35 years ago, the late Sinéad O’Connor released her second album “I Do Not Want What I Haven’t Got”. Propelled by the iconic global hit “Nothing Compares 2U”, it shot to international success, ranked by some critics as “the best album of 1990”. However, O’Connor’s fierce protest on Saturday Night Live only two years later tragically cloaked her in controversy, overshadowing her musical triumphs. In honour of the album’s anniversary this week, I’m revisiting it in celebration of an iconic modern hero.
“God grant me the serenity to accept the things I can’t change, the courage to change the things I can, and the wisdom to know the difference.” The spoken Serenity Prayer that opens the album sets the tone for a record which is in some parts a declaration of defiance and protest, but is ultimately expressed with compelling emotion and rooted in deep faith. Opening track “Feel So Different” highlights that O’Connor is the master of building to a climax, as her one-of-a-kind voice soars above an increasingly dramatic strings arrangement. To me, it’s reminiscent of the title music for a film - a dramatic film of long-ago heroism, where good ultimately prevails and vanquishes evil.
The album is underscored by tragedy, although some of it is less obvious than others. For example, the second song “I Am Stretched On Your Grave” is an adaptation of a 17th century Irish poem, "Táim sínte ar do thuama". It takes a few listens to realise that beneath the electronic dance drumbeat (sampled from James Brown’s “Funky Drummer”) is a haunting Celtic story of love and loss. Even my favourite song, “The Last Day of Our Aquaintance”, deals with the severance of divorce by starting as a gentle ballad and rising to a crescendo that is almost triumphant. Contrastingly, other songs lay their deeply personal lyrics completely bare, naked without any sonic layers of clothing. “Three Babies” is a perfect example of O’Connor’s vocals at their finest: completely raw with emotion but also perfectly expressed in a way that most vocalists can only dream of - a heartfelt confession of her own grief at her miscarriages.
Of course, one of the highlights of the album is “Nothing Compares 2U”. The Prince-written track became a worldwide Number One, and earned multiple Grammy and MTV Award nominations. It’s a beautiful song that has become O’Connor’s legacy, showcasing her incredible vocals and unparalleled expression of emotion. The single’s music video has also become synonymous with her: just Sinéad and a simple black background that juxtaposes her strikingly expressive eyes and rebellious shaven head. By the end of the video, a genuine tear slips down her cheek. Later, she explained that during the song she reflects on her troubled relationship with her late mother, who passed when she was just 18. The single remained at UK Number One for 4 weeks - Sinéad O’Connor was now a global phenomenon, but her unwavering dedication to truth and justice would sadly change the course of her mainstream pop career.
O’Connor’s activism is evident all over the album. “Black Boys On Mopeds” stands out from the other tracks because of its sparseness, with its overt political message translated into a gentle ballad accompanied by acoustic guitar. It deals with themes of poverty and institutionalised racism, clearly setting out O’Connor’s stance as far more than a pop star. Indeed, in her 2021 autobiography “Rememberings” she acknowledges this, writing: “I am a protest singer. My own dream is only to keep the contract I made with God before I ever made one with the music business”. In my opinion, one of the most striking lines of the song is in the third verse, where Sinéad sings “to say what you feel is to dig your own grave”. For me, listening through the clarity of retrospect, it parallels what would actually happen two years later in 1992.
On 3 October 1992 Sinéad O’Connor appeared on Saturday Night Live to promote the release of her follow-up album “Am I Not Your Girl?”. After singing the album’s lead single, she launched into an unprecedented cover of “War” by Bob Marley, in protest against child abuse within the Catholic Church. At the end of the performance, she held up a picture of Pope John Paul II, tore it into pieces, and said “Fight the real enemy”. The world was stunned into silence, then erupted in outrage: the broadcaster NBC received 4400 calls over the course of the weekend. Criticism bombarded her from all sides: from Catholic cardinals, to celebrities such as Madonna, to steamrollers crushing her records.
As a result of this controversy, O’Connor’s subsequent efforts would never reach the same commercial heights that this album did, and “Nothing Compares 2U” was her first and last Number One single anywhere in the world. 13 days after the incident, at a concert for her hero Bob Dylan’s 30th anniversary, she was booed by the Madison Square Garden crowd but defiantly performed the same a cappella rendition of “War”. But tragically, in the 35 years since, the abhorrent institutionalised scandals within the Church have been uncovered - we now understand Sinéad O’Connor to be the martyred canary in the coal mine whose sin simply was being the first voice to speak out.
“I Do Not Want What I Haven’t Got” is ultimately a fantastic album that spans multiple genres, weaving rock, pop, folk and protest into a record that is unapologetically unique and defined by a vocal talent unlike any other. Although time has shown that the world’s condemnation of Sinéad O’Connor in 1992 may have been misjudged considering the revelations that have been made since, I don’t think that the achievements of her music should be undermined by a sense of pity at the loss of her commercial career. Indeed, she said herself in her autobiography that she doesn’t feel that the SNL incident “derailed” her career at all, writing “I wasn’t born to be a pop star”. This sentiment of contentment, gratitude and acceptance is echoed on the final song of the album, which is also the title track. It is entirely a cappella, and evocative of a hymn or spiritual affirmation. “So I'm walking through the desert, and I am not frightened, although it's hot. I have all that I requested, and I do not want what I haven't got.”
Sinéad O’Connor passed on 26 July 2023. “I Do Not Want What I Haven’t Got” was originally released on 12 March 1990, and should be available in all good record shops and streaming platforms.
0 Comments