Morrissey A-Z: "Everyday Is Like Sunday"

[ZOOM FROM GLOOM]

More ... grist for the mill ...

but can mills survive a nuclear war?

It seems this sea side town has, because it was not worth bombing ...


A commenter on songmeanings.com
that goes by the name of Sleepy Weasle says this .....

“I agree that boredom is certainly a central theme of this song, but I think that we're not fully recognizing the nuclear undertones. Bear in mind that this was written and released during the time of Margaret Thatcher as Britan's PM, and before the fall of the Soviet Union. Thatcher's heavily militaristic policies coupled with the still-present threat of nuclear war may have been the driving force behind these lyrics.

My interpretation (and I am not comitted to it) is that this isn't about boredom as much as it is about the aftermath of a nuclear war. The quiet boredom that accompanies a sleepy town on a sunday could also be that of a deserted town after a nuclear war. The story (in my opinion) is that of two lovers who have survived the war, but probably not for much longer. Note the lyrics don't just refer to wanting a nuclear bomb to come, but that they're in a town that "they forgot to bomb." This strikes me as a reference to the fact that the town that they're in was spared nuclear destruction, only to face a more prolonged one, and that the earlier mention of wishing for nuclear bombs is so that their suffering can be ended.

The last lines of the song, which note the falling of a "a strange dust" probably refers to that of the ash that follows a nuclear detonation and the fires that follow. Again, I'm not convinced that I'm right, but this has always been my interpretation.”

Morrissey - Everyday Is Like Sunday Lyrics | SongMeanings

“The lyric is reportedly inspired by Nevil Shute’s novel On the Beach, about a group of people waiting for nuclear devastation in Melbourne, Australia.”

according to https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Everyday_Is_Like_Sunday




sunday goth




greased strings




Seemed to be popular at the beginning of the pandemic shutdown, could have been #1 if it was rereleased again




Well, I’m glad you’re singing that and not me







Edit: ..and Lucette Henderson, if you’re out there, and have anything to add?

 

[BookishBoy]

Yes, the "nuclear" angle allegedly inspired by this Neville Shute novel:

 

[general disarray]

It should have been the lead single..
As it’s a better song than Suedehead
therefor I think it would have been top 3 ....
Also I can’t believe the utter and complete shite that is higher in the charts than Moz...
Dreadful when you look down that chart, thank heavens for songs like Sunday....

And thank heavens the Boys music video by Sabrina, ah the mammaries

 

[Famous when dead]

Better throw this in to better emphasise my irony comment:

John Betjeman (1906 - 1984)

Slough

Come friendly bombs and fall on Slough!
It isn't fit for humans now,
There isn't grass to graze a cow.
Swarm over, Death!
Come, bombs and blow to smithereens
Those air-conditioned, bright canteens,
Tinned fruit, tinned meat, tinned milk, tinned beans,
Tinned minds, tinned breath.

Mess up the mess they call a town-
A house for ninety-seven down
And once a week a half a crown
For twenty years.

And get that man with double chin
Who'll always cheat and always win,
Who washes his repulsive skin
In women's tears:

And smash his desk of polished oak
And smash his hands so used to stroke
And stop his boring dirty joke
And make him yell.

But spare the bald young clerks who add
The profits of the stinking cad;
It's not their fault that they are mad,
They've tasted Hell.

It's not their fault they do not know
The birdsong from the radio,
It's not their fault they often go
To Maidenhead

And talk of sport and makes of cars
In various bogus-Tudor bars
And daren't look up and see the stars
But belch instead.

In labour-saving homes, with care
Their wives frizz out peroxide hair
And dry it in synthetic air
And paint their nails.

Come, friendly bombs and fall on Slough
To get it ready for the plough.
The cabbages are coming now;
The earth exhales.

 

[Trans]

I like the lyrics fine but the song is fantastic. Probably the best produced track on the album and the vocal melody is sublime. I think it’s the one straight out undeniable success on the album. Even the haters can’t hate this

 

[Mayfly]

After more than 30 years, it still holds the crown as his best ever single/ song.
And one of the best songs ever written, period.

 

[Gregor Samsa]

Is this the first song in the A-Z that has been universally praised?

 

[Carlisle baz]

It's his best song as a solo artist, I think. It's a shame that he's spoiled it in recent years with the 'quando, quando, quando' line which to me is much weaker than the original couplet.

Yes, I agree... he sometimes spoils this song live with the Quando bits..
He’s also ruined meat is murder live as well with all the changes to it over the years..

 

[BookishBoy]

Is this the first song in the A-Z that has been universally praised?

I might be biased (because I love it so) but maybe "Boxers" came quite close?

Anyhow, only a week or so before we all get to shower "Get off the Stage" with love...

 

[Gregor Samsa]

I might be biased (because I love it so) but maybe "Boxers" came quite close?

Anyhow, only a week or so before we all get to shower "Get off the Stage" with love...

You might be right!

Haha...looking forward to it!

 

[Carlisle baz]

One of the greatest pop songs of the last century. I even bought Now 12 because it was on there - despite having the single

Now that’s what I call .... dedication
I can remember buying the first four..i I remember correctly, what difference does it make was on the first one

 

[Carlisle baz]

And thank heavens the Boys music video by Sabrina, ah the mammaries

Yes.. you can’t beat big summertime tits.... err hits ....

 

[SuedeMoz]

Personally, my only bugbear with 'Everyday is Like Sunday' is that it's been so overplayed that I've kind of got numb to it (a similar thing has happened to 'How Soon is Now?'). I think it could do with a good long rest, so that I'm genuinely excited when I hear it again.

Yeah, it can feel a bit passe as it came so early in his solo career 30+ years ago now, received a lot of radio play, and was also played on every tour I believe. But stripping that away, it's just a brilliant and beautiful song that's sounds as great today as it did in 1988. Having said all that, it's probably been a few years since I actually went to listen to EILS.

Finally, getting actual discussion on the music going and listening to tracks independent of an album or single have made these A-Z threads so valuable.

 

[Mike Rourke]

I'm fascinated by the charts (always was, until they became less meaningful with the advent of streaming) and this song's chart placing is really interesting. (Am talking about the UK charts here.) Here's a shot of its second week in the chart, when it reached its highest position of #9:

View attachment 69178

First up, there are only two other good songs in that chart (The Timelords and Aztec Camera; I love Kylie but that's not one of her better ones). But isn't it kind of amazing that a song as unimpeachably great as "Everyday Is Like Sunday" never got any higher than that? Was it because the album was already out? Was it lack of radio play? Or was Morrissey just...never very mainstream at all?

Really surprised at this comment. I think this is the only Morrissey song ever to actually climb the chart, and to climb into the top 10 is a phenomenal achievement. Pretty certain The Smiths didn't even manage that (their early singles may have climbed a little but much further down).
So, this single did brilliantly. Of course, had it been first off the album it would have done better but for a Morrissey/Smiths single, climbing into the top 10 is unheard of.
Also worth remembering that even before all the horrible recent stuff (e.g. his campaigning for far-right politics), most people just hated the sound of Morrissey's singing voice, even when the songs were amazing. The Smiths were a cult band - singles rarely reached the top 10, albums sold around a hundred thousand. Big indie bands sell in the millions - Blur, Coldplay etc. even the likes of Radiohead.
So, this single did really well. And of course, it's amazing.

 

[Mayfly]

Still Morrissey’s second most famous song, second only to Suedehead, on Spotify these days. Only First of the Gang comes close.

And at 47M streams more popular now than any of the other songs in that top-10. Shows you how ‘wrong’ the charts were those days

For me also a song I never tire of hearing. Also really enjoy the covers by Pretenders, 10,000 Maniacs or the Spanish one by Mikel Erentxun

Welcome back Thewlis

 

[gordyboy9]

And thank heavens the Boys music video by Sabrina, ah the mammaries

especially the x rated version,that reminds me,i really need another viewing of that video for research purposes obviously.

 

[Carlisle baz]

especially the x rated version,that reminds me,i really need another viewing of that video for research purposes obviously.

Typical you, typically you..

 

[Verso]

Morrissey's lush and gorgeous apotheosis, complete with the in-built trap for the lazy analysts who don't realize that he's singing about the "everyday" and not "every day." The video defined for me what a Morrissey fan should look like: ambiguously-gendered, sullen and glamorous. I echo one of the sentiments above that I've grown a little tired of this one live, but it's good to keep in mind there was nearly a ten-year stretch where he didn't play it at all. It still brings the house down.

For what it's worth, less than 3 years later Kurt Cobain sings "sunday morning is every day, for all I care."

 

[SuedeMoz]

I echo one of the sentiments above that I've grown a little tired of this one live, but it's good to keep in mind there was nearly a ten-year stretch where he didn't play it at all. It still brings the house down.

That's interesting, I thought "Suedehead" and "Everyday..." were the only songs played on every tour. Agreed though... it's one of those songs that everyone in the audience knows. The crowd also goes crazy for HSIN? and I think the live version he's been doing sounds awful.

 

[general disarray]

especially the x rated version,that reminds me,i really need another viewing of that video for research purposes obviously.

X rated?, I'll have too look it up