"The Last Of The Famous International Playboys"
(Morrissey/Stephen Street)

 

These words are transcribed without permission the way they appear in Morrissey's "Bona Drag" album. Additions to the printed lyrics are in darker text while omissions are striken out.

Dear hero imprisoned
with all the new crimes that you are perfecting
oh I can't help quoting you
because everything that you said rings true
and now in my cell
(well, I followed you) 1
and here's a list of who I slew 1
Reggie Kray - do you know my name? 1
don't say you don't
please say you do, I am:
the last of the famous
international playboys
the last of the famous
international playboys
and now in my cell
(well, I loved you)
and every man with a job to do 2
Ronnie Kray - do you know my face? 1
don't say you don't
please say you do, I am:
the last of the famous
international playboys
the last of the famous
international playboys
In our lifetime those who kill
the newsworld hands them stardom 3
and these are the ways
on which I was raised
these are the ways
on which I was which I was raised
but I never wanted to kill
I'M NOT NATURALLY EVIL
such things I do
just to make myself
more attractive to you 4
HAVE I FAILED? 5
no, no, yeah, no, yeah... (ad lib)
the last of the famous
international playboys

 

1 On the 1991 Kill Uncle tour Morrissey usually stuck with the basic lyrics, but on the recording from that tour released on the "Live In Dallas" concert video, he actually sang the one-off and slightly different "Ronnie Kray do you know my ways". On the 2007-2008 Greatest Hits tour he changed the first and second occurrences of this line respectively to "Reggie Kray always knew my name" and "Ronnie Kray always knew my name" (or sometimes "...my face"). Whether in 1991 or 2007-2008 he sometimes reversed these Ronnie and Reggie lines. In Wolverhampton in 1988 he never sang "Ronnie...", he sang "Reggie..." twice.

2 In Wolverhampton in 1988 Morrissey sang "and every man has a job to do".

3 On the second and third American legs of the 2007 Greatest Hits tour Morrissey almost always changed this line to "in our lifetime those who kill, Fox News hands them stardom". When he returned to the UK in 2008 he tried to adapt this by replacing "Fox News" with CNN or the BBC, but the changes didn't stick.

4 In live performances of this song in Wolverhampton in 1988, on the 1991 Kill Uncle tour, the 1992 Your Arsenal tour or the 2007 Greatest Hits tour, Morrissey usually changed this line to "attracted to you" or "more attracted to you". This can be heard on the "Live In Dallas" concert video. Morrissey has also been known in 1991-1992 to occasionally change this line to "less attractive to you". In 2008 he preferred "attractive to you".

5 Now and then in 2008 Morrissey followed "have I failed?" with a shout of "yes!".

Note: In most live performances of this song Morrissey let the audience supply the high-pitched 'international' in the title line.