Speedway

tender hooligan

tender hooligan

Member
SPEEDWAY

And when you slam
Down the hammer
Can you see it in your heart ?
All of the rumours
Keeping me grounded
I never said, I never said that they were
Completely unfounded
So when you slam
Down the hammer
Can you see it in your heart ?
Can you delve so low ?
And when you're standing
On my fingers
Can you see it in your heart ? ... ah ...
And when you try
To break my spirit
It won't work
Because there's nothing left to break
Anymore
All of the rumours
Keeping me grounded
I never said, I never said that they were
Completely unfounded
You won't sleep
Until the earth that wants me
Finally has me
Oh you've done it now
You won't rest
Until the hearse that becomes me
Finally takes me
Oh you've done it now
And you won't smile
Until my loving mouth
Is shut good and proper
FOREVER
All of the rumours
Keeping me grounded
I never said, I never said that they were
Completely unfounded
And all those lies
Written lies, twisted lies
Well, they weren't lies
They weren't lies
They weren't lies
I never said
I never said
I could have mentioned your name
I could have dragged you in
Guilt by implication
By association
I've always been true to you
In my own strange way
I've always been true to you
In my own sick way
I'll always stay true to you

I am in love with this song and not sure of the meaning though. Any suggestions would be greately appreciated.
 
I think Jones is right, but the idea I've seen floating around that it's about Johnny Marr is interesting, too.
 
am i crazy for not being absolutely obsessed by this song?
everybody seems to adore it
i just...well...i don't know
it doesn't mean to me half as much as all the other ones
 
That song is marvellous, I love it, I love it , it is absolutely fantastic!:)
 
This is a fantastic song second on Vauxhall and i only to "Why Dont You Find Out For Yourself" I reckon its just another introspective song about how people judge him.
 
I think it's a really lovely song. I read this thread at lunch at work and had to dig it out and listen as soon as I got home. I love it. :)
 
This is what Johnny Rogan has to say about Speedway...."There’s a school of thought that says Morrissey pre-empted Eminem during the opening of this track by using a chain-saw for dramatic effect. “It’s not a chain-saw,” Jonny Bridgewood insists. “It’s engineer Danton Supple will a drill. I am positive about that. He told me afterwards.” If the sound effects were confusing, then the lyrics seemed even more puzzling. Morrissey playfully keeps his critics guessing by suggesting that the rumours that kept him grounded were not entirely unfounded. The NME interpreted this as an admission that there might be some truth in the racist allegations, but it was more likely a wind-up, with Morrissey proving as oblique as ever. This was borne out in an interview with Q where he was quizzed about whether the unspecified ‘rumours’ were indeed true.

“Yes, partly,” he responded, “but if you’re going to bring up the issue of racism, it simply gives too much credence to the bitty, scattered rumours that abound. But I’m well aware that rumours are more important than the truth. I’ve been called many names in my time, not all of them ill-fitting. Rather than defend myself I simply feel beyond it all.”

Within the song, the tease continues to the very end when Morrissey unexpectedly introduces another character into the story. Having portrayed himself throughout as the victim, then admitted that there might be something in those unexplained ‘twisted lies’, he finally tells us about an unnamed person, guilty by association, whom he is protecting. It’s fascinating to witness Morrissey transforming a song of victimization into conspiracy theory, complete with an unresolved ending.

In certain respects, the composition sounds distinctly Smiths-like. The allusion to being swallowed by the earth recalls the enveloping soil described in ‘I Know It’s Over’, while the speedway itself is an image familiar from ‘Rusholme Ruffians’. Indeed, the speedway becomes a recurring motif that echoes through the respective child-hoods of both Morrissey and Marr. “I spent a lot of time at the fair in Wythenshaw Park and I worked at a speedway in a place down in Cheshire,” Marr once told me.

His nostalgic memories were not entirely shared bby Morrissey who encountered violence beneath the ersatz glamour. “I remember being at a fair in Stretford Road: it was very early, about 5pm, and I was just standing by the speedway. And somebody just came over to me and head-butted me. He was much older than me, and much bigger. I was dazed for at least five minutes. What I find remarkable is the way you just accepted it. That was just the kind of thing that happened. I don’t think that it was even that I looked different in those days. There never needed to be a reason.”

‘Speedway’ provided a suitably epic ending to the album, building to a climax during which drummer Woodie Taylor appeared to be inhabited by the ghost of John Bonham. The recording was a saga in itself. “ ‘Speedway’ went from being a straight-ahead band effort to a big production,” Bridgewood recalls. “We recorded that track in a different key in a slightly different version. Then we did ‘Interlude’ and towards the end of the session we tried ‘Speedway’ again. We were working towards getting a backing track for it in a new key. Morrissey sang it in E originally, then it went up to F-sharp which was more his range. During recording, we changed the arrangement, particularly the intro. We did the track as it is and the first half of it was ready to be used on the album. While we were doing it, Steve Lillywhite said: ‘I’ve got this idea!’ There’s this big dining room at Hook End Manor. It has a wooden floor and wooden panels all the way up the walls and across the ceiling. He decided that the drum for the second half of the track should be recorded there. Although the dining room wasn’t that far away from the desk, we had to set up mikes and everything, so we needed cables about 500 meters long. There was a wait of several hours while these cables were brought in from London. We just went off for a walk, played pool and amused ourselves until these cables arrived. There was this huge break and I think we finished the rest of the track the next day with Woodie doing the drums. I don’t know why exactly but they did the cymbals in the laundry-room! It was incredible. We’d recently done ‘Used To Be A Sweet Boy’ really quickly but this was the opposite. The epic end with the rim shot on the drums is not an effect. The sound of the drum is literally the sound of that dining room. It was a big finish.”

From ‘Morrissey: The Albums.

Although i'm not quite sure that answers your question :o
 
slum mum 1974 said:
This is what Johnny Rogan has to say about Speedway...."There’s a school of thought that says Morrissey pre-empted Eminem during the opening of this track by using a chain-saw for dramatic effect. “It’s not a chain-saw,” Jonny Bridgewood insists. “It’s engineer Danton Supple will a drill. I am positive about that. He told me afterwards.” If the sound effects were confusing, then the lyrics seemed even more puzzling. Morrissey playfully keeps his critics guessing by suggesting that the rumours that kept him grounded were not entirely unfounded. The NME interpreted this as an admission that there might be some truth in the racist allegations, but it was more likely a wind-up, with Morrissey proving as oblique as ever. This was borne out in an interview with Q where he was quizzed about whether the unspecified ‘rumours’ were indeed true.

“Yes, partly,” he responded, “but if you’re going to bring up the issue of racism, it simply gives too much credence to the bitty, scattered rumours that abound. But I’m well aware that rumours are more important than the truth. I’ve been called many names in my time, not all of them ill-fitting. Rather than defend myself I simply feel beyond it all.”

Within the song, the tease continues to the very end when Morrissey unexpectedly introduces another character into the story. Having portrayed himself throughout as the victim, then admitted that there might be something in those unexplained ‘twisted lies’, he finally tells us about an unnamed person, guilty by association, whom he is protecting. It’s fascinating to witness Morrissey transforming a song of victimization into conspiracy theory, complete with an unresolved ending.

In certain respects, the composition sounds distinctly Smiths-like. The allusion to being swallowed by the earth recalls the enveloping soil described in ‘I Know It’s Over’, while the speedway itself is an image familiar from ‘Rusholme Ruffians’. Indeed, the speedway becomes a recurring motif that echoes through the respective child-hoods of both Morrissey and Marr. “I spent a lot of time at the fair in Wythenshaw Park and I worked at a speedway in a place down in Cheshire,” Marr once told me.

His nostalgic memories were not entirely shared bby Morrissey who encountered violence beneath the ersatz glamour. “I remember being at a fair in Stretford Road: it was very early, about 5pm, and I was just standing by the speedway. And somebody just came over to me and head-butted me. He was much older than me, and much bigger. I was dazed for at least five minutes. What I find remarkable is the way you just accepted it. That was just the kind of thing that happened. I don’t think that it was even that I looked different in those days. There never needed to be a reason.”

‘Speedway’ provided a suitably epic ending to the album, building to a climax during which drummer Woodie Taylor appeared to be inhabited by the ghost of John Bonham. The recording was a saga in itself. “ ‘Speedway’ went from being a straight-ahead band effort to a big production,” Bridgewood recalls. “We recorded that track in a different key in a slightly different version. Then we did ‘Interlude’ and towards the end of the session we tried ‘Speedway’ again. We were working towards getting a backing track for it in a new key. Morrissey sang it in E originally, then it went up to F-sharp which was more his range. During recording, we changed the arrangement, particularly the intro. We did the track as it is and the first half of it was ready to be used on the album. While we were doing it, Steve Lillywhite said: ‘I’ve got this idea!’ There’s this big dining room at Hook End Manor. It has a wooden floor and wooden panels all the way up the walls and across the ceiling. He decided that the drum for the second half of the track should be recorded there. Although the dining room wasn’t that far away from the desk, we had to set up mikes and everything, so we needed cables about 500 meters long. There was a wait of several hours while these cables were brought in from London. We just went off for a walk, played pool and amused ourselves until these cables arrived. There was this huge break and I think we finished the rest of the track the next day with Woodie doing the drums. I don’t know why exactly but they did the cymbals in the laundry-room! It was incredible. We’d recently done ‘Used To Be A Sweet Boy’ really quickly but this was the opposite. The epic end with the rim shot on the drums is not an effect. The sound of the drum is literally the sound of that dining room. It was a big finish.”

:o
Click to expand...

Could you just run me through that one again!! :D
 
Lost said:
Could you just run me through that one again!! :D
Click to expand...

Of course....ahem.....This is what Johnny Rogan has to say about Speedway...."There’s a school of thought that says Morrissey pre-empted Eminem during the opening of this track by using a chain-saw for dramatic effect. “It’s not a chain-saw,” Jonny Bridgewood insists. “It’s engineer Danton Supple will a drill. I am positive about that. He told me afterwards.” If the sound effects were confusing, then the lyrics seemed even more puzzling. Morrissey playfully keeps his critics guessing by suggesting that the rumours that kept him grounded were not entirely unfounded. The NME interpreted this as an admission that there might be some truth in the racist allegations, but it was more likely a wind-up, with Morrissey proving as oblique as ever. This was borne out in an interview with Q where he was quizzed about whether the unspecified ‘rumours’ were indeed true.

“Yes, partly,” he responded, “but if you’re going to bring up the issue of racism, it simply gives too much credence to the bitty, scattered rumours that abound. But I’m well aware that rumours are more important than the truth. I’ve been called many names in my time, not all of them ill-fitting. Rather than defend myself I simply feel beyond it all.”

Within the song, the tease continues to the very end when Morrissey unexpectedly introduces another character into the story. Having portrayed himself throughout as the victim, then admitted that there might be something in those unexplained ‘twisted lies’, he finally tells us about an unnamed person, guilty by association, whom he is protecting. It’s fascinating to witness Morrissey transforming a song of victimization into conspiracy theory, complete with an unresolved ending.

In certain respects, the composition sounds distinctly Smiths-like. The allusion to being swallowed by the earth recalls the enveloping soil described in ‘I Know It’s Over’, while the speedway itself is an image familiar from ‘Rusholme Ruffians’. Indeed, the speedway becomes a recurring motif that echoes through the respective child-hoods of both Morrissey and Marr. “I spent a lot of time at the fair in Wythenshaw Park and I worked at a speedway in a place down in Cheshire,” Marr once told me.

His nostalgic memories were not entirely shared bby Morrissey who encountered violence beneath the ersatz glamour. “I remember being at a fair in Stretford Road: it was very early, about 5pm, and I was just standing by the speedway. And somebody just came over to me and head-butted me. He was much older than me, and much bigger. I was dazed for at least five minutes. What I find remarkable is the way you just accepted it. That was just the kind of thing that happened. I don’t think that it was even that I looked different in those days. There never needed to be a reason.”

‘Speedway’ provided a suitably epic ending to the album, building to a climax during which drummer Woodie Taylor appeared to be inhabited by the ghost of John Bonham. The recording was a saga in itself. “ ‘Speedway’ went from being a straight-ahead band effort to a big production,” Bridgewood recalls. “We recorded that track in a different key in a slightly different version. Then we did ‘Interlude’ and towards the end of the session we tried ‘Speedway’ again. We were working towards getting a backing track for it in a new key. Morrissey sang it in E originally, then it went up to F-sharp which was more his range. During recording, we changed the arrangement, particularly the intro. We did the track as it is and the first half of it was ready to be used on the album. While we were doing it, Steve Lillywhite said: ‘I’ve got this idea!’ There’s this big dining room at Hook End Manor. It has a wooden floor and wooden panels all the way up the walls and across the ceiling. He decided that the drum for the second half of the track should be recorded there. Although the dining room wasn’t that far away from the desk, we had to set up mikes and everything, so we needed cables about 500 meters long. There was a wait of several hours while these cables were brought in from London. We just went off for a walk, played pool and amused ourselves until these cables arrived. There was this huge break and I think we finished the rest of the track the next day with Woodie doing the drums. I don’t know why exactly but they did the cymbals in the laundry-room! It was incredible. We’d recently done ‘Used To Be A Sweet Boy’ really quickly but this was the opposite. The epic end with the rim shot on the drums is not an effect. The sound of the drum is literally the sound of that dining room. It was a big finish.”


Is that ok!!!:D
 
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