The Boy With the Thorn in His Side / Asleep
by The Smiths
- Type: Single
- Released: 16 September 1985
- Label: Rough Trade
- Country: United Kingdom
- Length: 11:22
- Community rating: 4.45/5 from 4 ratings
Artists on this release: Johnny Marr, Morrissey
Album Notes & Community Reviews
A pre-release single that teased the lush orchestration of the upcoming 'The Queen Is Dead', this track ironically masks a bitter critique of the music industry behind an achingly beautiful melody. Johnny Marr utilized synthesized string layers鈥攁 relatively new texture for the band鈥攖o elevate the song's sweeping, romantic atmosphere. The B-side, 'Asleep', offers a deeply contrasting, funereal piano ballad confronting suicidal ideation.
Genres
Descriptors: melodic, existential, alienation, jangly, literary
Tracklist
- The Boy With The Thorn In His Side (3:17)
- Rubber Ring (3:55)
- Asleep (4:10)
Credits
- Truman Capote - model [cover star]
- Grant Showbiz - other [special thank to]