"Hand in My Pocket" is a song written by Alanis Morissette and Glen Ballard, and produced by Ballard for Morissette's third album, Jagged Little Pill (1995). Its protagonist discusses the everyday troubles and worries that she encounters, but focuses on finding ways to stay relaxed and determined. It was released as the album's second single in 1995 (see 1995 in music) and became Morissette's second number-one hit on Billboard ' s U.S. Modern Rock Tracks chart. "Hand in My Pocket" also received substantial airplay on pop radio, reaching the top five on the Top 40 Mainstream chart, but its success in the United Kingdom was limited. The single's video features Morissette among a homecoming parade and was filmed in black-and-white and slow motion.
"Hand in My Pocket" served as the theme song in the unaired pilot episode of the television show Dawson's Creek, but Morissette decided not to have it used as the theme after the show was picked up. In 2005, Morissette released Jagged Little Pill Acoustic, an acoustic version of Jagged Little Pill. "Hand in My Pocket" was its first U.S. single, and its video premiered in July 2005 (see 2005 in music).
The song was covered by Rolf Harris on his 1997 album Can you tell what it is yet. It was parodied by Billy Connolly, who kept the tune and changed the words to make his song "Evil Scotsman".
