The Jam — Smithers-Jones
Album: Setting SonsAvg rating:
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Total ratings: 298
Length: 2:58
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Here we go again, it's Monday at last,
He's heading for the Waterloo line,
To catch the 8 a.m. fast, its usually dead on time,
Hope it isn't late, got to be there by nine.
Pin stripe suit, clean shirt and tie,
Stops off at the corner shop, to buy The Times
'Good Morning Smithers-Jones'
'How's the wife and home?'
'Did you get the car you've been looking for?'
Let me get inside you, let me take control of you,
We could have some good times,
All this worry will get you down,
I'll give you a new meaning to life - I don't think so.
Sitting on the train, you're nearly there
You're part of the production line,
You're the same as him, you're like tin-sardines,
Get out of the pack, before they peel you back.
Arrive at the office, spot on time,
The clock on the wall hasn't yet struck nine,
'Good Morning Smithers Jones'
'The boss wants to see you alone'
'I hope its the promotion you've been looking for'
Let me get inside you, let me take control of you,
We could have some good times,
All this worry will get you down,
I'll give you a new meaning to life - I don't think so.
'Come in Smithers old boy'
'Take a seat, take the weight off your feet'
'I've some news to tell you'
'There's no longer a position for you' -
'Sorry Smithers Jones'.
Put on the kettle and make some tea
It's all a part of feeling groovie
Put on your slippers turn on the TV
It's all a part of feeling groovie
It's time to relax, now you've worked your arse off
But the only one smilin' is the sun tanned boss
Work and work and work and work till you die
There's plenty more fish in the sea to fry
He's heading for the Waterloo line,
To catch the 8 a.m. fast, its usually dead on time,
Hope it isn't late, got to be there by nine.
Pin stripe suit, clean shirt and tie,
Stops off at the corner shop, to buy The Times
'Good Morning Smithers-Jones'
'How's the wife and home?'
'Did you get the car you've been looking for?'
Let me get inside you, let me take control of you,
We could have some good times,
All this worry will get you down,
I'll give you a new meaning to life - I don't think so.
Sitting on the train, you're nearly there
You're part of the production line,
You're the same as him, you're like tin-sardines,
Get out of the pack, before they peel you back.
Arrive at the office, spot on time,
The clock on the wall hasn't yet struck nine,
'Good Morning Smithers Jones'
'The boss wants to see you alone'
'I hope its the promotion you've been looking for'
Let me get inside you, let me take control of you,
We could have some good times,
All this worry will get you down,
I'll give you a new meaning to life - I don't think so.
'Come in Smithers old boy'
'Take a seat, take the weight off your feet'
'I've some news to tell you'
'There's no longer a position for you' -
'Sorry Smithers Jones'.
Put on the kettle and make some tea
It's all a part of feeling groovie
Put on your slippers turn on the TV
It's all a part of feeling groovie
It's time to relax, now you've worked your arse off
But the only one smilin' is the sun tanned boss
Work and work and work and work till you die
There's plenty more fish in the sea to fry
Comments (30)add comment
Setting Sons, you Beauty!
crackker8385 wrote:
A tin of sardines with a OTT string arrangement on top.
WTF was that?
A tin of sardines with a OTT string arrangement on top.
WTF was that?
Such a great song from The Jam! Unbeatable!
strawberryblonde wrote:
I'd agree with the second thought, but not the first. As someone stated earlier, The Kinks covered this angle with a better song. That said, I do like The Jam.
I remember this one not bad...it's one of those songs where i keep waiting for the hook and it never happens
I'd agree with the second thought, but not the first. As someone stated earlier, The Kinks covered this angle with a better song. That said, I do like The Jam.
More Jam. Keeping it real.
treatment_bound wrote:
esotericderek,
It's official. I received this over the weekend. It's from BF's official site (webmail@brucefoxton.com) which I e-mailed with the question, and Mr. Foxton himself responded:
> I know he wrote it, but does Bruce sing lead vocals on Smithers-Jones?
Yes I do, thank you.
Bruce
The Jam recorded this song twice. Paul Weller is singing this version.
esotericderek,
It's official. I received this over the weekend. It's from BF's official site (webmail@brucefoxton.com) which I e-mailed with the question, and Mr. Foxton himself responded:
> I know he wrote it, but does Bruce sing lead vocals on Smithers-Jones?
Yes I do, thank you.
Bruce
The Jam recorded this song twice. Paul Weller is singing this version.
I remember this one not bad...it's one of those songs where i keep waiting for the hook and it never happens
Well said...
Good stuff. 
WITHF?
Junk.
Caca.
Always loved this track. It so encapsulates the feeling in the redundancy-rich 80s.
Updated version of the old Kinks song "A Well Respected Man."
(Meet the new boss, same as the old boss).
(Meet the new boss, same as the old boss).
esotericderek wrote:
I agree with you, that's a pretty convincing body of evidence. Not enough to admit that I'm wrong, but enough to admit that you're probably right. 
Until we can get actual confirmation from an official band source, I say we go with the "Voice Compilation Overdub" theory. It's BOTH of them singing...synchronized and combined using sophisticated sonic manipulation techniques. Yeah, that's the ticket!
"Hey, you got your Bruce Foxton in my Paul Weller!"
"No, you got your Paul Weller in my Bruce Foxton!"
esotericderek,
It's official. I received this over the weekend. It's from BF's official site (webmail@brucefoxton.com) which I e-mailed with the question, and Mr. Foxton himself responded:
> I know he wrote it, but does Bruce sing lead vocals on Smithers-Jones?
Yes I do, thank you.
Bruce
Until we can get actual confirmation from an official band source, I say we go with the "Voice Compilation Overdub" theory. It's BOTH of them singing...synchronized and combined using sophisticated sonic manipulation techniques. Yeah, that's the ticket!
"Hey, you got your Bruce Foxton in my Paul Weller!"
"No, you got your Paul Weller in my Bruce Foxton!"
treatment_bound wrote:
Until we can get actual confirmation from an official band source, I say we go with the "Voice Compilation Overdub" theory. It's BOTH of them singing...synchronized and combined using sophisticated sonic manipulation techniques. Yeah, that's the ticket!
"Hey, you got your Bruce Foxton in my Paul Weller!"
"No, you got your Paul Weller in my Bruce Foxton!"
I'm going with my original statement, unless I hear (or read) otherwise.
I agree with you, that's a pretty convincing body of evidence. Not enough to admit that I'm wrong, but enough to admit that you're probably right.
Until we can get actual confirmation from an official band source, I say we go with the "Voice Compilation Overdub" theory. It's BOTH of them singing...synchronized and combined using sophisticated sonic manipulation techniques. Yeah, that's the ticket!
"Hey, you got your Bruce Foxton in my Paul Weller!"
"No, you got your Paul Weller in my Bruce Foxton!"
esotericderek wrote:
Yes, it was written by Bruce Foxton, but where do you get that he did the vocals? Foxton sang on David Watts and News of the World, but I'm fairly sure Paul Weller is crooning on this one.
Cite your source and I'll happily apologize for being wrong.
esotericderek,
I read numerous album reviews for "Setting Sons', and while most of them cited Bruce Foxton as the composer for Smithers-Jones, none of them specifically stated he was also singing the lead vocal on that track.
So I did some more digging, and went to YouTube. Type in Smithers-Jones, and you'll get several clips of Foxton singing the song on the "From The Jam" tour Foxton and Buckler (sans Weller) were on last winter. Play a clip, and it sure sounds like his vocal on the orig. recording. Foxton's vocals do sound like Weller's, but you can tell there's a difference. I also read some of the reviews of the reunion dates, and Foxton sang lead vocals on his three main Jam cuts during the tour (David Watts, News of the World, and Smithers-Jones), while the Paul Weller stand-in (Russell Hastings) sings the other songs.
And finally, I sent an e-mail to Rick, the guy who hosts thejamfan.net, and received this reply (which I've clipped from the e-mail):
>>Hello,
Bruce also took lead voc on 'David Watts' and 'News of the world'
All the best
Rick
So I'm going with my original statement, unless I hear (or read) otherwise.
treatment_bound
treatment_bound wrote:
I'm sorry to burst your bubble, but Smithers-Jones was written & sung buy Bruce Foxton...
Yes, it was written by Bruce Foxton, but where do you get that he did the vocals? Foxton sang on David Watts and News of the World, but I'm fairly sure Paul Weller is crooning on this one.
Cite your source and I'll happily apologize for being wrong.
esotericderek wrote:
Yeah, that's most definitely Paul Weller.
I'm sorry to burst your bubble, but Smithers-Jones was written & sung buy Bruce Foxton...
Thought this was ELO at first.
esotericderek wrote:
Wow. Nice obscure offering from one of the greatest bands of the 70s and 80s.
One in a string of brand new offerings here on RP. I'm digging the fresh tunes.
I think I've liked the Yoav best of them.
out_to_lunch wrote:
this is the Jam??
Yeah, that's most definitely Paul Weller.
Sparks anyone?
Any Jam is good Jam--even though this melody is a total rip of The Who's "I can't reach you"
this is the Jam??
Wow. Nice obscure offering from one of the greatest bands of the 70s and 80s.
One in a string of brand new offerings here on RP. I'm digging the fresh tunes.