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Please Please Please Let Me Get What I Want

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"Please Please Please Let Me Get What I Want"
Song by the Smiths
A-side"William, It Was Really Nothing"
Released20 August 1984[1]
RecordedJam Studios[1]
GenreAlternative rock[2]
Length1:50[1]
Songwriter(s)Johnny Marr, Morrissey[3]
Producer(s)John Porter[1]

"Please Please Please Let Me Get What I Want" is a song by the English rock band the Smiths. It was released on the B-side of the single "William, It Was Really Nothing" in 1984[4][5] and later featured on the compilation albums Hatful of Hollow[6] and Louder Than Bombs.[7] It has been covered by several other artists.[8] The song was also included on the soundtrack album of the 1986 film Pretty in Pink and featured in the film Never Been Kissed. An instrumental cut of the song was featured in Ferris Bueller's Day Off during the art museum sequence when Cameron is viewing the pointilist painting "A Sunday Afternoon on the Island of La Grande Jatte".

Background

Johnny Marr wrote the music to "Please Please Please Let Me Get What I Want" shortly after its eventual A-side, "William, It Was Really Nothing". Marr commented, "Because that was such a fast, short, upbeat song, I wanted the B-side to be different, so I wrote 'Please Please Please Let Me Get What I Want' on Saturday in a different time signature—in a waltz time as a contrast".[9] Marr has also noted that the music was an attempt to "capture the ... spookiness and sense of yearning" in Del Shannon's "The Answer to Everything", a song his parents played for him as a child.[10]

The band's label, Rough Trade, initially was concerned about the song's short length. Morrissey recalled, "When we first played it to Rough Trade, they kept asking, 'Where's the rest of the song?'" Morrissey, who characterized the song "a very brief punch in the face," argued, "Lengthening the song would, to my mind, have simply been explaining the blindingly obvious".[11]

"Please Please Please Let Me Get What I Want" was released as a B-side to "William, It Was Really Nothing". Morrissey commented, "Hiding it away on a B-side was sinful" and remarked "I feel sad about it now". The song also appeared on the compilation Hatful of Hollow, an inclusion Morrissey considered "by way of semi-repentance".[11]

Cover versions

The Dream Academy version

"Please Please Please Let Me Get What I Want"
Single by the Dream Academy
Released1985 (UK)
Recorded1984
Genre
Length3:09
LabelBlanco y Negro
Songwriter(s)Johnny Marr, Morrissey
Producer(s)David Gilmour and Nick Laird-Clowes
The Dream Academy singles chronology
"The Love Parade"
(1986) 		"Please Please Please Let Me Get What I Want"
(1985) 		"Indian Summer"
(1987)

The Dream Academy covered "Please Please Please Let Me Get What I Want" in 1985.[12] This version of the song peaked at number 83 on the UK Singles Chart.[13] An instrumental version of this cover was used in the movie Ferris Bueller's Day Off in 1986.[12]

Though Morrissey originally indicated his dislike for this version, he has since used it as intermission music during late period Smiths concerts.[14] He commented after the band's breakup, "I mean, I liked the Dream Academy version of that old Smiths song. Everyone despised it and it got to number 81, which is nearly a hit".[15]

Track listing

7-inch version

  1. "Please Please Please Let Me Get What I Want"
  2. "In Places on the Run"

12-inch version

  1. "Please Please Please Let Me Get What I Want"
  2. "The Party" (acoustic)
  3. "Please Please Please Let Me Get What I Want" (instrumental)
  4. "In Places on the Run" (edit)

Chart performance

Charts (1985) Peak
position
UK Singles (OCC)[13] 83

Slow Moving Millie version

"Please, Please, Please, Let Me Get What I Want"
Single by Slow Moving Millie
from the album Renditions
Released11 November 2011
Recorded2011
Length3:09
LabelIsland Records
Songwriter(s)Johnny Marr, Morrissey
Slow Moving Millie singles chronology
"Beasts"
(2009) 		"Please, Please, Please, Let Me Get What I Want"
(2011)

English actress and songwriter Slow Moving Millie released a cover version of the song,[16] adding commas to its title.[17] It was released on 11 November 2011 as a download from her debut studio album Renditions.[18] Her version was selected as the soundtrack to a John Lewis advertisement.[19]

Track listing

Digital download
No.TitleLength
1."Please, Please, Please, Let Me Get What I Want"2:51

Chart performance

Charts (2011) Peak
position
UK Singles (OCC)[20] 31

Release history

Region Date Format Label
United Kingdom 11 November 2011 Digital download Island Records

Deftones version

American metal band Deftones covered Please Please Please, Let Me Get What I Want on the 2005 Album B-Sides & Rarities.

Muse version

British rock band Muse covered the song as a B-side to their 2001 double A-side single Hyper Music/Feeling Good.

Certifications

The Smiths version

Region Certification Certified units/sales
Italy (FIMI)[21] Gold 50,000‡
United Kingdom (BPI)[22] Gold 400,000‡

‡ Sales+streaming figures based on certification alone.

References

  1. ^ a b c d "The Smiths - William, It Was Really Nothing". 21 December 2008 – via www.discogs.com.
  2. ^ Cross, Alan (6 April 2012). "Top Ten Most Depressing Alternative Rock Songs". A Journal of Musical Things. Retrieved 12 April 2019.
  3. ^ "Song: Please Please Please Let Me Get What I Want written by Johnny Marr, Morrissey | SecondHandSongs". secondhandsongs.com.
  4. ^ "10 Smiths singles that didn't appear on a Smiths album". Radio X.
  5. ^ "The Smiths - William, It Was Really Nothing". 21 June 1984 – via www.discogs.com.
  6. ^ "The Smiths - Hatful Of Hollow". 21 June 1984 – via www.discogs.com.
  7. ^ "The World Fell in Love With The Smiths Just as They Were Falling Apart". The New York Observer. 24 March 2017.
  8. ^ "Covers of "Please Please Please Let Me Get What I Want" by the Smiths". Cover Me. 9 November 2018.
  9. ^ Majewski, Lori; Bernstein, Jonathan (15 April 2014). Mad World: An Oral History of New Wave Artists and Songs That Defined the 1980s. Abrams. ISBN 978-1-61312-666-0.
  10. ^ Luerssen, John D. (1 January 2000). The Smiths FAQ: All That's Left to Know About the Most Important British Band of the 1980s. Rowman & Littlefield. ISBN 978-1-4950-4597-4.
  11. ^ a b Harbron, Lucy (15 January 2024). "The Smiths song Morrissey called "sinful"". Far Out. Retrieved 23 January 2024.
  12. ^ a b Goodwin, Stuart (15 February 2012). "Old Music: The Dream Academy – Please Please Please Let Me Get What I Want (Instrumental)". The Guardian.
  13. ^ a b "The Official Charts Company - Dream Academy - Please Please Please Let Me Get What I Want". Official Charts. Retrieved 19 June 2023.
  14. ^ McKinney, D. (1 April 2015). Morrissey FAQ: All That's Left to Know About This Charming Man. Rowman & Littlefield. ISBN 978-1-4950-2893-9.
  15. ^ Woods, Paul A. (1 October 2017). Morrissey In Conversation: The Essential Interviews. Plexus Publishing. ISBN 978-0-85965-874-4.
  16. ^ "Please Please Please Let Me Get What I Want by Slow Moving Millie" – via secondhandsongs.com.
  17. ^ "Slow Moving Millie - Please, Please, Please, Let Me Get What I Want". 21 June 2011 – via www.discogs.com.
  18. ^ "Renditions by Slow Moving Millie". 12 December 2011 – via Amazon.
  19. ^ "Slow Moving Millie Insists The Smiths Are Fans Of John Lewis Cover | Live4ever Media". 25 November 2011.
  20. ^ "Official Singles Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company.
  21. ^ "Italian single certifications – The Smiths – Please Please Please Let Me Get What I Want" (in Italian). Federazione Industria Musicale Italiana. Retrieved 14 February 2024.
  22. ^ "British single certifications – Smiths – Please Please Please Let Me Get What I Want". British Phonographic Industry. Retrieved 2 February 2024.
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