"We Hate It When Our Friends Become Successful" is a song by English singer-songwriter

Morrissey Steven Patrick Morrissey (; born 22 May 1959), known professionally 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 1987. Since then ...

from his third studio album, ''

Your Arsenal ''Your Arsenal'' is the third studio album by English singer Morrissey, released on 27 July 1992 by record label HMV. The album received critical acclaim and reached number 4 on the UK Albums Chart. Content Morrissey had been rehearsing w ...

'' (1992). It was released as the lead single from the album on 27 April 1992, by

His Master's Voice His Master's Voice (HMV) was the name of a major British record label created in 1901 by The Gramophone Co. Ltd. The phrase was coined in the late 1890s from the title of a painting by English artist Francis Barraud, which depicted a Jack Russ ...

(HMV). It was the first Morrissey single to be co-written with guitarist

Alain Whyte Alain Gordon Whyte (pronounced Alan) (born 3 July 1967) is an English musician, songwriter, composer and singer. He was Morrissey's main songwriting partner and guitarist between 1991 and 2007. Prior to 1991, Whyte previously been in the bands ...

and produced by

glam rock Glam rock is a style of rock music that developed in the United Kingdom in the early 1970s and was performed by musicians who wore outrageous costumes, makeup, and hairstyles, particularly platform shoes and glitter. Glam artists drew on diver ...

guitarist

Mick Ronson Michael Ronson (26 May 1946 – 29 April 1993) was an English musician, songwriter, arranger, and producer. He achieved critical and commercial success working with David Bowie as the guitarist of the Spiders from Mars. He was a session musici ...

, known for his work with

David Bowie David Robert Jones (8 January 194710 January 2016), known professionally as David Bowie ( ), was an English singer-songwriter and actor. A leading figure in the music industry, he is regarded as one of the most influential musicians of the ...

as one of

the Spiders from Mars The Spiders from Mars were rock singer David Bowie's backing band in the early 1970s, and initially consisted of Mick Ronson on guitars, Trevor Bolder on bass guitar, and Mick Woodmansey on drums. The group had its origins in Bowie's earlier ba ...

. The song peaked at 17 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 ...

and No. 9 in Ireland.

Background and content

Morrissey said that the lyrics were about the music scene in

Manchester Manchester () is a city in Greater Manchester, England. It had a population of 552,000 in 2021. It is bordered by the Cheshire Plain to the south, the Pennines to the north and east, and the neighbouring city of Salford to the west. The t ...

, with bands contesting for success.

James James is a common English language surname and given name: *James (name), the typically masculine first name James * James (surname), various people with the last name James James or James City may also refer to: People * King James (disambiguati ...

lead singer

Tim Booth Timothy John Booth (born 4 February 1960) is an English singer-songwriter, actor and dancer. He is the lead singer and co-founder of the indie rock band James, and co-wrote several of their hit singles including " Sit Down", " Come Home", an ...

has claimed the song is about the success James had as a fellow Manchester band, once performing it at a festival in place of Morrissey. Morrissey, however, states that the song is not about James. On hating when his friends became successful, Morrissey said: "When my old friend Simon Topping (the frontman of Manchester band

A Certain Ratio A Certain Ratio (abbreviated as ACR) are an English post-punk band formed in 1977 in Flixton, Greater Manchester by Peter Terrell (guitar, electronics) and Simon Topping (vocals, trumpet), with additional members Jez Kerr (bass, vocals), Martin ...

) appeared on the cover of the

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 ...

, I died a thousand deaths of sorrow and lay down in the woods to die."

Critical reception

Andrew Collins in ''NME'' gave a very negative review of the single, writing that "this is by far and away the ex-Smith's WORST single" and described the music as "the sound of five men bashing around in the darkness in search of a tune" before finishing the review by announcing "Moz is history, and we'd all do well to learn it." In a retrospective review, Ned Raggett of

AllMusic AllMusic (previously known as All Music Guide and AMG) is an American online music database. It catalogs more than three million album entries and 30 million tracks, as well as information on musicians and bands. Initiated in 1991, the databas ...

wrote "It may be a mouthful, but as delivered it becomes a wonderfully funny, intentionally bitchy sentiment for this EP's lead track."

Live performances

Morrissey debuted the song during the second US leg of his tour promoting the ''Kill Uncle'' album. The first half of the song was performed during the aborted gig at

Pauley Pavilion Edwin W. Pauley Pavilion, commonly known as Pauley Pavilion, is an indoor arena located in the Westwood Village district of Los Angeles, California, on the campus of UCLA. It is home to the UCLA Bruins men's and women's basketball teams. The ...

in 1991, in which 48 people were injured as the crowd rushed the stage. It then was performed in concert for the duration of his tour in 1992 promoting ''Your Arsenal''. Fellow Manchester band

performed it as a set opener when standing in for Morrissey at

Glastonbury Glastonbury (, ) is a town and civil parish in Somerset, England, situated at a dry point on the low-lying Somerset Levels, south of Bristol. The town, which is in the Mendip district, had a population of 8,932 in the 2011 census. Glastonbur ...

, with frontman

's stating "this is our Morrissey impression".

Track listings

7-inch vinyl and cassette # "We Hate It When Our Friends Become Successful" # "Suedehead" (live London 4/10/91) 12-inch vinyl (UK) # "We Hate It When Our Friends Become Successful" # "Suedehead" (live London 4/10/91) # "I've Changed My Plea to Guilty" (live London 4/10/91) # "Pregnant for the Last Time" (live London 4/10/91) CD (UK) # "We Hate It When Our Friends Become Successful" # "Suedehead" (live London 4/10/91) # "I've Changed My Plea to Guilty" (live London 4/10/91) # "Alsatian Cousin" (live London 4/10/91) 12-inch vinyl and CD (US) # "We Hate It When Our Friends Become Successful" # "Suedehead" (live London 4/10/91) # "I've Changed My Plea to Guilty" (live London 4/10/91) # "Pregnant for the Last Time" (live London 4/10/91) # "Alsatian Cousin" (live London 4/10/91)

Musicians

– voice *

– guitar *

Boz Boorer Martin James "Boz" Boorer (born 19 May 1962 in Edgware, Middlesex, England) is an English guitarist and producer most known for his work founding the new wave rockabilly group the Polecats; and later for his work as a co-writer, guitarist and m ...

– guitar * Gary Day – bass guitar * Spencer Cobrin – drums

Charts

Release history

References

External links

* "We Hate It When Our Friends Become Successful"Review at

{{Authority control 1992 singles Morrissey songs Songs written by Morrissey Songs written by Alain Whyte 1992 songs