"Never Understand" is the first single from the Scottish

alternative rock Alternative rock, or alt-rock, is a category of rock music that emerged from the independent music underground of the 1970s and became widely popular in the 1990s. "Alternative" refers to the genre's distinction from mainstream or commerci ...

band

The Jesus and Mary Chain The Jesus and Mary Chain are a Scottish alternative rock band formed in East Kilbride in 1983. The band revolves around the songwriting partnership of brothers Jim and William Reid. After signing to independent label Creation Records, they re ...

's debut album ''

Psychocandy ''Psychocandy'' is the debut studio album by Scottish rock band the Jesus and Mary Chain. It was released in November 1985 on Blanco y Negro Records. The album is considered a landmark recording: its combination of guitar feedback and noise wit ...

''. It was the band's first release on

Blanco y Negro Records Blanco y Negro Records ( Spanish: "White and Black"), a subsidiary of WEA Records Ltd., was established in 1983 by Geoff Travis of Rough Trade Records and Mike Alway of él Records. Michel Duval of Les Disques du Crépuscule was also involv ...

and was released through them in February 1985. The song was written by William Reid and

Jim Reid James McLeish Reid (born 29 December 1961) is a Scottish singer/songwriter and the lead singer for the alternative rock band The Jesus and Mary Chain, which he formed with his elder brother and guitarist William Reid in 1983. Career The Jes ...

, and was produced by The Jesus and Mary Chain. It is considered influential for its use of guitar feedback.

Chart performance

The single reached number 47 on the

UK Singles Chart The UK Singles Chart (currently titled Official Singles Chart, with the upper section more commonly known as the Official UK Top 40) is compiled by the Official Charts Company (OCC), on behalf of the British record industry, listing the top-s ...

Critical reception

The song was ranked number 1 among the "Tracks of the Year" for 1985 by ''

NME ''New Musical Express'' (''NME'') is a British music, film, gaming, and culture website and brand. Founded as a newspaper in 1952, with the publication being referred to as a 'rock inkie', the NME would become a magazine that ended up as a f ...

''.

Track listing

All tracks written by

and William Reid, except where noted. ;7" (NEG 8) #"Never Understand" – 2:54 #"Suck" – 2:07 ;12" (NEG 8T) #"Never Understand" – 2:54 #"Suck" – 2:07 #"Ambition" (

Vic Godard Vic Godard (born Victor John Napper) is an English singer-songwriter formerly of the punk group Subway Sect. He is now also a solo performer, while continuing to appear with various incarnations of Subway Sect. Biography Born Victor John Napper ...

) – 3:31

Personnel

The Jesus and Mary Chain

–

vocals Singing is the act of creating musical sounds with the voice. A person who sings is called a singer, artist or vocalist (in jazz and/or popular music). Singers perform music (arias, recitatives, songs, etc.) that can be sung with or withou ...

, producer * William Reid –

guitar The guitar is a fretted musical instrument that typically has six strings. It is usually held flat against the player's body and played by strumming or plucking the strings with the dominant hand, while simultaneously pressing selected strin ...

, producer *

Douglas Hart Douglas Alexander Hart (born 2 May 1965) is a British musician and music video director. Career Hart was the first bassist and founding member of the Scottish band The Jesus and Mary Chain, and played with the group from 1984 to 1991. He is n ...

– bass, producer * Bobby Gillespie – drums, producer

References

External links

Lyrics at MTV.com
{{authority control The Jesus and Mary Chain songs 1985 singles Songs written by Jim Reid Songs written by William Reid (musician) 1985 songs Blanco y Negro Records singles Pop punk songs