Rusholme Ruffians

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“Rusholme Ruffians”, with Johnny Marr’s rockabilly riff, is about Manchester and makes the city (home of much of the history of British feminism, socialism, vegetarianism… Read More

Feb. 11, 19851 viewer50.2K views

Rusholme Ruffians Lyrics

[Verse 1]
The last night of the fair
By the big wheel generator
A boy is stabbed and his money is grabbed
And the air hangs heavy like a dulling wine
She is famous, she is funny
An engagement ring doesn't mean a thing
To a mind consumed by brass money

[Chorus]
And though I walk home alone
I might walk home alone
But my faith in love is still devout

[Verse 2]
The last night of the fair
From a seat on a whirling waltzer
Her skirt ascends for a watching eye
It's a hideous trait on her mother's side
From a seat on a whirling waltzer
Her skirt ascends for a watching eye
It's a hideous trait on her mother's side

[Chorus]
And though I walk home alone
I might walk home alone
But my faith in love is still devout

[Verse 3]
Then someone falls in love
And someone's beaten up
Someone's beaten up
And the senses being dulled are mine
And someone falls in love
And someone's beaten up
And the senses being dulled are mine

[Chorus]
And though I walk home alone
I might walk home alone
But my faith in love is still devout

[Verse 4]
This is the last night of the fair
And the grease in the hair
Of a speedway operator
Is all a tremulous heart requires
A schoolgirl is denied
She said, "How quickly would I die
If I jumped from the top of the parachutes?"
(La-la-la, la-la-la, la-la-la, la-la-la-la)
This is the last night of the fair
And the grease in the hair
Of a speedway operator
Is all a tremulous heart requires
A schoolgirl is denied
She said: "How quickly would I die
If I jumped from the top of the parachutes?"
(La-la-la, la-la-la, la-la-la, la)

[Bridge]
So scratch my name on your arm
With a fountain pen
This means you really love me
Scratch my name on your arm
With a fountain pen
This means you really love me
(La-la-la, la-la-la)

[Chorus]
And though I walk home alone
I just might walk home alone
But my faith in love is still devout
I might walk home alone
But my faith in love is still devout
I might walk home alone
But my faith in love is still devout
(La-la-la, la-la-la, la-la-la)
(La-la-la-la-la-la-la)

[Outro]
*door closing*

About

“Rusholme Ruffians”, with Johnny Marr’s rockabilly riff, is about Manchester and makes the city (home of much of the history of British feminism, socialism, vegetarianism and the Guardian) sound exciting, a place where things happen. Who wouldn’t want to be ruffian from Rusholme?

Q&A

Find answers to frequently asked questions about the song and explore its deeper meaning

What did The Smiths say about "Rusholme Ruffians"?

Morrissey to Mark Allen: >“The Song Rusholme Ruffians is about going to a fair, and being stabbed. Fun Fairs in Manchester, are very violent things. These things where communities get together for fun and frolic etcetera, and somebody always ends up being stabbed, which of course adds to the excitement.”

Who produced “Rusholme Ruffians” by The Smiths?

When did The Smiths release “Rusholme Ruffians”?

Who wrote “Rusholme Ruffians” by The Smiths?