Sunday, July 04, 2021

The Smiths: Rusholme Ruffians

I heard Elvis Presley's (Marie's the Name) His Latest Flame playing in the Co-op today. But I was 17 when the King died and to me then he was just some fat, old bloke, so I have chosen a song a Smiths that was inspired by it.

Smiths on Guitar quotes Johnny Marr on the evolution of that song:

"Rusholme Ruffians came about because my parents used to play 'Marie's The Name' by Elvis Presley and I liked the chord change.

"That was blatantly done. Morrissey said to me, 'Let's do a song about the fair,' and for some reason my association with the fair was to pull out that Elvis riff. We tried, but we couldn't get away from it."

And Victoria Wood. Morrissey Did opines:

Rusholme Ruffians is The Smiths at their sticky-fingered peak. From the alliteratively-alluring Ealing comedyesque title down, it’s a masterclass in Morrissey’s stolen kitchen sink observations backed by a Johnny Marr riff flat-out filched from Scotty Moore via Elvis Presley’s (Marie’s The Name) His Latest Flame 1961 single.

No comments: