That Joke Isn't Funny Anymore
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"That Joke Isn't Funny Anymore" is a song by the English
rock Rock most often refers to: * Rock (geology), a naturally occurring solid aggregate of minerals or mineraloids * Rock music, a genre of popular music Rock or Rocks may also refer to: Places United Kingdom * Rock, Caerphilly, a location in Wale ...
band
the Smiths The Smiths were an English Rock music, rock band formed in Manchester in 1982, composed of Morrissey (vocals), Johnny Marr (guitar), Andy Rourke (bass) and Mike Joyce (musician), Mike Joyce (drums). Morrissey and Marr formed the band's songwrit ...
. The full-length version of the song appears on the album ''
Meat Is Murder ''Meat Is Murder'' is the second studio album by the English rock band the Smiths, released on 11 February 1985, by Rough Trade Records. Following the release of their self-titled debut album in early 1984, the Smiths maintained a prolific outp ...
''. It was the sole track from the album to be released, in edited form, as a UK single. The song was composed by guitarist
Johnny Marr John Martin Marr (Birth name#Maiden and married names, né Maher; born 31 October 1963) is a musician, songwriter and singer. He first achieved fame as the guitarist and co-songwriter of the Smiths, who were active from 1982 to 1987. He has sinc ...
and singer
Morrissey Steven Patrick Morrissey ( ; born 22 May 1959), known :wikt:mononym, mononymously as Morrissey, is an English singer and songwriter. He came to prominence as the frontman and lyricist of rock band the Smiths, who were active from 1982 to 198 ...
. Marr has cited it as one of his favourite Smiths songs.


Music and lyric

The song's narrative refers to mockery of the lonely or suicidal, whom the narrator identifies with and champions in an exchange with another individual in a parked car. Disparity between literal and figurative meanings in parts of the lyric discourage a precise reading of the song. In 1985, Morrissey disclosed to ''
Melody Maker ''Melody Maker'' was a British weekly music magazine, one of the world's earliest music weeklies; according to its publisher, IPC Media, the earliest. In January 2001, it was merged into "long-standing rival" (and IPC Media sister publicatio ...
'' that the song was a response to journalistic mockery of his songwriting that dwelt "on the unhappy side of life" and to persistent attempts to expose him as a "fake". In 1998, '' Uncut'' reported rumours that the song's inspiration was an intimate friendship' with a journalist around 1984–5". The song's waltz-time-related
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and Marr's rhythm guitar, with strident chord changes (as exemplified by the song's opening figure), lend the music a sweeping emotive feel. The song's
structure A structure is an arrangement and organization of interrelated elements in a material object or system, or the object or system so organized. Material structures include man-made objects such as buildings and machines and natural objects such as ...
is notable for its uncommon ABCBC form. Musically, the first verse is never repeated. According to Marr, the song's musical composition "just fell through the roof. It was one of those times when the feeling just falls down on you from the ceiling somewhere and it almost plays itself."


Reception

For many critics the song is the focal point of ''Meat Is Murder''. The music has been described as "a monolithic ballad of tender yet imposing grace; a score of unreserved, raw beauty that Morrissey dutifully complemented", and the song's coda as containing "one of the most heart-rending vocal passages Morrissey has ever recorded". The single entered and peaked in the UK Singles Chart at No. 49. The unusual timing of the release may have had an impact on its modest chart position: two non-LP tracks, "
How Soon Is Now? "How Soon Is Now?" is a song by English rock band the Smiths, written by singer Morrissey and guitarist Johnny Marr. Originally a B-side of the 1984 single " William, It Was Really Nothing", "How Soon Is Now?" was subsequently featured on the ...
" and " Shakespeare's Sister", had already been released as singles since ''Meat Is Murder'' had come out.
Rough Trade Rough Trade may refer to: *Rough Trade (shops), London record stores *Rough Trade Records, a record label from the stores *Rough Trade Books, a publishing house from the label *Rough Trade (band), a Canadian new wave rock band * "Rough Trade" (''Am ...
owner
Geoff Travis Geoff Travis (born 2 February 1952) is the founder of both Rough Trade Records and the Rough Trade chain of record shops. A former drama teacher and owner of a punk record shop, Travis founded the Rough Trade label in 1976. Biography Travis wa ...
has said the single was released on Morrissey's insistence: "I said to him 'that's not a good idea' ...and he wouldn't have that and, being me, I said 'fine ... Other reasons for its relative lack of commercial success include the absence of new studio material on the B-side, and perceived fan displeasure at the 7" version missing an instrumental coda; it was described by Jack Rabid of
AllMusic AllMusic (previously known as All-Music Guide and AMG) is an American online database, online music database. It catalogs more than three million album entries and 30 million tracks, as well as information on Musical artist, musicians and Mus ...
as the first of the band's singles that "wasn't a complete thrill to buy". Additionally, the single suffered overall inadequate promotion, and potential exposure was lessened by a last-minute refusal by the band to perform on the UK television show ''
Wogan ''Wogan'' is a British television talk show which was broadcast on BBC1 from 1982 to 1992 and presented by Terry Wogan. It was usually broadcast live from the BBC Television Theatre in Shepherd's Bush, London, until 1991. It was then broadcast ...
''.


Track listing

Live tracks recorded at the
Apollo Apollo is one of the Twelve Olympians, Olympian deities in Ancient Greek religion, ancient Greek and Ancient Roman religion, Roman religion and Greek mythology, Greek and Roman mythology. Apollo has been recognized as a god of archery, mu ...
, Oxford, on 18 March 1985.


Artwork and matrix message

The artwork for the single is taken from a still of the 1964 Soviet film '' The Enchanted Desna''. It features a child actor, the uncropped original having also featured the child's on-screen mother. According to Morrissey, "The eyes are encrusted with hurt and premature wisdom". The image was sourced from a 1965 issue of a specialist film magazine. A rejected sleeve design included an image of a dead chicken. The seven and 12-inch vinyl releases feature the
matrix Matrix (: matrices or matrixes) or MATRIX may refer to: Science and mathematics * Matrix (mathematics), a rectangular array of numbers, symbols or expressions * Matrix (logic), part of a formula in prenex normal form * Matrix (biology), the m ...
message "OUR SOULS OUR SOULS OUR SOULS" (7-inch A-side and B-side and 12-inch A-side). The Canadian 12-inch A-side features the message "HELEN WHEELS".


Charts


References

{{Authority control The Smiths songs 1985 singles 1985 songs Alternative rock ballads Songs written by Morrissey Songs written by Johnny Marr Rough Trade Records singles UK Independent Singles Chart number-one singles