“You have never been in love,
Until you have seen the stars reflect in the reservoirs
And you have never been in love,
Until you have seen the dawn rise,
Behind the home for the blind”
The verses in this song establish the author as a person who has experienced love. Furthermore, he reveals that it is difficult to fathom for the uninitiated. However, he also tells us that we will begin to understand but only after suffering.
“We are the pretty, petty thieves,
And you're standing on our streets”
With its rhythmic shift, the bridge section builds anticipation. Morrissey is introducing the protagonists...the young (pretty) set. He tells us they are “petty thieves”. The word petty is full of sarcasm (as well as illiterating effectively with the previous adjective). It suggests the theft is not serious and yet we learn later that it is the theft of hearts (he stole all hearts away) - no laughing matter.
The second line in the bridge is lightly menacing. A warning cry that those who enter “our street” are in for trouble. Morrissey is flagging up the danger of falling for youthful beauty.
“Where Hector was the first of the gang with a gun in his hand,
And the first to do time,
The first of the gang to die, oh my.
Hector was the first of the gang with a gun in his hand,
And the first to do time,
The first of the gang to die, oh my”
Here in the chorus we meet the hero and hear he is armed with a gun. He is a threat. Morrissey is heightening his depction of love as a danger. It is a potential killer in the hands of our young hero.
As the first one of the gang armed for love, he was also the first one to suffer it (do time) and eventually succomb to it (die)
“You have never been in love,
Until you've seen the sunlight thrown,
Over smashed human bone”
In this final verse the message is the same as in first two verses but the image is the bleakest yet. A reservoir is dark, mysterious and deep; a home for the blind suggests ignorance. Here however we are presented with smashed human bone. Love will finally break the core of our flesh.
“We are the pretty, petty thieves,
And you're standing on our streets
Where Hector was the
First of the gang with a gun in his hand
And the first to do time,
The first of the gang to die,”
The chorus is repeated initially but develops with...
“Such a silly boy”
Morrissey patronises Hector. As if he might have been smarter. You cannot avoid thinking that he is mocking himself. You sense self pity and loathing all at once.
“Hector was the first of the gang with a gun in his hand
And a bullet in his gullet and the first lost lad to go under the sod”
Here at the final part of the main narrative we discover that it is Hector who has taken the bullet. What’s more he has taken it in the gullet. Known to deliver a slow painful death. The tragedy is felt acutely when we are reminded he is just a lad. Like a young casualty of war (or gang culture) sent to an early grave. The use of the cold, old English word sod (earth) brings the story to an abrupt, unglamorous end.
“And he stole from the rich and the poor
And not very rich and the very poor.
And he stole our hearts away
He stole our hearts away,
He stole our hearts away”
This coda offers a romantic reprieve. It lifts Hector to a folk hero with it’s Robin Hood connotations. Morrissey uses the contrast between Robin Hood famously discerning between rich (targets) and poor (deserving beneficiaries) and Hector who stole from everyone. We can reminisce over his beauty, his youthful attraction and can celebrate his memory despite the fact it all ended in tragedy. Lesson: love kills us all.
“You have never been in love, Until you have seen the stars reflect in the reservoirs
And you have never been in love, Until you have seen the dawn rise, Behind the home for the blind”
The verses in this song establish the author as a person who has experienced love. Furthermore, he reveals that it is difficult to fathom for the uninitiated. However, he also tells us that we will begin to understand but only after suffering.
“We are the pretty, petty thieves, And you're standing on our streets”
With its rhythmic shift, the bridge section builds anticipation. Morrissey is introducing the protagonists...the young (pretty) set. He tells us they are “petty thieves”. The word petty is full of sarcasm (as well as illiterating effectively with the previous adjective). It suggests the theft is not serious and yet we learn later that it is the theft of hearts (he stole all hearts away) - no laughing matter.
The second line in the bridge is lightly menacing. A warning cry that those who enter “our street” are in for trouble. Morrissey is flagging up the danger of falling for youthful beauty.
“Where Hector was the first of the gang with a gun in his hand, And the first to do time, The first of the gang to die, oh my. Hector was the first of the gang with a gun in his hand, And the first to do time, The first of the gang to die, oh my”
Here in the chorus we meet the hero and hear he is armed with a gun. He is a threat. Morrissey is heightening his depction of love as a danger. It is a potential killer in the hands of our young hero.
As the first one of the gang armed for love, he was also the first one to suffer it (do time) and eventually succomb to it (die)
“You have never been in love, Until you've seen the sunlight thrown, Over smashed human bone”
In this final verse the message is the same as in first two verses but the image is the bleakest yet. A reservoir is dark, mysterious and deep; a home for the blind suggests ignorance. Here however we are presented with smashed human bone. Love will finally break the core of our flesh.
“We are the pretty, petty thieves, And you're standing on our streets Where Hector was the First of the gang with a gun in his hand And the first to do time, The first of the gang to die,”
The chorus is repeated initially but develops with...
“Such a silly boy”
Morrissey patronises Hector. As if he might have been smarter. You cannot avoid thinking that he is mocking himself. You sense self pity and loathing all at once.
“Hector was the first of the gang with a gun in his hand And a bullet in his gullet and the first lost lad to go under the sod”
Here at the final part of the main narrative we discover that it is Hector who has taken the bullet. What’s more he has taken it in the gullet. Known to deliver a slow painful death. The tragedy is felt acutely when we are reminded he is just a lad. Like a young casualty of war (or gang culture) sent to an early grave. The use of the cold, old English word sod (earth) brings the story to an abrupt, unglamorous end.
“And he stole from the rich and the poor And not very rich and the very poor. And he stole our hearts away He stole our hearts away, He stole our hearts away”
This coda offers a romantic reprieve. It lifts Hector to a folk hero with it’s Robin Hood connotations. Morrissey uses the contrast between Robin Hood famously discerning between rich (targets) and poor (deserving beneficiaries) and Hector who stole from everyone. We can reminisce over his beauty, his youthful attraction and can celebrate his memory despite the fact it all ended in tragedy. Lesson: love kills us all.