3 Alanis Morissette Songs You Need To Hear That Aren’t “Ironic” or “You Oughta Know”

It’s not that we don’t love “Ironic”. However, if you’re a fan of the 1995 hit, there are others in Morissette’s catalog that might catch your ear. Here are a few songs that you’ll love if you like “Ironic” by Alanis Morissette.

“Hand In My Pocket”

“Hand In My Pocket” is definitely “Ironic”‘s more optimistic younger sister. The narrator is choosing gratitude, but also recognizes the unavoidable imperfections that come with existing.

In the first verse, Morissette sings, “I’m broke, but I’m happy / I’m poor, but I’m kind / I’m short, but I’m healthy, yeah / I’m high, but I’m grounded / I’m sane, but I’m overwhelmed / I’m lost, but I’m hopeful, baby.”

To Spotify, Morissette spoke about what inspired “Hand In My Pocket”. “I was scribbling all these dichotomies and dualisms. Human beings are all things. At any given moment, if you said, ‘What are you feeling right now?’ I’d probably be feeling 16 different things, it’s rare that I feel one emotion at any given time.”

“Hands Clean”

Off of Morissette’s 2002 project Under Rug Swept, “Hands Clean” is sassy and honest, and just so typical of Alanis. Fans might liken this one to “You Oughta Know”, which many believe is about the singer’s relationship with Full House star Dave Coulier. When Coulier and Morissette first dated, he was 33, and she was 18. Morissette sings of falling for another “mature” man in this song, although she’s never actually said who either are about.

“Thank U”

“Thank U” was written following a trip that Morissette took to India in the late 90s. This song was a big part of the follow-up to her highly successful album “Jagged Little Pill”. Morissette, who had been working on music since age ten, spoke about how the song was inspired by that much needed break.

She told MTV in an interview, “Basically, I had never stopped in my whole life, hadn’t taken a long breath, and I took a year and a half off and basically learned how to do that. When I did stop and I was silent and I breathed… I was just left with an immense amount of gratitude, and inspiration, and love, and bliss, and that’s where the song came from, you know.”

Photo by: Rob Ball/WireImage