"How Soon Is Now?"
(Morrissey/Marr)

 

These lyrics are transcribed in light blue as they appear in the "Hatful Of Hollow" album and are reproduced here without permission. Variations between the printed lyrics and what is sung by Morrissey are indicated in darker text for additions and omissions are deleted.

I am the son
and the heir
of a shyness that is criminally vulgar 1
I am the son and heir
of nothing in particular

You shut your mouth
how can you say
I go about things the wrong way 2
I am Human and I need to be loved
Just like everybody else does

I am the son
and the heir
of a shyness that is criminally vulgar 1
I am the son and heir
of nothing in particular

You shut your mouth
how can you say
I go about things the wrong way 2
I am Human and I need to be loved
Just like everybody else does

There's a club, if you'd like to go
you could meet somebody who really loves you 3
so you go, and you stand on your own
and you leave on your own
and you go home, and you cry
and you want to die 4

When you say it's gonna happen "now"
well, when exactly do you mean?
see I've already waited too long
and all my hope is gone. 5,6

You shut your mouth 7
how can you say 7
I go about things the wrong way 7
I am Human and I need to be loved
Just like everybody else does

 

1 Near the end of the 2004 You Are The Quarry tour Morrissey sometimes changed this line to "I am the son and the heir of a shyness that is crippling and vulgar". In the summer of 2006 this change became more common. By late 2006 and in 2007 the change was done more commonly on the second occurrence of this line, and Morrissey sometimes also sang "of a shyness that is criminal and vulgar".

2 Now and then on the 2007 Greatest Hits tour Morrissey changed this line to "how can you say, I live my life the wrong way".

3 In live performances of this song in late 2006 Morrissey sometimes sang "you could meet somebody who actually likes you". Early in 2007 he alternated between the latter and "you could meet somebody who even likes you". Then later on the 2007 Greatest Hits tour he more or less settled on "you could meet somebody who even likes you".

4 The European single edit of the song ends here. On the 2007 Greatest Hits tour Morrissey sometimes broke into fake sobs instead of finishing this line, or else sang "and you cry and you want to die, what else?" or variations on that.

5 In live performances of this song in late 2006 Morrissey sometimes sang "look! all my hope is gone" or "look at me! all my hope is gone". In 2007 he alternated between the latter and "look at this face! all my hope is gone".

6 On the Smiths' "The Queen Is Dead" tour as well as on the solo 2004 and 2006-2007 tours, the song ended here. So lyrics for the live version of the song found on Morrissey's "Live At Earls Court" don't include the last verse.

7 These three lines are not heard in the American single edit (aka Phil Brown edit).