The Smiths signed to the independent label Rough Trade Records in 1983 and released their first album, The Smiths, in 1984. They based their songs on the songwriting partnership of Morrissey and Marr. Their focus on a guitar, bass, and drum sound and a fusion of 1960s rock and post-punk was a rejection of the synth-pop sound that was predominant at the time. Several Smiths singles reached the top 20 of the UK Singles Chart, and all their studio albums reached the top five of the UK Albums Chart, including the number-one album Meat Is Murder (1985). They achieved mainstream success in Europe with The Queen Is Dead (1986) and Strangeways, Here We Come (1987), both of which entered the top 20 of the European Albums Chart.
Internal tensions led to the Smiths' breakup in 1987, followed by public lawsuits over royalties. Their live album Rank (1988) reached the top 10 in Europe. Since the band's dissolution, the members have refused offers to reunite and have all separately stated that the band is finished and will never reunite.
Full Wikipedia article: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Smiths
Studio albums
The Smiths (1984)
Meat Is Murder (1985)
The Queen Is Dead (1986)
Strangeways, Here We Come (1987)
You Just Haven't Earned It Y..
The Smiths Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
All the love that you long for eludes you
And people are rude and cruel to you
I'll tell you why
I'll tell you why
I'll tell you why
I'll tell you why
You just haven't earned it, son
You just haven't earned it yet, baby
You must suffer and cry for a longer time
You just haven't earned it yet, baby
And I'm telling you now
If you're wondering why
When all I wanted from life was to be famous
I have tried for so long, it's all gone wrong
I'll tell you why
I'll tell you why
I'll tell you why
I'll tell you why
But you wouldn't believe me
You just haven't earned it yet, baby
You just haven't earned it, son
You just haven't earned it yet, baby
You must suffer and cry for a longer time
You just haven't earned it yet, baby
And I'm telling you now
I'll tell you why
I'll tell you why
Today I am remembering the time
When they pulled me back
And held me down
And looked me in the eyes and said
You just haven't earned it yet, baby
You just haven't earned it, my son
You just haven't earned it yet, baby
You must stay on your own for slightly longer
You just haven't earned it yet baby
And I'm telling you now
You just haven't earned it yet, baby
Oh, oh
You just haven't earned it yet, baby
Oh
Oh
Oh
Oh
The Smiths' song "You Just Haven't Earned It Yet, Baby" offers a slight twist on the usual love song formula. Lead singer Morrissey offers words of comfort to a would-be lover who is currently lacking in romantic success. He explains that the reason no one appears to love this person is that love must be earned. According to Morrissey, the person simply hasn't suffered enough; they haven't struggled for long enough to earn the right to be in a relationship.
Morrissey sings, "You must suffer and cry for a longer time / You just haven't earned it yet, baby." This message may be interpreted in different ways, but it seems to suggest that personal growth, resilience, and humility are key ingredients in a successful relationship. Morrissey hints that, if you haven't developed these qualities yet, you can't expect to find love that will last. Morrissey is not necessarily being cruel here, but he is holding out for a more meaningful love, one that can withstand the test of time.
In conclusion, "You Just Haven't Earned It Yet, Baby" paints an unconventional view of love and relationships, one that's a far cry from the usual simplistic love song. Morrissey's lyrics imply that, rather than love being purely an emotion in itself, it is a reward to be earned through personal growth, resilience, and perseverance, and emotional intelligence.
Line by Line Meaning
If you're wondering why
If you're curious about why everything isn't going as you hoped
All the love that you long for eludes you
The affection you desire seems to evade you
And people are rude and cruel to you
Others treat you harshly and insensitively
I'll tell you why
I'll explain the reason behind it all.
You just haven't earned it yet, baby
It's because you haven't yet put in the effort needed to achieve your goals
You just haven't earned it, son
That's right, you haven't earned it yet
You just haven't earned it yet, baby
You must endure more struggle, pain, and hardship before you can reach your dreams
And I'm telling you now
I'm expressing this to you directly and sincerely
When all I wanted from life was to be famous
Even though my sole aim was to be a celebrity
I have tried for so long, it's all gone wrong
I've been working hard for a while, but things haven't been going as planned
But you wouldn't believe me
However, you probably wouldn't accept my explanation
You must suffer and cry for a longer time
You'll have to endure more heartache and tears before you can achieve true success
And held me down
They restrained and held me tightly
You must stay on your own for slightly longer
You'll have to be independent and work alone for a bit longer
Oh
This is an exclamation of grief or discomfort
Lyrics © Warner/Chappell Music, Inc., Universal Music Publishing Group
Written by: JOHNNY MARR, STEVEN PATRICK MORRISSEY
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
@pandawandas
If you're wondering why
All the love that you long for eludes you
And people are rude and cruel to you
I'll tell you why
I'll tell you why
I'll tell you why
I'll tell you why
You just haven't earned it yet, baby
You just haven't earned it, son
You just haven't earned it yet, baby
You must suffer and cry for a longer time
You just haven't earned it yet, baby
And I'm telling you now
If you're wondering why
When all I wanted from life was to be famous
I have tried for so long, it's all gone wrong
I'll tell you why
I'll tell you why
I'll tell you why
I'll tell you why
But you wouldn't believe me
You just haven't earned it yet, baby
You just haven't earned it, son
You just haven't earned it yet, baby
You must suffer and cry for a longer time
You just haven't earned it yet, baby
And I'm telling you now
I'll tell you why
I'll tell you why
Today I am remembering the time
When they pulled me back
And held me down
And looked me in the eyes and said
You just haven't earned it yet, baby
You just haven't earned it, my son
You just haven't earned it yet, baby
You must stay on your own for slightly longer
You just haven't earned it yet baby
And I'm telling you now
You just haven't earned it yet, baby
Oh, oh
You just haven't earned it yet, baby
Oh
Oh
Oh
Oh
@c.d.9447
If you're wondering why
All the love that you long for eludes you
And people are rude and cruel to you
I'll tell you why
I'll tell you why
I'll tell you why
I'll tell you why
You just haven't earned it yet, baby
You just haven't earned it, son
You just haven't earned it yet, baby
You must suffer and cry for a longer time
You just haven't earned it yet, baby
And I'm telling you now
If you're wondering why
When all I wanted from life was to be Famous
I have tried for so long, it's all gone wrong
I'll tell you why
I'll tell you why
I'll tell you why
I'll tell you why
But you wouldn't believe me
You just haven't earned it yet, baby
You just haven't earned it, son
You just haven't earned it yet, baby
You must suffer and cry for a longer time
You just haven't earned it yet, Baby
And I'm telling you now
I'll tell you why
I'll tell you why
Today I am remembering the time
When they pulled me back
And held me down
And looked me in the eyes and said
You just haven't earned it yet, baby
You just haven't earned it, my son
You just haven't earned it yet, baby
You must stay on your own for slightly longer
You just haven't earned it yet baby
And I'm telling you now
You just haven't earned it yet, baby
Oh, oh
You just haven't earned it yet, baby
Oh, oh
@CantorLive
If you're wondering why
All the love that you long for eludes you
And people are rude and cruel to you
I'll tell you why
I'll tell you why
I'll tell you why
I'll tell you why
You just haven't earned it yet, baby
You just haven't earned it, son
You just haven't earned it yet, baby
You must suffer and cry for a longer time
You just haven't earned it yet, baby
And I'm telling you now
If you're wondering why
When all I wanted from life was to be Famous
I have tried for so long, it's all gone wrong
I'll tell you why
I'll tell you why
I'll tell you why
I'll tell you why
But you wouldn't believe me
You just haven't earned it yet, baby
You just haven't earned it, son
You just haven't earned it yet, baby
You must suffer and cry for a longer time
You just haven't earned it yet, Baby
And I'm telling you now
I'll tell you why
I'll tell you why
Today I am remembering the time
When they pulled me back
And held me down
And looked me in the eyes and said
You just haven't earned it yet, baby
You just haven't earned it, my son
You just haven't earned it yet, baby
You must stay on your own for slightly longer
You just haven't earned it yet baby
And I'm telling you now
You just haven't earned it yet, baby
Oh, oh
You just haven't earned it yet, baby
Oh, oh
@nb4055
This guitar riff... the emotions it evokes...
@riseuplight
Johnny
@garethjones6566
One of the finest Smiths songs, played it to my 15 year old daughter and it blew her mind. Out went One Direction and in came The Smiths. Thank you boys.
@bad-girlbex3791
Awesome father right here!
@Royinszki
You just gave your daughter depression
@garethjones6566
@@Royinszki she would say " the start of a great taste in music" .
@cesarpalhano3372
“But you wouldn’t believe me”
@roadrunner1337
LOL. I have just chosen this to be played at a wedding that will have under thirties in significant numbers. Maybe they will hate it? I dunno.
@monsterblister3879
This song means so much to me, The Smiths are my only friends.
@femme-mirage
same feel 😞