I Want the One I Can’t Have by The Smiths Lyrics Meaning – Unraveling the Anthems of Unrequited Love

You can view the lyrics, alternate interprations and sheet music for The Smiths's I Want the One I Can't Have at Lyrics.org.

Lyrics

On the day that your mentality
Decides to try to catch up with your biology

Come round …
‘Cause I want the one I can’t have
And it’s driving me mad
It’s all over, all over, all over my face

On the day that your mentality
Catches up with your biology

I want the one I can’t have
And it’s driving me mad
It’s all over, all over, all over my face

A double bed
And a stalwart lover for sure
These are the riches of the poor

A double bed
And a stalwart lover for sure
These are the riches of the poor

And I want the one I can’t have
And it’s driving me mad
It’s all over, all over my face

A tough kid who sometimes swallows nails
Raised on Prisoner’s Aid
He killed a policeman when he was
Thirteen
And somehow that really impressed
Me
And it’s written all over my face

Oh, these are the riches of the poor
These are the riches of the poor

I want the one I can’t have
And it’s driving me mad
It’s written all over my face

On the day that your mentality
Catches up with your biology

And if you ever need self-validation
Just meet me in the alley by the
Railway station
It’s all over my face
Oh…

The Smiths, with their poetic lyrics wrapped in the jangly guitar pop sound, have long been the voice echoing through the halls of unrequited love, adolescent angst, and the stark realness of longing. ‘I Want the One I Can’t Have,’ a track from their 1985 album ‘Meat Is Murder,’ serves as a testament to the ceaseless yearning that so often intertwines with young love and desire.

Morrissey’s somber vocals paired with Johnny Marr’s emotive guitar traditions, weave a melancholic narrative that taps into the universal feeling of wanting something—or someone—just out of reach. But beyond the surface of thwarted desire, the song encompasses deeper societal and psychological nuances that challenge listeners to understand the complexities of human want and need.

Unraveling Desire in Every Strum: The Essence of Human Longing

At first listen, ‘I Want the One I Can’t Have’ might register as the anthem of lovesick individuals pining after an unattainable partner. It resonates with anyone who has ever found themselves longing for a person they know they cannot have, the melody striking chords of empathy within our shared experiences.

But like all great art, The Smiths’ lyrics suggest a multiplicity of interpretations. Desire here may be synonymous not only with romantic fixation but with the broader human condition of yearning for what’s beyond our grasp—be it status, recognition, or the fulfillment of deeper emotional needs.

The Ethos of Unattainable Dreams and the Richness of the Poor

The lines, ‘A double bed and a stalwart lover for sure / These are the riches of the poor,’ encapsulate a biting irony that paints desire not just as romantic longing but also as a socioeconomic statement. This narrative exposes longing for basic securities as a luxury for some, juxtaposing the immaterial wealth of emotional fulfillment against material poverty.

In this light, ‘riches of the poor’ becomes a phrase steeped in sarcasm, highlighting the stark contrast between the haves and the have-nots. The double bed symbolizes a simple life’s comfort, starkly different from the complexities of affluent but emotionally vacant existences.

A Glance at Morrissey’s Misfit Hero and the Allure of Rebellion

The verse detailing a ‘tough kid’ with a history of violence and deviance speaks to a deeper narrative of societal outcasts and their paradoxical appeal. Morrissey’s fascination with the character’s past underscores an attraction to the rebellious, non-conformist figures who often become the objects of our desires for being untouchable and outside the norm.

Is it the danger that captivates, or is it the allure of someone who resolutely defies societal expectations? The song leaves us pondering the magnetic pull of the outcast, the eternal appeal of the ‘bad boy’ trope, and our own complicated attraction to what may ultimately harm us.

Memorable Lines Etched in Melancholy: ‘It’s Written All Over My Face’

Morrissey has a knack for encapsulating vast emotional landscapes in a phrase. ‘It’s written all over my face’ recurs as a potent motif expressing the inability to hide the inner turmoil of unspoken, and perhaps unrequited, longing.

This line can be seen as the songwriter’s surrender to the overwhelming nature of such emotions, acknowledging the transparency of human desires. It’s a lyrical shrug to the futility of concealing what is deeply felt, often mimicked in our own transparent expressions when caught in the web of yearning.

The Smiths and the Phenomenon of Self-Validation in Dark Alleys

The song concludes with a seemingly throwaway line of self-validation and a meeting by the railway station. Yet, this is the crux of the human condition the song so elegantly addresses—the pursuit of validation for our deepest cravings, even if it means lingering in the shadows.

Morrissey’s invitation to a shadowed alleyway is symbolic of the secret lives we lead when yearning for the unattainable. It’s a call to embrace our desires, regardless of the potential for heartbreak or disillusionment, and the inevitable reckoning of our ‘mentality’ with our ‘biology.’