31. oktober 1983. The Smiths’ 2. single – efterfølgeren til ‘Hand In Glove’ – udsendes til udelt begejstring i engelsk radio og musikpresse. Musikken, ordene, melodien, Motown-basgangen, den jodlende eufori, sårbarheden, det næsten afrikansk inspirerede signaturguitartema, og så forsangerens elegant udfordrende homoeroticisme. Popworld UK er aldrig den samme siden…

THIS CHARMING MAN

A punctured bicycle
On a hillside desolate
Will nature make a man of me yet ?

When in this charming car
This charming man

Why pamper life’s complexity
When the leather runs smooth
On the passenger seat

I would go out tonight
But I haven’t got a stitch to wear
This man said “It’s gruesome that someone so handsome should care”

A jumped up pantry boy
Who never knew his place
He said “return the ring”
He knows so much about these things
He knows so much about these things…

© Morrissey/Marr