Sally Cinnamon

Until Sally I was never happy
I needed so much more
Rainclouds, oh they used to chase me
Down they would pour
Join my tears
Allay my fears

Sent to me from heaven
Sally Cinnamon, you're my world

A pop pop pop blow blow bubblegum
You taste of cherryade
There is something, hey you must show me
From what you are made
Sugar and spice
And all things nice

Sent to me from heaven
Sally Cinnamon, you're my world
You are my world

You're eyes are gazing back
From every little piece of glass
You seem to smile from every blade

Sally Cinnamon
You are my world

Then I put the letter back
In the place where it was found
In the pocket of a jacket
On a train in town

Sent to her from heaven
Sally Cinnamon, you're her world

Lyrics by:
Brown

Music by:
Squire / Brown

Written:
1986

Personnel:
John Squire (guitar)
Ian Brown (vocals)
Pete Garner (bass)
Alan Wren (drums, backing vocals)

Produced by:
The Stone Roses & Simon

Format:
Released May 1987:
Sally Cinnamon / All Across the Sands / Here It Comes (Revolver / Black, 12REV 36, 12")
Sally Cinnamon / Here It Comes (Revolver / Black, REV 36, 7")

Released February 1989:
Sally Cinnamon / All Across The Sands / Here It Comes (Revolver / Black, 12REV 36, 12" reissue)

Released December 1989:
Sally Cinnamon / Here It Comes (Revolver / Black / Dream, REV 36, 7" reissue)
Sally Cinnamon / All Across The Sands / Here It Comes (Revolver / Black, REVXD36, CD)
Sally Cinnamon (Single Mix) / Sally Cinnamon (12" Single Mix) / Here It Comes / All Across The Sands (Revolver / Black, REVXD36, German CD)
Sally Cinnamon (Single Mix) / Sally Cinnamon (12" Single Mix) / Here It Comes / All Across The Sands (Revolver / Black, REVMC36, cassette)

Released July 1991:
Sally Cinnamon (Single Mix) / Sally Cinnamon (12" Single Mix) / Here It Comes / All Across The Sands (Revolver / Black, ALCB-295, Japanese CD)

Released 1992:
Sally Cinnamon / All Across the Sands / Here It Comes (Revolver / Black, 12REV 36, 12" reissue)
Sally Cinnamon / Here It Comes (Revolver / Black, REV 36, 7" reissue)
Sally Cinnamon (Single Mix) / Sally Cinnamon (12" Single Mix) / Here It Comes / All Across The Sands (Revolver / Black, REVXD36, slim case CD reissue)
Sally Cinnamon (Single Mix) / Sally Cinnamon (12" Single Mix) / Here It Comes / All Across The Sands (Revolver / Black, REVMC36, cassette reissue)

Released 1996:
Sally Cinnamon (Single Mix) / Sally Cinnamon (12" Single Mix) / Here It Comes / All Across The Sands (Revolver / Black, REVXD36, CD reissue)

Released 31st October 2005:
Disc 1 (CD): Sally Cinnamon (Single Mix) / Here It Comes / All Across The Sands / Sally Cinnamon (12" Single Mix) Disc 2 (DVD): Sally Cinnamon (music video) (Revolver / Black, REVXD636, CD / DVD)

UK chart details:
Sally Cinnamon entered the charts on 6th January 1990, spending 1 week in the charts and reaching a highest position of 75. It re-entered the charts on 20th January 1990, for 4 weeks, reaching a highest position of 46.

Also available on:
The Complete Stone Roses (2.50)
The Very Best Of The Stone Roses (3.27)

First live performance:
Liverpool Mardi Gras (August 1986)

Details:

"20,000 people, of all sexualities, marching through the streets of Manchester on a cold February afternoon is not something we are going to forget easily. Nor can we forget the close relationship which was forged between the Campaign and the gay scene. 1988 made us all finally realise that very powerful forces were out to get us."
Gay Life, January 1989.

 

 

On 23rd May 1988, Clause 28 protestors invaded the BBC newsroom at the beginning of the Six O'Clock News. Sue Lawley continued with the news, whilst fellow presenter Nicholas Witchell sat on one of the protesters. Sue informed viewers: "...I do apologise if you're hearing quite a lot of noise in the studio at the moment. I'm afraid that, um, we have rather been invaded by some people who we hope to be removing very shortly."

In 1987, The Stone Roses shed their last vestiges of punk rock in favour of a lovelorn melodicism. This transition is captured at the band's Manchester International 1 gig on 26th June 1987; sections of the crowd call impatiently for So Young and Tell Me throughout the performance, but the band are keener instead to pursue their new sound, leaving Tell Me until the very end. The band's second single, Sally Cinnamon, released on FM Revolver Records in 1987, was the first bona fide Stone Roses pop song and a radical departure from So Young, released two years previously. In a Record Collector 1998 interview, Ian said that Sally Cinnamon resulted from wanting to do the "complete opposite" of So Young. Featuring chiming guitar hooks and a softer singing style, this song distinctly marks the move away from the punk sound of the Roses' early period, into 'bubblegum pop' (no doubt what inspired the choice of front cover for the single). The riff appears to borrow from 'She Said She Said' from 'Revolver', by The Beatles; however, on page 68 of the first edition of John Robb's 'The Stone Roses and the Resurrection of British Pop', Andy Couzens states that the riff was pinched from the Walker Brothers. The name 'Sally Cinnamon' is perhaps inspired by either 'Sally Simpson' by The Who, or 'Cinnamon Girl' by Neil Young, while the lyric, "Sugar and spice and all things nice" originates from a song by The Searchers called 'Sugar And Spice'.

 

Left: The Stone Roses were second on the bill for this Anti-Clause 28 gig, the headliners being James. Associates of The Stone Roses annoyed the headline act by putting up posters advertising the gig, with 'The Stone Roses' in large font, and 'James' underneath, in a smaller font. In addition, The Stone Roses shrewdly arrived late on stage and extended their set, thus effectively filling the headline slot. By the time their set had finished, it was 11:30pm and a portion of the audience were beginning to leave.
Right: The Walker Brothers, the musical influence on Sally Cinnamon according to Andy Couzens. With its gorgeous warm tones, Sally Cinnamon was a song soaked in sixties influences, discarding any remaining echoes of punk.

On 30th May 1988, The Stone Roses played an Anti-Clause 28 gig at Manchester International 2, organised as a protest against the British government's introduction of 'Clause 28' the previous week. Clause 28 was Margaret Thatcher's overt attempt to make homosexuality as culturally invisible as possible. Upon introducing Sally Cinnamon at the gig, Ian alluded to the song's relevance to the occasion, stating that the crowd perhaps would not know the real meaning of the song - Sally Cinnamon is a fictitious lesbian.* In 1967, the decriminalisation of homosexual acts between consenting adults in private was passed in England and Wales. Although many homosexuals rejoiced at the news, there were sombre warnings that their new rights should not be "abused". Lord Arran, one of the major advocates for law reform, made the following speech in the House of Lords in 1967: "I ask those who have, as it were, been in bondage and for whom the prison doors are now open, to show thanks by comporting themselves quietly and with dignity. This is no occasion for jubilations, certainly not for celebration. Any form of ostentatious behaviour now or in the future, any form of public flaunting, would be utterly distasteful and would, I believe, make the sponsors of the bill regret what they have done." Homophobia forcefully reasserted itself in British society in the late 1970s. Accusations were made that much of the momentum behind the American 'Disco Sucks' campaign in 1979 came from racism and homophobia. In the same year, in England, The Young Nationalist - a British National Party publication - told its readers: 'Disco and its melting pot pseudo-philosophy must be fought or Britain's streets will be full of black-worshipping soul boys.' The decriminalisation of homosexual acts in Scotland took place in 1980, and the London Weekend Television (LWT) series, 'Gay Life', was broadcast that year - although it was not networked. The decriminalisation of homosexual acts in Northern Ireland took place in 1982. In 1983, the 1981 book 'Jenny lives With Eric and Martin', by Danish author Susanne Bösche, was published in England. The book was intended for primary school children and told the story of Jenny, a little girl who lived with her father and his male lover. It was quickly banned from schools after protests from parents and politicians who feared that it might encourage children to "experiment with homosexuality." The impact of this book was a major factor in the introduction of Clause 28, as was the emergence of AIDS as a growing epidemic, with gay men as a 'high risk' group. The spread of the AIDS virus brought about wide-spread public panic and fear, which fostered discrimination against the gay and transgender communities. Also known as Section 28, Clause 28 was a controversial amendment to the UK's 1988 Local Government Act, enacted on 24th May 1988, and finally repealed on 18th November 2003 (21st June 2000 in Scotland). Clause 28 stated that a local authority shall not: (a) Intentionally promote or publish material with the intention of promoting homosexuality. (b) Promote the teaching in any maintained school of the acceptability of homosexuality in a pretended family relationship.

 

 

 

Top left: 'Jenny lives With Eric and Martin' front cover.
Top right & middle left: Sample pages from 'Jenny lives With Eric and Martin'
Middle right: Sparking widespread opposition upon its introduction, Clause 28 was a product of intense media interest in homosexuality and the right-wing Thatcherite Conservative Government of the late 1980s. The original AIDS awareness campaign used effective shock tactics. AIDS was first recognized by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in 1981 and its cause, HIV, identified in the early 1980s.
Bottom left and bottom right: Protest against the introduction of Clause 28.

Ian, John and Reni attended a Gay Rights march in Manchester** on 28th February 1988, stills from which can be viewed below. Click here to view the video clip in full.

Screenshots of Ian, John and Reni at a Gay Rights march in Manchester on 28th February 1988. The bottom screenshot is one of the above shots with name-tags superimposed. Thanks to Robin Kennedy for sending the footage and Anthony Murphy for capturing the screenshots.

Among the other artists to protest against Clause 28 was Boy George, who released a single (as 'By George') in 1988, entitled 'No Clause 28'. The Labour Party, the Liberal Democrats and the Green Party were all opposed to Section 28. Gay rights advocates, such as Stonewall, OutRage!, The Pink Paper and Gay Times formed the major opposition to Section 28 and led the campaign for its repeal. Prominent individuals who spoke out for the repeal of Section 28 included Ian McKellen, Michael Cashman, Ivan Massow, Mo Mowlam, Simon Callow, Annette Crosbie, Michael Grade, Jane Horrocks, Michael Mansfield QC, Helen Mirren, Claire Rayner, Ned Sherrin and Alan Moore. Newspapers that came out in opposition included The Guardian, The Independent and The Daily Mirror.

 

 

Top left: The Stone Roses' dislike of Conservative policy, particularly under Margaret Thatcher, has long been evident in interviews. Here, the band can be seen tearing apart a 1987 Conservative General Election poster. The poster reads "Is this Labour's idea of a comprehensive education ?" The three red books have the following covers: "Young gay and proud", "Police: Out of School !", "The playbook for kids about sex". "Take the politics out of education. Vote Conservative." Thatcher secured a third successive term in this election, with the Conservative party enjoying a 102-seat majority.
Top right: Boy George portrayed as Noddy on the cover of 'No Clause 28'.
Bottom left: Promotional poster for the Boy George single. Artwork accompanying the release was created by artist Jamie Reid.
Bottom right: Ian McKellen with Michael Cashman, protesting against Section 28.

"Who's Sally Cinnamon ? A fictitious lesbian. The song's about picking someone's pocket on a train and finding a love letter from one girl to another."
(Ian Brown speaking to music365.com on 16th February 2000).

We only find out in the final verse that 'Ian' has taken and read a letter from Sally's pocket on a train, since he now leaves back that letter. The last line, "You're her world", changes the context of the song, with Ian discovering that Sally is a lesbian; prior to this, Sally is Ian's 'world' ("you are my world"). The atrocious video accompanying the FM Revolver reissue of this song infuriated The Stone Roses, and they contemplated flying to Midem (a European music biz bash) because they heard that FM Revolver Records boss Paul Birch was present. The band planned to storm in with paint and smash up Birch's stall; they soon found out, however, that Birch had left a day early, and thus waited until Monday to launch their attack. Accompanied by Steve Adge, they drove to the house of Birch and his girlfriend Olivia Darling, covering both them and their premises in paint. Ian put a brick through Birch's £25,000 Mercedes: "The video was insulting", Brown explained to Select magazine in July 1991. "Blokes selling fruit, a few pigeons, a black woman holding a baby, a picture of me on the front of The Face, a few people in flares...so we went and painted him." Appearing at Wolverhampton Crown Court on 5th October 1990, The Stone Roses were fined £3,000 each, plus £95 costs. The financial return for Birch did not end there; in the 17th March 1990 edition of the NME, John Squire claims to have heard from someone (possibly Steve Adge) that Birch had his paint-splattered boots on sale somewhere in Macclesfield. Following the passing of Tony Wilson in 2007, Paul Birch spoke to BBC NEWS 24 and took the opportunity to remind viewers that he had signed The Stone Roses, rather than Tony. Unfortunately, Birch's association with the story of The Stone Roses will forever be remembered not for him signing The Stone Roses, but rather, being sign painted by them.

 

 

Top left: Reni and John after their court appearance in Wolverhampton.
Top right: Reni attempts to drum up public support for the band.
Bottom left: The Stone Roses outside Wolverhampton magistrate's court, 6th March 1990.
Bottom right: The Stone Roses on the front of the NME, 17th March 1990. During their two-day stint in a prison cell, The Stone Roses were able to request their choice of papers to read in the morning. Sure that the paint-splattering incident would be covered in the NME, they asked for a copy of the magazine. In a wonderful moment of irony, the band opened the magazine to find a free Stone Roses poster, of themselves covered in paint. The Stone Roses signed the poster for the coppers, humorously writing 'Exhibit A' on it.

Stone Roses fan Annie Davis emailed me in 2005, to inform me that she is in the Sally Cinnamon video:

"Just seen the vid for the first time. Been waiting 15 years ! I was working in Afflecks at the time of the video shoot and was filmed in the hairdressers but didn't know what it was for at the time. Over the years I've been told many times that I'm on the vid. Due to all the controversy and as a massive Roses fan I wasn't too sure how I felt about it !!

Saw it the other day and there I am, a fresh faced 20 year old. I'm on in slow motion at the same time as the first 'Sent to me from heaven, Sally Cinnamon you're my world' ! Was weird watching it, quite emotional really..."

Ian Brown concluded his gig at Osaka's Nagoya Club Quatro on 23rd March 1999, with an encore of Sally Cinnamon. He had previously sworn never to play any Stone Roses songs again, following their demise. In July 2004, Ian surprised fans further in Dublin, Belfast and Surrey by playing sets consisting mainly of Stone Roses tracks from the 1989-90 era. He followed this up by performing a mixture of Roses tracks and his own material on his UK and Ireland tour later in the year. At his Manchester gig, he was joined onstage by Mani, bringing the two former Stone Roses members onstage together for the first time in over eight years. Brown was also joined by Oasis guitarist Noel Gallagher (to perform 'Keep What Ya Got') and DJ James Lavelle (whose group, UNKLE, released Reign - featuring both Brown and Mani - later in the year, reaching Number 40 in the UK singles charts).

 

 

 

Top left: 'No Pasaran', which is Spanish for 'they shall not pass', is etched on the vinyl on the 12" of Sally Cinnamon. This is a propaganda slogan used to express determination to defend a position against an enemy. It was used during the Battle of Verdun in World War I, by General Henri Philippe Pétain, and was used again in the defense of Madrid during the Spanish Civil War by Dolores Ibárruri Gómez ('La Pasionaria'), Communist orator and one of the founders of the Communist Party of Spain. Top right is the work of German photomontage artist John Heartfield.
Second row (left): Sally Cinnamon 7 inch front cover.
Second row (right): Sally Cinnamon 7 inch back cover. The lady on the back of the Sally Cinnamon sleeve is a member of the audience at the 1967 Monterey pop festival (third row), listening to Ravi Shankar (this is immediately followed by a shot of Jimi Hendrix in the audience). To the right of her is a photo of John Squire jumping off the roof of the bus, taken mid-riot on the night of 26th April 1985, when the band played Kulan Lidingo, in Sweden. The police arrested much of the audience for being underage, and the band got changed into their stage gear in front of the remaining spectators.
Bottom left: Press advert for Sally Cinnamon from Underground magazine, Issue 3 (June 1987).
Bottom right: Press advert for Sally Cinnamon.

* The lesbian, Sally, becomes 'Strap-on Sally' on Love Is The Law, alluding to her sexual activity.
** Dave Haslam mentions on page 180 of his book, 'manchester, england: the story of the pop cult city', that the affiliated march and rally took place in Albert Square. If anyone can provide any further details of the march, please email me at Paul@Thisisthedaybreak.co.uk.

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