40 years ago (31 October 1983), The Smiths released the second single "This Charming Man".
"This Charming Man" has been widely praised in both the music and mainstream press. In 2004, BBC Radio 2 listeners voted it number 97 on the station's "Sold on Song Top 100" poll. Mojo magazine journalists placed the track at number 1 on their 2008 "50 Greatest UK Indie Records of All Time" feature. It was certified double platinum by the British Phonographic Industry (BPI) in 2023.
Punctured bicycle
On a hillside desolate
Will nature make a man of me yet?
When in this charming car
This charming man
Why pamper life's complexity
When the leather runs smooth
On the passenger seat?
I would go out tonight
But I haven't got a stitch to wear
This man said, "It's gruesome
That someone so handsome should care"
Ah, a jumped-up pantry boy
Who never knew his place
He said, "Return the ring"
He knows so much about these things
He knows so much about these things
I would go out tonight
But I haven't got a stitch to wear
This man said, "It's gruesome
That someone so handsome should care"
Na, na-na, na-na, na-na, this charming man
Oh, na-na, na-na, na-na, this charming man
Ah, a jumped-up pantry boy
Who never knew his place
He said, "Return the ring"
He knows so much about these things
He knows so much about these things
He knows so much about these things