Death At One's Elbow - Explain this abomination to me

[Amy]

The "worst Smiths songs" thread got me thinking about 'Death At One's Elbow', and the song is an utter mystery to me after all this time. How on earth did this nonsensical stinker ever make its way into the Smiths canon? "Oh Glenn, don't come to the house tonight, oh Glenn". What the hell was Morrissey thinking, what is it written about and how did it ever get past Marr? It sounds absolutely nothing like the band .

 

[Deleted member 1074]

The "worst Smiths songs" thread got me thinking about 'Death At One's Elbow', and the song is an utter mystery to me after all this time. How on earth did this nonsensical stinker ever make its way into the Smiths canon? "Oh Glenn, don't come to the house tonight, oh Glenn". What the hell was Morrissey thinking, what is it written about and how did it ever get past Marr? It sounds absolutely nothing like the band .

Lol. Morrissey has been writing ridiculous, nonsensical lyrics over (usually) great music for years. This song doesn't make any less sense than 'Have A Go Merchant'...

However, I'd take "Death At One's Elbow" over "Scandinavia" or "Children In Pieces" any day...


Not really answering your question, but I just wanted to put that out there.

 

[Orson Swells]

I've never really minded it, while recognising it's not exactly a classic. There's an Orton/Halliwell-style setup going on in the lyric - hence the title being borrowed from Orton's diaries. And the name Glenn always suggests Miller to me - suggesting it's aimed towards a musician. I think it sounds very off the cuff musically and spontaneous and I like the doorbell buried deep in the mix. Would have made a serviceable enough b-side. But with the benefit of hindsight, the excellent heavy track Marr came up with should have been worked on and used on the album in its place.

 

[CrystalGeezer]

I've always considered this to be the first half of one of Morrissey's quiet two-part songs, the second half being I Won't Share You which follows on the album and concludes the album bearing the name of the prison. Obviously this Glenn guy has taken something from him, first he declares his rage, then in the second half steps it down a notch and explains why he was so pissed. Even the music of the two songs contrastly speaks volumes as to the moods, the topic remaining the same.

 

[Death Disco]

The "worst Smiths songs" thread got me thinking about 'Death At One's Elbow', and the song is an utter mystery to me after all this time. How on earth did this nonsensical stinker ever make its way into the Smiths canon? "Oh Glenn, don't come to the house tonight, oh Glenn". What the hell was Morrissey thinking, what is it written about and how did it ever get past Marr? It sounds absolutely nothing like the band .

You answered your own question.

 

[9 x Fined]

She's right you know. It's not that good. Maybe because all the other songs on Strangeways are so phenomenal.

 

[Eraserhead]

I actually like it and can't understand why people are so scathing towards it. I think both Morrissey and the Smiths are/were highly aware of how important running order and diversity/tempo change is to an album. Some of thier best songs were used as b-sides whilst lesser songs seemed to work within the context of an album.

 

[KenzieW]

I actually like it too. I call it one of their 'cowboy' songs. I picture Moz all cowboy.

 

[Maurice E]

Next to prime-time Smiths, it is, admittedly, a little disappointing.
But, in the overall scheme of things, it's a pretty good song. Tons of energy, an unusual arrangement, a pleasingly oblique lyric, and the way it leads into I Won't Share You is wonderful. Also sounded great when he played it live in 2009(http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j4qcsEY1VME)
Sadly, it's also quite a bit better than around 90% of 21st century Morrissey songs.
Sorry Amy - I don't think you're getting the responses you were after!

 

[Old Mathew]

I like the doorbell buried deep in the mix.

Where is that? Or when, to be more precise.

 

[billy scissors]

and whats that weird noise,one second in?

 

[nothappynotsad]

The "worst Smiths songs" thread got me thinking about 'Death At One's Elbow', and the song is an utter mystery to me after all this time. How on earth did this nonsensical stinker ever make its way into the Smiths canon? "Oh Glenn, don't come to the house tonight, oh Glenn". What the hell was Morrissey thinking, what is it written about and how did it ever get past Marr? It sounds absolutely nothing like the band .

I quite like this song. It's not profound or anything but it's fun to dance to. Maybe that is the point?

 

[Skylarker]

The name Glenn was chosen because the name could apply to either gender, although there are often spelling difference subtleties. So that's that part of it.

He is imploring Glenn not to "come to the house" but to stay home, even though staying at home is boring. But he warns that if Glenn comes over anyway, he/she will find nothing but either a spurned, vengeful assailant in the form of the narrator, who "really really loves" Glenn but who knows that this love is unrequited and so is frustrated to a point of murderous hate for Glenn...or, for the same reasons (unrequited love and hateful frustration) a dead body: the aftermath of the narrator's suicide, wherein spilled remains could cause poor Glenn to slip and fall.

So regardless of Glenn's final decision (staying at home, or coming over and getting killed for not returning Morrissey's affection, or coming over and finding that Morrissey has killed himself over Glenn...either way it's "goodbye my love, goodbye my love."

Belch.

 

[Old Mathew]

and whats that weird noise,one second in?

An electric drill, if I recall correctly from somewhere.

 

[The_Myth]

The name Glenn was chosen because the name could apply to either gender, although there are often spelling difference subtleties. So that's that part of it.

He is imploring Glenn not to "come to the house" but to stay home, even though staying at home is boring. But he warns that if Glenn comes over anyway, he/she will find nothing but either a spurned, vengeful assailant in the form of the narrator, who "really really loves" Glenn but who knows that this love is unrequited and so is frustrated to a point of murderous hate for Glenn...or, for the same reasons (unrequited love and hateful frustration) a dead body: the aftermath of the narrator's suicide, wherein spilled remains could cause poor Glenn to slip and fall.

So regardless of Glenn's final decision (staying at home, or coming over and getting killed for not returning Morrissey's affection, or coming over and finding that Morrissey has killed himself over Glenn...either way it's "goodbye my love, goodbye my love."

Belch.

Oh, Jiminy Crickets!

When you explained it I got a brainwave -- It's about Fatal Attraction?

Glen Close as a crazy, spurned, murderous lover. Her character Alex Forrest tried to kill herself and then went all homicidal.

The only problem with this theory is the timing:

Fatal Attraction released September 18, 1987.

Strangeways, Here We Come released September 28, 1987.

Very odd coincidence, I'd say.

 

[Amy]

Next to prime-time Smiths, it is, admittedly, a little disappointing.
But, in the overall scheme of things, it's a pretty good song. Tons of energy, an unusual arrangement, a pleasingly oblique lyric, and the way it leads into I Won't Share You is wonderful. Also sounded great when he played it live in 2009(http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j4qcsEY1VME)
Sadly, it's also quite a bit better than around 90% of 21st century Morrissey songs.
Sorry Amy - I don't think you're getting the responses you were after!

Better than 90% of 21st Century Moz songs? Ouch! Frankly I think it's embarrassing next to the likes of "Come Back to Camden", "Irish Blood..", "Mama lay Softly.." and many many others. The lyrics are pointlessly repetitive and sound like he's not really trying, but I'm intrigued by some of the responses here so far - especially the attempts at explaining the lyrics etc.

 

[Pokey]

I put it down to a band about to go into breakup mode. I don't utterly despise the song like say Children in Pieces. It has a little charm and I always liked the lines "slip on the trail of all my sad remains" and "the frustration it renders me hateful". It's got that runaway freight train rock sound the smiths did well like nowhere fast, Shakespeare's sister or vicar... Obviously it's the lower end of that scale compared to these songs. But it's not so bad.

 

[Tingle3]

See also http://www.morrissey-solo.com/threads/41854-death-at-one-s-elbow-question



I haven't got 'Songs that saved your life' to hand, but since your question interested me I thought I'd have a little trawl of t'internet.

I always supposed that 'Death at one's elbow' was about James Dean in some way. The engine sound effect at the beginning sounds like a motorcycle but Morrissey may have used it to represent Dean's Porsche car. [after all he later used a chainsaw to represent a motorcycle on 'Speedway']. dean died in that car.

So doing a bit of a Google on 'Glenn-James-Dean' what do you get? You get a reference to Morrissey's book "James Dean is not dead". The book twice refers to a sometime friend of Dean's name of Barbara Glenn. Note it's Glenn and not Glen.

The book refers to Jimmy Dean keeping to himself and Glenn not being keen on that sort of behaviour.

These are Morrissey's words:
"For all the activity that surrounded him, Jimmy was mostly alone in those early days. He was an insomniac and spent his nights roaming the city like a stray animal. And still his friends were all replaceable."

Morrissey follows this with a quote from Glenn: "Of course Jimmy had his reasons for doing what he did, but really who needs that shit?"

See "James Dean is not dead" at
www.velvetrockmine.com.ar/especiales/morrissey/morrissey-jamesdean.pdf

So I think the song is written from the point of view of Jimmy Dean. Clearly Morrissey has some sympathy for Dean and the way he behaved and lived his life.

Oh Glenn
Don't come to the house tonight
Oh Glenn
Oh Glenn
Don't come to the house tonight
Oh Glenn
Because there's somebody here
Who really really loves you
Oh Glenn
Stay home
Be bored
(It's crap, I KNOW)
Tonight
Oh Glenn
Oh Glenn
Don't come to the house tonight
Oh Glenn
Oh Glenn
Don't come to the house tonight
Because there's somebody here
Who'll take a hatchet to your ear
The frustration it renders me
Hateful, oh ...
Oh, don't come to the house tonight
Oh, don't come to the house tonight
Because you'll slip on the
Trail of all my sad remains
That's why, that's why
GOODBYE MY LOVE, GOODBYE MY LOVE
GOODBYE MY LOVE, GOODBYE MY LOVE
GOODBYE MY LOVE, GOODBYE MY LOVE

> OK, I can't believe that this hasn't come up before, so sorry for covering
> old ground, but who is the 'Glenn' referred to in 'Death At One's Elbow'?

 

[billy scissors]

An electric drill, if I recall correctly from somewhere.

its on 2 seconds in here,a split second sound,not a drill

 

[Old Mathew]

its on 2 seconds in here,a split second sound,not a drill

Oh. Not sure but it sounds like a random strike on electronic percussion... perhaps the same machine (different sound) that does the clapping/train bit that starts at :06.