"Sing Your Life" is a single by English singer-songwriter

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 ...

released in April 1991 by

His Master's Voice His Master's Voice is an entertainment trademark featuring a dog named Nipper, curiously peering into the horn of a wind-up gramophone. Painted by Francis Barraud in 1898, the image has since become a global symbol used across consumer elect ...

. It was the second single taken from the ''

Kill Uncle ''Kill Uncle'' is the second solo studio album by the English alternative rock singer Morrissey, released on 4 March 1991 by EMI Records and His Master's Voice. The title comes from the black comedy film '' Let's Kill Uncle'' (1966). Recording ...

'' album. On release this was Morrissey's lowest charting single in the UK charts, reaching only number 33. It features former

Madness Madness or The Madness may refer to: Emotion and mental health * Anger, an intense emotional response to a perceived provocation, hurt or threat * Insanity, a spectrum of behaviors characterized by certain abnormal mental or behavioral patterns * ...

frontman

Suggs Graham McPherson (born 13 January 1961), known primarily by his stage name Suggs, is a British singer-songwriter, musician, radio personality and actor. He came to prominence in the late 1970s as the lead singer of the ska band Madness, which ...

on backing vocals, who also sung backing vocals on the single " Piccadilly Palare". One of the single's B-sides was a cover version of " That's Entertainment" by

The Jam The Jam were an English rock band formed in 1972 in Woking, Surrey, consisting of Paul Weller, Bruce Foxton and Rick Buckler. They released 18 consecutive top 40 singles in the United Kingdom, from their debut in 1977 to their break-up in ...

which also had backing vocals by

Carl Smyth Cathal Joseph "Carl" Smyth (born 14 January 1959), also known as Chas Smash, is an English singer-songwriter and multi-instrumentalist. He was the secondary vocalist, trumpet player and dancer for the English band Madness from their inception ...

, a.k.a. Chas Smash, the former second singer of the band Madness.

Vic Reeves James Roderick Moir (born 24 January 1959), commonly known by his stage name Vic Reeves, is an English comedian and artist. He has a double act with Bob Mortimer as Reeves & Mortimer. He is known for his surreal sense of humour. In 2003, Ree ...

also recorded backing vocals for the song, but they weren't included in the final version. He is thanked in the sleeve notes.

Critical review

Stuart Maconie in ''

NME ''New Musical Express'' (''NME'') is a British music, film, gaming and culture website, bimonthly magazine, and brand. Founded as a newspaper in 1952, with the publication being referred to as a "Rock music, rock inkie", the ''NME'' would be ...

'' gave the single a positive review, calling it "toe-tapping".NME Sing Your Life Review
/ref> Ned Raggett 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 ...

called the song "one of Morrissey's subtler pieces, and also one with a more upbeat and straightforward message than most."

Live performances

The song was performed live by Morrissey on his 1991 ''Kill Uncle'' tour. The song was last performed on 6 October 1991, and was dropped from the set list for the rest of the tour. "Sing Your Life" has never been performed by Morrissey since the 1991 tour, but it is frequently requested by his audience. When Morrissey hears the request, he usually replies by saying "I'm singing it."

Track listings

7-inch vinyl and cassette # "Sing Your Life" # " That's Entertainment" (

cover) 12-inch vinyl # "Sing Your Life" # "That's Entertainment" (The Jam cover) # "The Loop" CD # "Sing Your Life" # "That's Entertainment" (The Jam cover) # "The Loop"

Musicians

* Morrissey – voice * Mark E. Nevin – guitars *

Boz Boorer Martin James "Boz" Boorer (born 19 May 1962 in Edgware, Middlesex, England) is an English guitarist and producer. He founded the new wave rockabilly group the Polecats, and starting in 1991 had a 30-year collaboration with singer Morrissey as c ...

– guitars *

Andrew Paresi Andrew McGibbon ( Andrew Paresi; born 1961 in Chiswick) is an English comedian, actor, writer, musician and composer. He has also produced and directed extensively, chiefly for radio. Early life, family, and education Andrew is the fifth of s ...

– drums *

Mark Bedford Mark William Bedford (born 24 August 1961),Strong, Martin C. (2002) ''The Great Rock Discography'', Canongate, , p. 638 nicknamed Bedders, is an English musician, songwriter and composer. Bedford came to prominence in the late 1970s as the bass ...

– bass

Charts

In popular culture

The song is featured prominently in season one, episode seven of the Netflix show Daybreak, when character Ms Crumble's passion for Morrissey's music forms an important plot point. It appears as the theme song of a fictitious post-apocalyptic sitcom, in a Spanish version performed by Ms Crumble's Morrissey cover band, and as a duet by characters Angelica ( Alyvia Alyn Lind and Ms Crumble

Krysta Rodriguez Krysta Anne Rodriguez is an American actress and singer. She is best known for her roles as Ana Vargas in the NBC series '' Smash'', Summer Henderson in the NBC series '' Trial & Error'', Maxine Griffin in the ABC series '' Quantico'' and Ms. C ...

). The episode itself is called "Canta Tu Vida", the Spanish translation of the song's title.

References

{{Authority control 1991 songs 1991 singles Morrissey songs His Master's Voice singles Song recordings produced by Alan Winstanley Song recordings produced by Clive Langer Songs written by Mark Nevin Songs written by Morrissey