Song · The Smiths
“Sheila Take a Bow” by The Smiths
Released 1987
“Sheila Take a Bow” by The Smiths appears on 3 radio countdowns from 3 stations in 1987. It was first released in 1987. Its best result is #34 on the John Peel's Festive Fifty of 1987. In the combined RockLists rankings it is the #46 alternative song of 1987 and #345 of the '80s.
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"Sheila Take a Bow" arrived in April 1987 as a stand-alone Smiths single on Rough Trade, landing between "Shoplifters of the World Unite" and "Girlfriend in a Coma" before it was gathered onto the Louder Than Bombs compilation that same year. Johnny Marr wrote the music and Morrissey the words, and Marr reaches back to glam for it: a stomping beat and a strutting riff, with his piano in the mix too.
Andy Rourke and Mike Joyce lock the rhythm down, and Marr and Morrissey produced it with Stephen Street. The plan was to have Sandie Shaw singing backup, but she didn't care for the song and Morrissey was ill during her session, so her parts never made the record. It matched "Heaven Knows I'm Miserable Now" as the band's best UK chart showing, and its rousing, buck-up lyric and Marr's guitar have kept admirers since.
Written with AI assistance from RockLists chart data, MusicBrainz and Wikipedia.
RockLists rankings
Alternative & Modern Rock
All Rock Formats
Year-end countdowns
| Year | # | Station | Countdown | of |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1987 | 50 | 91X San Diego, CA / Tijuana | 91X Top 91 Songs of 1987 | 91 |
| 1987 | 48 | WLIR / WDRE Long Island, NY | WLIR Top 100 Songs of 1987 | 99 |
| 1987 | 34 | John Peel (BBC Radio 1) | John Peel's Festive Fifty of 1987 | 50 |
Also listed as: Sheila Take A Bow.
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