"Certain People I Know" is a song by English singer-songwriter Morrissey, released in December 1992 as the third single from his third studio album, Your Arsenal (1992). It was the third and final Morrissey single to be produced by glam rock musician Mick Ronson. Reaching number 35 in the UK Singles Chart, the song had the distinction of being Morrissey's lowest-charting solo single up to that point.

"Certain People I Know"
Single by Morrissey
from the album Your Arsenal
B-side
  • "Jack the Ripper"
  • "You've Had Her"
Released7 December 1992 (1992-12-07)[1]
GenreRockabilly[2]
Length3:12
LabelHMV
Songwriter(s)Morrissey, Alain Whyte
Producer(s)Mick Ronson
Morrissey singles chronology
"Tomorrow"
(1992)
"Certain People I Know"
(1992)
"The More You Ignore Me, the Closer I Get"
(1994)
Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic[3]

"Certain People I Know" was the first Morrissey single to be released following the singer's bottling off stage at the Madstock festival when he supported Madness and the subsequent NME story regarding his alleged racism.[4][5] This led to the single cover being changed from featuring the singer's name spelt out in the colours of the Union Jack to plain black writing.[6]

Reviews

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Ned Raggett of AllMusic called the lead track "a bit of an odd choice" for a single but added that its B-sides "are among Morrissey's best".[3]

Track listings

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7-inch vinyl and cassette

  1. "Certain People I Know" (Morrissey, Alain Whyte)
  2. "Jack the Ripper" (Morrissey, Boz Boorer)

12-inch vinyl and CD

  1. "Certain People I Know"
  2. "You've Had Her" (Morrissey, Boorer)
  3. "Jack the Ripper"
Country Record label Format Catalogue number
UK HMV 7-inch vinyl POP1631
UK HMV 12-inch vinyl 12POP1631
UK HMV Compact disc CDPOP1631
UK HMV Cassette TCPOP1631

Musicians

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  • Morrissey: voice
  • Alain Whyte: guitar
  • Boz Boorer: guitar
  • Gary Day: bass guitar
  • Spencer Cobrin: drums

References

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  1. ^ "New Releases: Singles". Music Week. 5 December 1992. p. 25.
  2. ^ Thompson, Dave. "Morrissey - Certain People I Know song review". Allmusic. Retrieved 14 July 2015.
  3. ^ a b Raggett, Ned. "Certain People I Know Review". AllMusic. Retrieved 29 October 2012.
  4. ^ "Disastrous festival performances". Virginmedia.com. Retrieved 10 July 2008.
  5. ^ Veltman, Chloe (July–August 2008). "The Passion of the Morrissey". The Believer. Retrieved 10 July 2008.
  6. ^ Q Magazine Smiths and Morrissey Special Edition, 2004