"We Hate It When Our Friends Become Successful" is a song by the 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 ...

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 His Master's Voice. The album received critical acclaim and reached number 4 on the UK Albums Chart. Content Morrissey had bee ...

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

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 primarily defined by the flamboyant clothing, makeup, and hairstyles of its musicians, particularly platform shoes and glitter. Glam artists d ...

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 as David Bowie ( ), was an English singer, songwriter and actor. Regarded as one of the most influential musicians of the 20th century, Bowie was acclaimed by critics and musicians, pa ...

as one of the Spiders from Mars. The song peaked at 17 on the UK Singles Chart and No. 9 in Ireland.

Background and content

Morrissey said that the lyrics were about the music scene in

Manchester Manchester () is a city and the metropolitan borough of Greater Manchester, England. It had an estimated population of in . Greater Manchester is the third-most populous metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, with a population of 2.92&nbs ...

, with bands contesting for success.

James James may refer to: People * James (given name) * James (surname) * James (musician), aka Faruq Mahfuz Anam James, (born 1964), Bollywood musician * James, brother of Jesus * King James (disambiguation), various kings named James * Prince Ja ...

lead singer

Tim Booth Timothy 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", and " La ...

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 Greater Manchester in 1977 by Peter Terrell (guitar), Simon Topping (vocals, trumpet), Jez Kerr (bass guitar, vocals), Martin Moscrop (trumpet, guitar) and Donald Johns ...

) appeared on the cover of the ''

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 ...

'', 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 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 ...

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. Th ...

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 had a population of 8,932 in the 2011 census. Glastonbury is less than across the River ...

, 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. He founded the new wave rockabilly group the Polecats, and starting in 1991 had a 30-year collaboration with singer Morrissey as c ...

– 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 songs 1992 singles Morrissey songs Songs written by Morrissey Songs written by Alain Whyte His Master's Voice singles