Accept Yourself

Words by Morrissey - Music by Johnny Marr

"Others conquered love - but I ran
I sat in my room and I drew up a plan
Oh, but plans can fall through as so often they do
And time is against me now"

• Officially Released Versions
  "This Charming Man" 12" (RT 136 - Released October, 1983).   An echo-laden studio version produced by John Porter.  This version fades out during the final musical section. 
  Hatful Of Hollow (Rough 76 - Released November, 1984).  A much-improved version of the song (also produced by John Porter), recorded for the David Jensen Show (BBC Radio 1).

• Bootleg Versions
  Asleep (instrumental soundcheck version, Eden Court, Inverness, October 1, 1985)
  Devils Charm; Live At The Electric Ballroom; Live At The Electric Ballroom, 19 December 1983 (live at the Electric Ballroom, December 19, 1983)
  Smithsessions (David Jensen Show)
  Wonderful Woman (Troy Tate Sessions)

• Quintessential Bootleg Version
  The live version from the Electric Ballroom (December 19, 1983) is very special because it is the only live recording of this epic early Smiths number.

• Controversy
  None... apart from the fact that Smiths detractors used this song as one of the examples of how "pathetic" and "adolescent" The Smiths could be.

• Smiths-Speak
  "One of the lines in the song 'Accept Yourself' is 'When will you accept your shoes?', and I find that so many people have this dilemma about shoes. If they have the wrong pair of shoes it can totally destroy their entire life. Similarly if people think their feet are too big, or that their nose is too big it can result in a diminished social life for totally false reasons."
  - Morrissey, Undress, 1984