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Originally Posted by Severian
Oh, you're right. That was Morrissey.
I don't meant to negate the mega-seriousness of this situation, but Smiths/Morrissey quotes always kinda make me chuckle. I like the Smiths and solo Morrissey, but when you pull that shit out of context and plop it into another context, it always makes for a dark bit of hilarity.
#sorry
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"Suedehead" can be funny. I don't think there's anything fucking funny about "Suffer Little Children". For which, by the way, The Smiths and SPM in particular took a LOT of shit back in the day. From
Wikipedia:
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After the song was re-released as the B-side of the single "Heaven Knows I'm Miserable Now", the Manchester Evening News reported that relatives of the Moors murder victims had taken exception to the lyrics, in which three of the victims are mentioned by name. Some newspapers also claimed that the single's sleeve photo of pools winner Viv Nicholson was intended to resemble Myra Hindley.
Subsequently the high street chains Boots and Woolworths withdrew both the album and single from sale. However, Morrissey later established a friendship with Ann West, the mother of Moors victim Lesley Ann Downey, after she accepted that the band's intentions were honourable.
Although five children were murdered in the Moors case, only three are named in the song: John Kilbride ("oh John you'll never be a man"), Lesley Ann Downey ("Lesley Ann with your pretty white beads"), and Edward Evans ("Edward, see those alluring lights"). The murders of Keith Bennett and Pauline Reade were not attributed to Myra Hindley and Ian Brady until 1985, after "Suffer Little Children" had already been released.
The title of the song is a phrase found in the Gospel of Matthew, chapter 19, verse 14, in which Jesus rebukes his disciples for turning away a group of children and says:
Suffer little children, and forbid them not, to come unto me: for of such is the kingdom of heaven.
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File it next to "Born In The U.S.A." (released that same year, coincidentally) as one of the most misunderstood songs in the history of
everything.
By the way, Ian Brady died just a week ago aged 79. Hindley died in 2002 at 60. I'd like to think Satan is torturing the fuck out of them both, but I don't believe in such malarkey.