"William, It Was Really Nothing" is a song by the English rock 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 ...

. It was released as a single in August 1984, featuring the B-sides " Please, Please, Please, Let Me Get What I Want" and " How Soon Is Now?", and reached No. 17 in the UK Singles Chart. The song is featured on the compilation albums '' Hatful of Hollow'' and '' Louder Than Bombs'', as well as other best of and singles collections. In 2004, the song was ranked No. 425 on ''

Rolling Stone ''Rolling Stone'' is an American monthly magazine that focuses on music, politics, and popular culture. It was founded in San Francisco, California, in 1967 by Jann Wenner and the music critic Ralph J. Gleason. The magazine was first known fo ...

'' magazine's list of the 500 greatest songs of all time. When the band performed the song on ''

Top of the Pops ''Top of the Pops'' (''TOTP'') is a British record chart television programme, made by the BBC and broadcast weekly between 1January 1964 and 30 July 2006. The programme was the world's longest-running weekly music show. For most of its histo ...

'', Morrissey ripped open his shirt to reveal the words "MARRY ME" written on his chest ("Would you like to marry me?" is one line of the song).

Lyrics and background

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 ...

has said of the song: "It occurred to me that within popular music if ever there were any records that discussed marriage they were always from the female's standpoint, female singers singing to women. There were never any songs saying 'do not marry, stay single, self-preservation,' etc. I thought it was about time there was a male voice speaking directly to another male saying that marriage was a waste of time ... that, in fact, it was absolutely nothing." The song is popularly believed to have been about Morrissey's short-lived friendship with Billy Mackenzie, lead singer of the Associates. The Associates' compilation album ''Double Hipness'', released in August 2000, included the song "Stephen, You're Really Something", recorded by Billy MacKenzie and Alan Rankine during the band's reunion in 1993 as a response to "William, It Was Really Nothing".

Track listing

* in original green sleeve * in lilac reprint sleeve

Artwork and matrix message

British 7" and 12" with green tinted cover versions feature the matrix message: THE IMPOTENCE OF ERNEST/ROMANTIC AND SQUARE IS HIP AND AWARE British 7' with lilac tinted cover: THE IMPOTENCE OF ERNEST/WE HATES BAD GRAMMER British 12" with lilac tinted cover: THE IMPOTENCE OF ERNEST/ROMANTIC AND IS HIP N'AWARE As well as being a reference to ''

The Importance of Being Earnest ''The Importance of Being Earnest, a Trivial Comedy for Serious People'' is a play by Oscar Wilde, the last of his four drawing-room plays, following ''Lady Windermere's Fan'' (1892), ''A Woman of No Importance'' (1893) and ''An Ideal Husban ...

'', "The impotence of Ernest" is an allusion to the

impotence Erectile dysfunction (ED), also referred to as impotence, is a form of sexual dysfunction in males characterized by the persistent or recurring inability to achieve or maintain a Human penis, penile erection with sufficient rigidity and durat ...

that

Ernest Hemingway Ernest Miller Hemingway ( ; July 21, 1899 – July 2, 1961) was an American novelist, short-story writer and journalist. Known for an economical, understated style that influenced later 20th-century writers, he has been romanticized fo ...

suffered in his final years. The "romantic" line was said by

John Lennon John Winston Ono Lennon (born John Winston Lennon; 9 October 19408 December 1980) was an English singer-songwriter, musician and activist. He gained global fame as the founder, co-lead vocalist and rhythm guitarist of the Beatles. Lennon's ...

to Hunter Davies.

Charts

References

External links

* {{Authority control The Smiths songs 1984 singles Songs written by Morrissey Songs written by Johnny Marr LGBTQ-related songs Songs based on actual events 1984 songs Rough Trade Records singles UK Independent Singles Chart number-one singles Song recordings produced by John Porter (musician, born 1947)