It Couldn't Happen Here is an album track from Actually.
It Couldn't Happen Here is also the title of the band's feature length movie, released in 1988.
Production and Recording[]
The band worked with Ennio Morricone for this track, who was originally called upon to work on 'Jealousy'. He wasn't into working on that song, but instead wanted to work on something new.
Angelo Badalamenti did the string arrangement, but due to miscommunication, there was no orchestra booked to record the score, so the arrangement was done using a Fairlight synthesizer.
Lyrics[]
The song is very serious and sad, according to Neil.
The lyric is about this friend of mine who was diagnosed with having Aids. In the first verse we are all teenagers in Newcastle in the whole glam period, and the song describes the Newcastle scene: 'in six-inch heels quoting magazines' - we'd always buy Harpers & Queen. We were all very ambitious. 'Who do you think you are?' refers to the idea that gay people were too public...And then Aids comes along. I remember my friend and I discussing Aids, and how people said it wasn't going to develop in England like it had in America. We said it couldn't happen here.
The original lyric for the chorus was 'I thought we said / it couldn't happen here / just before it did' but the last bit was taken out after Chris repeatedly laughed as it was being sung.
Yesterday, remember how clear it seemed
in six-inch heels quoting magazines
Go all the way, you knew you could
So far, so good
Someone asked: Who do you think you are?
Who pays your bills?
How come you came this far?
Shrugged him off and locked the door
So good, this far
Now it almost seems impossible
We’ve drunk too much and woke up everyone
I may be wrong, I thought we said
it couldn’t happen here
I don’t expect to talk in terms of sense
our dignity and injured innocence
It contradicts your battle scars
still healed so far
Now it almost seems incredible
We've laughed too loud and woke up everyone
I may be wrong but I thought we said
it couldn’t happen here
Now it almost seems impossible
We've found ourselves back where we started from
I may be wrong, I thought we said
it couldn’t happen here