Morrissey A-Z: "Bengali in Platforms"

This is not his finest hour. I've tried to look at it differently, but the line 'life is hard enough when you belong here' sounds very malicious to me. I can't get around that. Its sentiment is very clear, very blatant - certain people don't belong 'here'. I don't think Moz is racist (I'm not one of those people...), but this line is clumsy, ill-advised and mean. The song in general? Annoying, lightweight and one I never listen to on its own. Even though it's a different song entirely, it should have been replaced by Happy Lovers United.
 
He should have stuck with the original draft of the lyric, which was about his old friend Ben Garley who worked at Manchester Piccadilly.
 
Regarding the "Life is hard enough..." line, Morrissey was pretty clear as to what he meant by it:

Was it intended to have a double edge?

"No, it still doesn't, not at all. There are many people who are so obsessed with racism that one can't mention the word Bengali; it instantly becomes a racist song, even if you're saying, Bengali, marry me. But I still can't see any silent racism there."

Not even with the line, "Life is hard enough when you belong here"?

"Well, it is, isn't it?"

True, but that implies that Bengalis don't belong here, which isn't a very global view of the world.

"In a sense it's true. And I think that's almost true for anybody. If you went to Yugoslavia tomorrow, you'd probably feel that you didn't belong there."

Not a globalised worldview, understandably. Certainly phrased in an unfortunate way, but far from malicious, in my opinion.

From Shaun Phillips' "Secret Diary Of A Middle-Aged Man", Sounds, 18 June 1988.


And in Songs Of Love In Hate by Simon Reynolds for Melody Maker:

On the same subject, there's the line in "Bengali In Platforms": "Shelve your Western plans/And understand/That life is hard enough when you belong here". Don't you think the song could be taken as condescending?

"Yeeeees... I do think it could be taken that way, and another journalist has said that it probably will. But it's not being deliberately provocative. It's just about people who, in order to be embraced or feel at home, buy the most absurd English clothes.
 
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I'm not very good at archive stuff, but does anyone how many of the reviews of Viva Hate, when it was first released, flagged this song as being "problematic" in some way?
 

Hey I just noticed you've adopted a new moniker!

If only everyone could generate such courage - The Courage to Get on People's Tits!
 
Regarding the "Life is hard enough..." line, Morrissey was pretty clear as to what he meant by it:

Was it intended to have a double edge?

"No, it still doesn't, not at all. There are many people who are so obsessed with racism that one can't mention the word Bengali; it instantly becomes a racist song, even if you're saying, Bengali, marry me. But I still can't see any silent racism there."

Not even with the line, "Life is hard enough when you belong here"?

"Well, it is, isn't it?"

True, but that implies that Bengalis don't belong here, which isn't a very global view of the world.

"In a sense it's true. And I think that's almost true for anybody. If you went to Yugoslavia tomorrow, you'd probably feel that you didn't belong there."

Not a globalised worldview, understandably. Certainly phrased in an unfortunate way, but far from malicious, in my opinion.

From Shaun Phillips' "Secret Diary Of A Middle-Aged Man", Sounds, 18 June 1988.


Yugoslavia doesn't even exist anymore - which shows how precarious belonging is.

He's using belong to explore how people feel - whereas he's being accused of saying these people don't belong, which is different.
 
I'm not very good at archive stuff, but does anyone how many of the reviews of Viva Hate, when it was first released, flagged this song as being "problematic" in some way?
Some did. David Stubbs in Melody Maker called it "appalling" and a "dumb song" :lbf:


Rolling Stone deemed it "brilliant" and saw it as skewering "elitist fashion (and fashionable racism)". 🤷🏻‍♀️

 
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Hey I just noticed you've adopted a new moniker!

If only everyone could generate such courage - The Courage to Get on People's Tits!
Yes! It wouldn't leave me alone so I thought "Why not embrrrrace it."

I should probably credit "Mr S, 27 years old" for coining it.
 
I'm not very good at archive stuff, but does anyone how many of the reviews of Viva Hate, when it was first released, flagged this song as being "problematic" in some way?

I can't remember anything too bad, I saw him called the Mahatma* of Mope a couple of times.

*
 
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Some did. David Stubbs in Melody Maker called it "appalling" and a "dumb song" :lbf:


Rolling Stone deemed it "brilliant" and saw it as skewering "elitist fashion (and fashionable racism)". 🤷🏻‍♀️


Why do they assume Morrissey thinks the platform boot is unfashionable & not snappily dressed???? The song's probably set in the 70s.
 
It’s not a song I’d seek ok to play on its own but, it fits in well on VH. Hairdresser would have been the better option IMO.
 
I love this song and don’t see the drama surrounding the lyric. It seems a painful stretch to think it somehow malicious. I love the floating quality of this song. Like he’s hearing the news that it’s not gonna be what he thinks on the wind, like the sentiments in the air
 
Why do they assume Morrissey thinks the platform boot is unfashionable & not snappily dressed???? The song's probably set in the 70s.
Well, he is making fun of the clothes.
That aspect was apparently even more obvious in the original lyric when they first tried it during the Ivor Perry Smiths session.

"Morrissey’s first draft took pity on a ‘misguided Bengali’ in a terrible jumper (‘A shame it’s an old one/Has anyone told him?’)" (Mozipedia)
 
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I just listened to the demo version again for first time in ages and I like it better than the album track. Musically it's subtler, less annoying and his voice sounds much softer.

 
Well, he is making fun of the clothes.
That aspects was apparently even more obvious in the original lyric when they first tried it during the Ivor Perry Smiths session.

"Morrissey’s first draft took pity on a ‘misguided Bengali’ in a terrible jumper (‘A shame it’s an old one/Has anyone told him?’)" (Mozipedia)

It's not in the end product though - the vulgar jumper went off to Frank & the misguided went off to a pair of trousers.
 
It's not in the end product though - the vulgar jumper went off to Frank & the misguided went off to a pair of trousers.
The "ankle-star that blinds me" is in the end product though. And Moz said it was about buying "the most absurd English clothes". It is ridiculing fashion choices and I don't see a problem with that.

And I'm pretty sure the journalist didn't know about the original lyrics...
 
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