Barbarism Begins at Home
The Smiths * Track #8 On Meat Is Murder
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Album Meat Is Murder
Barbarism Begins at Home by The Smiths
Release Date
Performed by
The SmithsProduced by
The SmithsWrited by
Morrissey & Johnny MarrAbout
The brilliantly titled “Barbarism Begins at Home”, during which Morrissey yelps as if in pain, is also about children being hit – a crack on the head is what you get for asking. Violence or the implied threat thereof is an integral component of Smiths songs, from “In a river the color of lead/immers...
Barbarism Begins at Home Lyrics
[Chorus 1]
Unruly boys who will not grow up
Must be taken in hand
Unruly girls who will not settle down
They must be taken in hand
[Chorus 2]
A crack on the head is what you get for not asking
And a crack on the head is what you get for asking
[Chorus 1]
Unruly boys who will not grow up
Must be taken in hand
Unruly girls who will not settle down
They must be taken in hand
[Chorus 2]
A crack on the head is what you get for not asking
And a crack on the head is what you get for asking
[Chorus 2]
No, a crack on the head is what you get for not asking
And a crack on the head is what you get for asking
[Bridge]
A crack on the head is just what you get
Why? Because of who you are!
And a crack on the head is just what you get
Why? Because of what you are!
A crack on the head
Because of the things you said
Things you said
The things you did
[Chorus 1]
Unruly boys who will not grow
Must be taken in hand
Unruly girls who will not grow
They must be taken in hand
[Outro]
La-da-da-da-da
La-da-da-da-da
Oh no, no, no
La-da-da-da-da
La-da-da-da-da
Oh no, no, no, no
No, no!
No, no, no
No!
No, no, la-da-da-da-da
La-da-da-da-da
Oh no, oh no
La-da-da-da-da
La-da-da-da-da
Oh no, no, no
La-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da
No, no, no
La-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da
Noo, no, no
La-da-da-da-da
La-da-da-da-da
Oh no, no-no-no
La-da-da-da-da
Oh no, oh no
No! No, no, no
No! No, no, no
La-da-da-da-da
La-da-da-da-da
Oh no, no, no, no
La-da-da-da-da
La-da-da-da-da
Oh no, oh no
Barbarism Begins at Home Q&A
Who wrote Barbarism Begins at Home's ?
Barbarism Begins at Home was written by Morrissey & Johnny Marr.
Who produced Barbarism Begins at Home's ?
Barbarism Begins at Home was produced by The Smiths.
When did The Smiths release Barbarism Begins at Home?
The Smiths released Barbarism Begins at Home on Wed Apr 10 1985.
What did The Smiths say about "Barbarism Begins at Home"?
Guitarist Johnny Marr opened up to Uncut Magazine in 2008:
With ‘Barbarism Begins At Home,’ a lot’s been made of the funky aspect of the bassline, but that track harks back to what I was doing with Andy (Rourke) before The Smiths. I guess it came out of this love of retro kind of James Brown record...
Has any other band member spoken about the song?
Bassist Andy reflected:
It is the song – I would say it’s 80 to 90 percent bassline. I’m into my funk and this was the closest I could get away with. We used to jam along to it for hours and hours, even pre-Smiths. I was into Stanley Clarke, James Jamerson and, I’m almost embarrassed to say it, Mar...