Johnny Come Home by Fine Young Cannibals

Album: Fine Young Cannibals (1985)

Charted: 8 76

License This Song

lyrics

artistfacts

Songfacts®:

"Johnny Come Home" was the Fine Young Cannibals' first single from their debut album. The song follows the story of a runaway who learns the harsh reality of a life on the streets. The title refers to his parents' desperate plea for him to come home and was likely inspired by the 1975 TV documentary about London runaways, Johnny Go Home: The Murder of Billy Two-Tone.
British author Jake Arnott used this title for his 2006 novel about about the Glam-Rock period in early '70s London.
This song was featured in the thrillers Someone to Watch Over Me (1987) and The Handmaid's Tale (1990).
FYC made their television debut performing this song on The Tube, an influential UK music series that introduced an array of future hitmakers, in 1984. It was an important move for the group, who had previously been turned down by nearly every major record label. Shortly after their appearance on the program, they were offered a deal with London Records.
Roland Gift revealed the song's original premise in a Q&A with The Rebel Magazine in 2011: "'Johnny' started off about being black in a white man's world, but it evolved into something more inclusive and better."

Comments: 2

AnonymousJohnny = Johnny Gosh/Jeff Gannon
AnonymousThe song is a retort to Bronski Beat's hit the previous year, "Small Town Boy" - hence the similarity of the tune in their choruses, except "Johnny Comes Home" sounds more sinister.

Bronski Beat's song (and especially the video) reinforced the myth of London as a welcoming gay paradise, when in reality it was cold, seedy and home to predators like Dennis Nielson who murdered at least a dozen homeless gays for his own gratification - one of whom was a cousin of one of the band's members - and had been arrested only the previous year.

It wasn't the only song to offer a retort to Bronski Beat - The Men They Couldn't Hang also released a song called "Johnny Come Home", but the lyrics were far more blunt and dealt with the fate of the runaway, rather than the impact on those he's left behind: the subject of the song being lured to a predator's house with the promise of a bed for the night, where he is murdered and dissected, similar to Nielson's crimes.

see more comments

More Songfacts:

Carrie AnneThe Hollies

The Hollies' 1967 hit "Carrie Anne" is about the British singer-actress Marianne Faithfull, but with "Marianne" changed to "Carrie-Anne" to disguise it. Faithfull dated Allan Clarke of The Hollies.

It really was so easy for Linda Ronstadt to score a hit with her Buddy Holly cover of "It's So Easy." She would sometimes change the lyric to: "It's so easy to have a hit, all you have to do is recycle it."

Party Rock AnthemLMFAO

"Party Rock Anthem" by LMFAO was only the second #1 hit on the Hot 100 with "Party" in the title. The first was Lesley Gore's "It's My Party."

Black WidowIggy Azalea

Katy Perry co-wrote Iggy Azalea's hit single "Black Widow." Perry was originally going to sing on the track, but she couldn't fit it into her schedule, so Rita Ora provided the sung vocals instead.

The ReasonHoobastank

"The Reason" by Hoobastank took off on TikTok in 2021 when it soundtracked confessional #NotAPerfectPerson videos about mistakes and regrets. The band made one of their own with the caption: "Realizing 20 years later that you named your band Hoobastank."

Waka Waka (This Time For Africa)Shakira and Freshlyground

Shakira calls her sons Milan and Sasha her "Waka Kids" because she met their father, Spanish soccer star Gerard Piqué, on the video shoot for "Waka Waka (This Time For Africa)," the official song of the 2010 FIFA World Cup in South Africa.

Editor's Picks

Eric BurdonSongwriter Interviews

The renown rock singer talks about "The House of the Rising Sun" and "Don't Let Me Be Misunderstood."

Susanna Hoffs - "Eternal Flame"They're Playing My Song

The Prince-penned "Manic Monday" was the first song The Bangles heard coming from a car radio, but "Eternal Flame" is closest to Susanna's heart, perhaps because she sang it in "various states of undress."

Pam TillisSongwriter Interviews

The country sweetheart opines about the demands of touring and talks about writing songs with her famous father.

Lip-Synch RebelsSong Writing

What happens when Kurt Cobain, Iron Maiden and Johnny Lydon are told to lip-synch? Some hilarious "performances."

La La Brooks of The CrystalsSong Writing

The lead singer on "Da Doo Ron Ron" and "Then He Kissed Me," La La explains how and why Phil Spector replaced The Crystals with Darlene Love on "He's A Rebel."

Michael FrantiSongwriter Interviews

Franti tells the story behind his hit "Say Hey (I Love You)" and explains why yoga is an integral part of his lifestyle and his Soulshine tour.