Song

There Is a Light That Never Goes Out

The Smiths

Album:

The Queen Is Dead

Song Meaning of There Is a Light That Never Goes Out by The Smiths

"There Is a Light That Never Goes Out" is a song by the English rock band the Smiths, written by guitarist Johnny Marr and singer Morrissey.

Featured on the band's third studio album The Queen Is Dead, it was not released as a single in the United Kingdom until 1992, five years after their split, to promote the compilation album.

Marr later described the recording process of the song as "magical" and commented, "Someone told me that if you listen with the volume really, really up you can hear me shout 'That was amazing' right at the end."

It was written in tandem with "Bigmouth Strikes Again". The two songs share the same key as well as similar chords.

The song features a sequence that guitarist Johnny Marr took from the Rolling Stones cover of Marvin Gaye's "Hitch Hike". Marr said he included it as an "in-joke" to determine if the music press would attribute the inspiration for the part to "There She Goes Again" by the Velvet Underground, who he contended "stole" the figure from "Hitch Hike". Marr commented, "I knew I was smarter than that. I was listening to what the Velvet Underground were listening to".

Morrissey was not sure the song should be released. He wrote in his memoir, “It is often a relief to be wrong.”

There Is a Light That Never Goes Out lyrics by The Smiths

Take me out tonight

Where there's music and there's people

And they're young and alive

Driving in your car

I never, never want to go home

Because I haven't got one anymore

Take me out tonight

Because I want to see people

And I want to see life

Driving in your car, oh, please don't drop me home