diff --git a/zerver/lib/narrow.py b/zerver/lib/narrow.py
index 3cd2d26ac3..1f3f06993d 100644
--- a/zerver/lib/narrow.py
+++ b/zerver/lib/narrow.py
@@ -1064,11 +1064,10 @@ def exclude_muting_conditions(
 
 
 def get_base_query_for_search(
-    realm_id: int, user_profile: UserProfile | None, need_message: bool, need_user_message: bool
+    realm_id: int, user_profile: UserProfile | None, need_user_message: bool
 ) -> tuple[Select, ColumnElement[Integer]]:
     # Handle the simple case where user_message isn't involved first.
     if not need_user_message:
-        assert need_message
         query = (
             select(column("id", Integer).label("message_id"))
             .select_from(table("zerver_message"))
@@ -1079,30 +1078,21 @@ def get_base_query_for_search(
         return (query, inner_msg_id_col)
 
     assert user_profile is not None
-    if need_message:
-        query = (
-            select(column("message_id", Integer))
-            # We don't limit by realm_id despite the join to
-            # zerver_messages, since the user_profile_id limit in
-            # usermessage is more selective, and the query planner
-            # can't know about that cross-table correlation.
-            .where(column("user_profile_id", Integer) == literal(user_profile.id))
-            .select_from(
-                join(
-                    table("zerver_usermessage"),
-                    table("zerver_message"),
-                    literal_column("zerver_usermessage.message_id", Integer)
-                    == literal_column("zerver_message.id", Integer),
-                )
-            )
-        )
-        inner_msg_id_col = column("message_id", Integer)
-        return (query, inner_msg_id_col)
-
     query = (
         select(column("message_id", Integer))
+        # We don't limit by realm_id despite the join to
+        # zerver_messages, since the user_profile_id limit in
+        # usermessage is more selective, and the query planner
+        # can't know about that cross-table correlation.
         .where(column("user_profile_id", Integer) == literal(user_profile.id))
-        .select_from(table("zerver_usermessage"))
+        .select_from(
+            join(
+                table("zerver_usermessage"),
+                table("zerver_message"),
+                literal_column("zerver_usermessage.message_id", Integer)
+                == literal_column("zerver_message.id", Integer),
+            )
+        )
     )
     inner_msg_id_col = column("message_id", Integer)
     return (query, inner_msg_id_col)
@@ -1160,17 +1150,9 @@ def find_first_unread_anchor(
     # flag for the user.
     need_user_message = True
 
-    # Because we will need to call exclude_muting_conditions, unless
-    # the user hasn't muted anything, we will need to include Message
-    # in our query.  It may be worth eventually adding an optimization
-    # for the case of a user who hasn't muted anything to avoid the
-    # join in that case, but it's low priority.
-    need_message = True
-
     query, inner_msg_id_col = get_base_query_for_search(
         realm_id=user_profile.realm_id,
         user_profile=user_profile,
-        need_message=need_message,
         need_user_message=need_user_message,
     )
     query = query.add_columns(column("flags", Integer))
@@ -1442,15 +1424,8 @@ def fetch_messages(
         #
         # Note that is_web_public_query=True goes here, since
         # include_history is semantically correct for is_web_public_query.
-        need_message = True
         need_user_message = False
-    elif narrow is None:
-        # We need to limit to messages the user has received, but we don't actually
-        # need any fields from Message
-        need_message = False
-        need_user_message = True
     else:
-        need_message = True
         need_user_message = True
 
     # get_base_query_for_search and ok_to_include_history are responsible for ensuring
@@ -1459,7 +1434,6 @@ def fetch_messages(
     query, inner_msg_id_col = get_base_query_for_search(
         realm_id=realm.id,
         user_profile=user_profile,
-        need_message=need_message,
         need_user_message=need_user_message,
     )
     if need_user_message:
diff --git a/zerver/tests/test_message_fetch.py b/zerver/tests/test_message_fetch.py
index 6a70cad458..647025e603 100644
--- a/zerver/tests/test_message_fetch.py
+++ b/zerver/tests/test_message_fetch.py
@@ -4690,27 +4690,64 @@ AND NOT (recipient_id = %(recipient_id_4)s AND upper(subject) = upper(%(param_3)
     def test_get_messages_queries(self) -> None:
         query_ids = self.get_query_ids()
 
-        sql_template = "SELECT anon_1.message_id, anon_1.flags \nFROM (SELECT message_id, flags \nFROM zerver_usermessage \nWHERE user_profile_id = {hamlet_id} AND message_id = 0) AS anon_1 ORDER BY message_id ASC"
+        sql_template = """\
+SELECT anon_1.message_id, anon_1.flags \n\
+FROM (SELECT message_id, flags \n\
+FROM zerver_usermessage JOIN zerver_message ON zerver_usermessage.message_id = zerver_message.id \n\
+WHERE user_profile_id = {hamlet_id} AND message_id = 0) AS anon_1 ORDER BY message_id ASC\
+"""
         sql = sql_template.format(**query_ids)
         self.common_check_get_messages_query({"anchor": 0, "num_before": 0, "num_after": 0}, sql)
 
-        sql_template = "SELECT anon_1.message_id, anon_1.flags \nFROM (SELECT message_id, flags \nFROM zerver_usermessage \nWHERE user_profile_id = {hamlet_id} AND message_id = 0) AS anon_1 ORDER BY message_id ASC"
+        sql_template = """\
+SELECT anon_1.message_id, anon_1.flags \n\
+FROM (SELECT message_id, flags \n\
+FROM zerver_usermessage JOIN zerver_message ON zerver_usermessage.message_id = zerver_message.id \n\
+WHERE user_profile_id = {hamlet_id} AND message_id = 0) AS anon_1 ORDER BY message_id ASC\
+"""
         sql = sql_template.format(**query_ids)
         self.common_check_get_messages_query({"anchor": 0, "num_before": 1, "num_after": 0}, sql)
 
-        sql_template = "SELECT anon_1.message_id, anon_1.flags \nFROM (SELECT message_id, flags \nFROM zerver_usermessage \nWHERE user_profile_id = {hamlet_id} ORDER BY message_id ASC \n LIMIT 2) AS anon_1 ORDER BY message_id ASC"
+        sql_template = """\
+SELECT anon_1.message_id, anon_1.flags \n\
+FROM (SELECT message_id, flags \n\
+FROM zerver_usermessage JOIN zerver_message ON zerver_usermessage.message_id = zerver_message.id \n\
+WHERE user_profile_id = {hamlet_id} ORDER BY message_id ASC \n\
+ LIMIT 2) AS anon_1 ORDER BY message_id ASC\
+"""
         sql = sql_template.format(**query_ids)
         self.common_check_get_messages_query({"anchor": 0, "num_before": 0, "num_after": 1}, sql)
 
-        sql_template = "SELECT anon_1.message_id, anon_1.flags \nFROM (SELECT message_id, flags \nFROM zerver_usermessage \nWHERE user_profile_id = {hamlet_id} ORDER BY message_id ASC \n LIMIT 11) AS anon_1 ORDER BY message_id ASC"
+        sql_template = """\
+SELECT anon_1.message_id, anon_1.flags \n\
+FROM (SELECT message_id, flags \n\
+FROM zerver_usermessage JOIN zerver_message ON zerver_usermessage.message_id = zerver_message.id \n\
+WHERE user_profile_id = {hamlet_id} ORDER BY message_id ASC \n\
+ LIMIT 11) AS anon_1 ORDER BY message_id ASC\
+"""
         sql = sql_template.format(**query_ids)
         self.common_check_get_messages_query({"anchor": 0, "num_before": 0, "num_after": 10}, sql)
 
-        sql_template = "SELECT anon_1.message_id, anon_1.flags \nFROM (SELECT message_id, flags \nFROM zerver_usermessage \nWHERE user_profile_id = {hamlet_id} AND message_id <= 100 ORDER BY message_id DESC \n LIMIT 11) AS anon_1 ORDER BY message_id ASC"
+        sql_template = """\
+SELECT anon_1.message_id, anon_1.flags \n\
+FROM (SELECT message_id, flags \n\
+FROM zerver_usermessage JOIN zerver_message ON zerver_usermessage.message_id = zerver_message.id \n\
+WHERE user_profile_id = {hamlet_id} AND message_id <= 100 ORDER BY message_id DESC \n\
+ LIMIT 11) AS anon_1 ORDER BY message_id ASC\
+"""
         sql = sql_template.format(**query_ids)
         self.common_check_get_messages_query({"anchor": 100, "num_before": 10, "num_after": 0}, sql)
 
-        sql_template = "SELECT anon_1.message_id, anon_1.flags \nFROM ((SELECT message_id, flags \nFROM zerver_usermessage \nWHERE user_profile_id = {hamlet_id} AND message_id <= 99 ORDER BY message_id DESC \n LIMIT 10) UNION ALL (SELECT message_id, flags \nFROM zerver_usermessage \nWHERE user_profile_id = {hamlet_id} AND message_id >= 100 ORDER BY message_id ASC \n LIMIT 11)) AS anon_1 ORDER BY message_id ASC"
+        sql_template = """\
+SELECT anon_1.message_id, anon_1.flags \n\
+FROM ((SELECT message_id, flags \n\
+FROM zerver_usermessage JOIN zerver_message ON zerver_usermessage.message_id = zerver_message.id \n\
+WHERE user_profile_id = {hamlet_id} AND message_id <= 99 ORDER BY message_id DESC \n\
+ LIMIT 10) UNION ALL (SELECT message_id, flags \n\
+FROM zerver_usermessage JOIN zerver_message ON zerver_usermessage.message_id = zerver_message.id \n\
+WHERE user_profile_id = {hamlet_id} AND message_id >= 100 ORDER BY message_id ASC \n\
+ LIMIT 11)) AS anon_1 ORDER BY message_id ASC\
+"""
         sql = sql_template.format(**query_ids)
         self.common_check_get_messages_query(
             {"anchor": 100, "num_before": 10, "num_after": 10}, sql
diff --git a/zerver/views/message_fetch.py b/zerver/views/message_fetch.py
index 928655e61b..6823e45e2d 100644
--- a/zerver/views/message_fetch.py
+++ b/zerver/views/message_fetch.py
@@ -349,7 +349,7 @@ def messages_in_narrow_backend(
     # This query is limited to messages the user has access to because they
     # actually received them, as reflected in `zerver_usermessage`.
     query, inner_msg_id_col = get_base_query_for_search(
-        user_profile.realm_id, user_profile, need_message=True, need_user_message=True
+        user_profile.realm_id, user_profile, need_user_message=True
     )
     query = query.where(column("message_id", Integer).in_(msg_ids))