards and then forwards,
Forwards and then backwards
Eezer is the geezer who loves to muscle in
That’s about the time the crowd
All shout the name of Eezer
As he’s kotcheled in the corner,
Laughing by the bass bin

He’s Ebeneezer Goode
He’s Ebeneezer Goode
Eezer Goode, Eezer Goode
Eezer Goode, Eezer Goode
He’s Ebeneezer Goode

A lot of people love the Gary Jules cover of this song, but I will always prefer the original. I first saw the video back in 1983 on Richard Blade’s MV3 video show, and I loved it. It’s got a really nice beat, you can dance to it, plus it’s got some very interesting–and quite frankly, over the top–lyrics (although I still think that the dreams in which I’m dying are the best I’ve ever had is one of the saddest lyrics I’ve ever heard).

As far as the song’s meaning, here are two quotes taken from Wikipedia:

That came when I lived above a pizza restaurant in Bath and I could look out onto the centre of the city. Not that Bath is very mad - I should have called it “Bourgeois World”!
—Roland Orzabal

It’s very much a voyeur’s song. It’s looking out at a mad world from the eyes of a teenager.[1]
—Curt Smith

I think that’s very appropriate for this song.

Here’s a link to the video

And of course, the lyrics:

All around me are familiar faces
Worn out places, worn out faces
Bright and early for their daily races
Going nowhere, going nowhere
And their tears are filling up their glasses
No expression, no expression
Hide my head I want to drown my sorrow
No tomorrow, no tomorrow

And I find it kind of funny
I find it kind of sad
The dreams in which I’m dying
Are the best I’ve ever had
I find it hard to tell you
‘Cos I find it hard to take
When people run in circles
It’s a very, very
Mad World

Kiss Me isn’t the deepest song, or the best song–but it’s a damned fun song. I love Steven Duffy’s hopeful and optimistic vocals, the sheer joy of his voice when he gets what he wants–it’s an excellent song.

Oh, and it has a good beat and you can dance to it too.

Here’s a link to a tribute video

And of course, the lyrics:

In my young life I have received
Callers as though they were Christmas Eve.
Disappointed and I don’t know why.
She gave me laughter and hope
And a sock in the eye. (A love like this is sealed with a kiss)

Wow I feel so fresh today.
Barefoot in the snow to make love in the hay.
The stars are bright in the abyss,
Now I can feel you in my arms
I explode inside your kiss.

Rebel Waltz isn’t one of the best known Clash songs, but it is a really good one. From the Sandinista! album (which I personally think is better than London Calling), it’s an odd tune by the Clash, a 3/4 waltz. It’s got a gorgeous, seemingly ethereal mood, describing what is likely the last night of a group of rebels in some war. From Rock and Roll Meandering Nonsense:

“Rebel Waltz” is a forgotten song on the Clash’s forgotten Sandinista album. As the title says, it is a waltz, but with an edge. I’m not sure what war this involves or even if that’s important, but the lyrics describe the resolve in a rebel army before (or perhaps after) a battle they cannot (or did not) win. There is a surreal sense to “Rebel Waltz” that suggests that the scene may actually follow the battle in which the rebels were slaughtered. At any rate, the song shows that the Clash can be a powerful band even on low-key songs. Even their waltz is for rebels.

Anyway, it’s a beautiful and haunting song, and it is slightly forgotten, which is a shame.

You can listen to the song below:

And of course, the lyrics:

I slept and I dreamed of a time long ago
I saw an army of rebels, dancing on air
I dreamed as I slept, I could see the campfires,
A song of the battle, that was born in the flames,
and the rebels were waltzing on air.

As the smoke of our hopes rose high from the field
My eyes played tricks through the moon and the trees
I slept as I dreamed I saw the army rise
A voice began to call, stand till you fall
The tune was an old rebel one.

This song screamed “one-hit-wonder” from the first time I heard it. That doesn’t mean it’s a bad song–I wouldnt’ be writing about it if I felt it was–but it does have that feel and appeal. I love the strange percussion–I believe that one of the instruments the drummer is playing is a frying pan–and the oddness of Stanard Ridgway’s vocals. Also, it’s a great sing-along song as well.

From Wikipedia:

Wall of Voodoo vocalist Stan Ridgway and guitarist Marc Moreland traced the inspiration for the song to listening to high-wattage unregulated AM border-blaster Mexican radio stations (among them XERF, XEG, and XERB) which, starting circa the 1930s, were received practically around the globe (”I turn the switch and check the number / I leave it on when in bed I slumber”). Some of the stations boasted a million watts, which was 20 times higher than allowed in the US.

Sitting just south of the Rio Grande (”I feel a hot wind on my shoulder / I dial it in from south of the border”), these stations avoided American broadcast and trade regulations, and became the medium of favor for countless quacks spouting political rants (”I dial it in and tune the station / They talk about the U.S. inflation”), selling homemade pharmaceuticals pre-FDA (”… I buy the product and never use it”), self-published manifestos, and may have even been the starting point for Televangelism as we know it. Wolfman Jack started his career in that market, spinning a schizophrenic mix of genres.

Here’s a link to the video

And of course, the lyrics:

I feel a hot wind on my shoulder
And the touch of a world that is older
I turn the switch and check the number
I leave it on when in bed I slumber
I hear the rhythms of the music
I buy the product and never use it
I hear the talking of the DJ
Can’t understand, just what does he say?

Radio, radio, radio, radio, radio, radio, radio…
(What does he say?)

XTC have long been known as a quirky, but quite good, English pop band. However, one thing I don’t think they’ve been given much credit for is crafting some of the sweetest, most intelligent love songs out there. The Mayor Of Simpleton is one of those lovely songs.

The song has a fabulous bass line (I have no idea how Colin Moulding can sing backups and leads playing the complicated bass lines that he does), and some terribly sweet and clever lyrics. I particularly enjoy how very positive Andy Partridge’s vocals are. It would be easy to toss out Cole Porter like lyrics like Well I don’t know how many pounds make up a ton, Of all the Nobel prizes that I’ve never won and give an aura of sincerity, but you feel like Partridge means it. That’s really great.

Here’s a link to the video

And of course, the lyrics:

Never been near a university,
Never took a paper or a learned degree,
And some of your friends think that’s stupid of me,
But it’s nothing that I care about.

When all logic grows cold and all thinking gets done,
You’ll be warm in the arms of the Mayor of Simpleton.
You’ll be warm in the arms of the Mayor of Simpleton.
You’ll be warm in the arms of the Mayor.
(Please be upstanding for the Mayor of Simpleton.)