- That Joke Isn't Funny Anymore
Infobox Single
Name = That Joke Isn't Funny Anymore
Artist =The Smiths
from Album =Meat Is Murder
Released =July 1 1985
Format = 7" single, 12" single
Recorded = Autumn 1984
Genre =Alternative rock
Length = 4:59
Label = Rough Trade
Writer =Johnny Marr Morrissey
Producer =The Smiths
Video director =
Certification =
Chart position = * #49 (UK)
Reviews =
Last single = "Shakespeare’s Sister"
(1985)
This single = "That Joke Isn't Funny Anymore"
(1985)
Next single = "The Boy with the Thorn in His Side"
(1985)"That Joke Isn't Funny Anymore" is a song by British rock band,The Smiths . It first appeared on their album "Meat Is Murder ", and was released as their eighth single. It was composed by guitaristJohnny Marr and singer/songwriterMorrissey .A unique single, it was the second-lowest charting Smiths single, reaching only
#49 . The repetition and sad tone conveyed are unusual for a Smiths single. This has raised suspicions that the song is about ajournalist with whom Morrissey had a relationship. According to Dave Simpson in his Uncut article (August 1998), the unnamed journalist steadfastly refuses to discuss Morrissey to this day. [ [http://www.compsoc.man.ac.uk/~moz/lyrics/meatismu/thatjoke.htm LASID - That Joke Isn't Funny Anymore ] ]Lyrics
The song is about a car ride where the narrator's partner makes a mocking statement about those who are
suicidal and lonely ("when you laugh about people who feel so very lonely / their only desire is to die"). In an extendedmonologue , Morrissey responds to the joke. He plays withfigurative andliteral meanings – notably in the line "I drove the point home" – which refers both to the literal "return home" in the car and the insistence with which he makes his point in response to the joke.Fact|date=July 2008Track listing
7”: Rough Trade / RT186 (UK)
# “That Joke Isn’t Funny Anymore” – 4:57
# “Meat Is Murder (live)” – 5:3412”: Rough Trade / RTT186 (UK)
# “That Joke Isn't Funny Anymore” – 4:57
# “Nowhere Fast (live)” – 2:31
# “Stretch Out and Wait (live)” – 2:49
# “Shakespeare's Sister (live)” – 2:12
# “Meat Is Murder (live)” – 5:34Etchings on vinyl
UK 7":OUR SOULS, OUR SOULS, OUR SOULS / OUR SOULS, OUR SOULS, OUR SOULS
UK 12":OUR SOULS, OUR SOULS, OUR SOULS / none
Canada 12": HELEN WHEELS / none
References
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