Stop Me If You Think You've Heard This One Before

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"Stop Me If You Think You've Heard This One Before"
StopMeTheSmiths.jpg
Single by the Smiths
from the album Strangeways, Here We Come
B-side "I Keep Mine Hidden"
Released1987
Genre Alternative rock
Length3:32
Label Sire (US)
Songwriter(s)
Producer(s)
The Smiths singles chronology
"Last Night I Dreamt That Somebody Loved Me"
(1987)		"Stop Me If You Think You've Heard This One Before"
(1987)		"There Is a Light That Never Goes Out"
(1992)

"Stop Me If You Think You've Heard This One Before" is a song by the English rock band the Smiths, written by singer Morrissey and guitarist Johnny Marr. The song was first released on the group's 1987 album Strangeways, Here We Come . Marr's music features a larger sound, courtesy of a 12-string Gibson ES-335, and one of his few guitar solos with the Smiths. Morrissey's lyrics allude to alcohol and deception.

Contents

Although the song was originally planned to be released as a single in August 1987, the BBC objected to the song's lyrical reference to mass murder in the aftermath of the Hungerford massacre. As a result, "Stop Me If You Think You've Heard This One Before" was only released as a single in America, Australia, and some European markets, while "I Started Something I Couldn't Finish" was chosen to replace the song as the band's new UK single.

Despite its censorship by British radio, "Stop Me If You Think You've Heard This One Before" has seen critical acclaim for Marr's guitar work and Morrissey's witty lyricism. It has since appeared on multiple compilation albums and has been ranked by music writers as one of the band's best songs.

Background

"Stop Me If You Think You've Heard This One Before" features, like most Smiths songs, lyrics written by Morrissey and music written by Johnny Marr. Marr composed the song's music on a 12-string Gibson ES-335, which he commented "gave a really big sound." [1] [nb 1] He explained that the guitar hits in the song's intro were the result of stacking a Telecaster "on top of a Fender Twin Reverb with the vibrato on, and tun[ing] it to an open chord" only to "drop a knife with a metal handle on it, hitting random strings." The song also featured the first guitar solo on a Smiths record; Marr explained in an interview with Guitar Player magazine:

"I was really pleased that the first solo as such on a Smiths record was one you could sing... I liked the melody at the end of 'Stop Me If You've Heard This One Before,' but it just felt a little too accomplished. I wanted it to sound like a punk player who couldn't play, so I fingered it on one string, right up and down the neck. I could have played it with harmonics or my teeth, or something clever, but the poignancy would have gone out of the melody." [1]

Lyrically, Rolling Stone described the song as "a whirlwind tour of sex, lies, booze, obsession, mass murder, [and] bicycle-related testicular injury". [3] Len Brown of the NME commented on an alternate meaning to the song's title, "[Morrissey] even seems to relish calling a song 'Stop Me If You've Heard This One Before,' in the face of those who perpetually take the piss out of him and reckon that every Smiths song sounds the same." [4]

Release

In addition to its release on Strangeways, Here We Come , "Stop Me If You Think You've Heard This One Before" was originally intended to be released as the album's second single. Promotional singles were printed and sent to Radio One. However, the song's single release came in the wake of the Hungerford massacre, in which 16 people were murdered, and the BBC refused to play the song on the grounds that the lyric "plan a mass murder" was offensive. [5] As a result, the song was not released as a single in the UK and "I Started Something I Couldn't Finish" was selected instead. "Stop Me If You Think You've Heard This One Before" was ultimately released as a single in other regions, including the United States, Australia, Germany, and others. [5] The cover of the single is a picture of British actor and singer Murray Head from a still of the 1966 film The Family Way (a movie that would also be the source of the photograph on the cover of "I Started Something I Couldn't Finish"). [4]

Morrissey later stated:

"I desperately, desperately wanted that to be released. Rough Trade sent white labels along to Radio One but they said they would never under any circumstances play it because of the line about mass murder. They said people would've instantly linked it with Hungerford and it would've caused thousands of shoppers to go out and buy machine guns and murder their grandparents. I think Rough Trade should've released 'Death of a Disco Dancer' just to be stroppy." [4]

The song was later featured on the compilation albums Stop Me and The Very Best of The Smiths . The song is also included in the music video game Rock Band 3 . [6] Though the band broke up before they could tour any songs from Strangeways, Here We Come, Morrissey performed the song live alongside fellow ex-Smiths Andy Rourke, Mike Joyce, and Craig Gannon as the opening song of his infamous debut solo concert at Wolverhampton's Civic Hall in December 1988. [7]

Music video

A music video was produced by the director Tim Broad. It opens with a picture of Oscar Wilde hanging on a brick wall, and features Morrissey and a group of Morrissey lookalikes cycling around Manchester and Salford, including famous locations such as the Salford Lads' Club. [8] Morrissey was hesitant to take part in the videos, but was implored by Rough Trade's Geoff Travis to participate in order to boost the album's singles. Morrissey recalled in his autobiography, "Tim Broad steps in to make sense of it all, hotch-podging two videos for both 'Girlfriend in a Coma' and 'Stop Me If You Think You've Heard This One Before'. The results for both are frustratingly unwatchable, although Tim did his best with such a mealy-mouthed budget." [9] [nb 2]

Critical reception

"Stop Me If You Think You've Heard This One Before" has seen critical acclaim since its release. David Browne of Rolling Stone called the track "the album’s most propulsive number" and opined, "Marr's piercing solo at the end of the song not only is one of the record's emotional highlights — it also proves it's best the band split up rather than attempt to replace him." [10] Stephen Thomas Erlewine of AllMusic called the song a "classic," [11] while Douglas Wolk of Pitchfork commented, "Their final single couldn't have had a cleverer title than 'Stop Me if You Think You've Heard This One Before'." [12]

Rolling Stone ranked the song as the 14th best Smiths song, [3] while NME named it the band's 16th best. [13] Consequence ranked the song as the band's 28th best, calling it "a testament to The Smiths' power in 1987". [14] Guitar named the song as the band's 20th greatest guitar moment. [15]

Track listing

All tracks written by Morrissey and Johnny Marr.

12-inch and CD single (Germany, red cover)
No.TitleLength
1."Stop Me If You Think You've Heard This One Before"3:33
2."Work Is a Four-Letter Word"2:47
3."Girlfriend in a Coma"2:02
4."I Keep Mine Hidden"1:57
12-inch (Netherlands, grey cover and Australia, orange cover)
No.TitleLength
1."Stop Me If You Think You've Heard This One Before"3:33
2."Pretty Girls Make Graves" (early cello version)3:35
3."Some Girls Are Bigger Than Others" (live)5:03
7-inch (Germany, red cover)
No.TitleLength
1."Stop Me If You Think You've Heard This One Before"3:33
2."Girlfriend in a Coma"2:02
7-inch (Netherlands, grey cover and Australia, orange cover)
No.TitleLength
1."Stop Me If You Think You've Heard This One Before"3:33
2."Pretty Girls Make Graves" (early cello version)3:35
7-inch (North America, blue cover)
No.TitleLength
1."Stop Me If You Think You've Heard This One Before"3:33
2."I Keep Mine Hidden"1:57

Mark Ronson version ("Stop Me")

"Stop Me"
Mark Ronson - stop me (uk single).jpg
Single by Mark Ronson featuring Daniel Merriweather
from the album Version
B-side "No One Knows"
Released2 April 2007 (2007-04-02)
Genre
Length3:54
Label Columbia
Songwriter(s)
Producer(s) Mark Ronson
Mark Ronson singles chronology
"Just"
(2006)		"Stop Me"
(2007)		"Oh My God"
(2007)
Daniel Merriweather singles chronology
"NYC Rules"
(2004)		"Stop Me"
(2007)		"Cash in My Pocket"
(2008)

Certifications

RegionCertification Certified units/sales
United Kingdom (BPI) [35] Silver200,000^

^ Shipments figures based on certification alone.

Notes

  1. ↑ Marr later gave this guitar to Suede guitarist Bernard Butler. [2]
  2. ↑ Morrissey recalled Travis allocating a budget of twelve-thousand pounds for both videos. [9]

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References

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  2. ↑ Bosso, Joe (4 March 2015). "10 Questions for Johnny Marr". MusicRadar. Retrieved 28 April 2022.
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  13. ↑ "The 20 best Smiths tracks, as voted by NME.COM users". NME. 25 November 2011. Retrieved 30 October 2020.
  14. ↑ "Ranking: Every Song by The Smiths from Worst to Best". Consequence of Sound. 21 February 2019. Retrieved 30 October 2020.
  15. ↑ Price, Andy (17 August 2021). "The Smiths' 20 greatest guitar moments, ranked". Guitar. Retrieved 28 April 2022.
  16. 1 2 3 McCaighy, Stuart (2007) "Mark Ronson – Stop Me: Track Review" ThisisfakeDIY: DIY Records
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  19. ↑ "New Releases: Singles". Music Week . 31 March 2007. p. 37.
  20. ↑ Park, Jay. "Art of Movement (2013)". Art of Movement. Archived from the original on 15 December 2021. Retrieved 11 April 2013.
  21. ↑ The 100 Best Songs of 2007 Rolling Stone, 11 December 2007; Retrieved 21 December 2007
  22. ↑ Rolling Stone Magazine The 100 Best Songs Of 2007 Archived 26 July 2010 at the Wayback Machine PopCrunch, 13 December 2007
  23. ↑ Mainstream Radio Promo Only, October 2007
  24. ↑ "Issue 904" ARIA Top 100 Singles. National Library of Australia. Retrieved 3 April 2021.
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  26. ↑ "Mark Ronson feat. Daniel Merriweather – Stop Me" (in German). GfK Entertainment charts. Retrieved 20 March 2019.
  27. ↑ "Mark Ronson feat. Daniel Merriweather – Stop Me". Top Digital Download.
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  29. ↑ "Mark Ronson feat. Daniel Merriweather – Stop Me". Swiss Singles Chart.
  30. ↑ "Official Singles Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company.
  31. ↑ "Official Dance Singles Chart Top 40". Official Charts Company.
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