Everyone knows I love some British post-punk. Today we'll take a listen to Robert Smith's favorite vegetarian enemy, Morrissey and The Smiths. Here's a little of the Wikipedia entry on the The Smiths:
and the group has had major influence on subsequent artists.
Morrissey's lovelorn tales of alienation found an audience amongst
youth culture bored by the ubiquitous synthesizer-pop bands of the early 1980s, while Marr's complex melodies helped return guitar-based music to popularity.
If you haven't dusted off and old Smiths cd lately or have never gotten into them, let me tell you why you should. The Smiths point of view is like no other band in any era. You're not going to turn on any satellite radio station and hear another band with songs like "Vicar in a Tutu," "William, it Was Really Nothing," "Shoplifters of the World Unite," and "Girlfriend in a Coma." That's a fact. Morrissey's voice has an ethereal quality that complements his lyrics like no other singer's. I've heard cover after cover of Smiths songs by everyone from Blur, Radiohead, Love Spit love, Jeff Buckley, Everclear, Oasis, and Mojo Nixon. The only voice I can tolerate covering Morrissey is Natalie Merchant's, as her voice has a lovely melodic quality that is a divine match for some of Morrissey's best songs. Here's "William, it Was Really Nothing" for you in all its ambiguous glory.
http://kerryfaler.typepad.com/files/06-william-it-was-really-nothing.m4p
Yes, he did really say "how can you stay with a fat girl who'll say 'would you like to marry me…'" Morrissey has some thing with the chubby girls — I don't know — he sings "Some Girls Are Bigger Than Others" and "You're the One For Me, Fatty." Morrissey has been called many things, but "sweet" isn't one of them.
Besides "Everyday is Like Sunday," my favorite Smiths/Morrissey song is "Girlfriend in a Coma." It was the first Moz song I'd head and it stuck with me. It's a perfect example of what The Smiths style is — interesting lyrics, lovely melody, and attitude. What a lovely introduction to The Smiths:
Girlfriend in a coma, I know
I know – its really serious
There were times when I could
Have murdered her
(but you know, I would hate
Anything to happen to her)
Could you imagine a band writing that now? In the 80's you could sing about your girlfriend being in a coma and that you'd contemplated killing her and it made for a catchy tune. Same with "Shoplifters of the World Unite." Love that song, especially Marr's guitar work on that one.
Unfortunately there hasn't been a great "greatest hits" compilation made since The Smiths broke up in 1987, and none have been given Morrissey's or Marr's blessing, so the best way to get your Smiths fix is through iTunes. And "greatest hits" is sort of a misnomer, because in their native UK, The Smiths didn't have a single chart higher than #10 while they were still together. Wild. Reissues charted higher, so who knows what a greatest hit is anymore? I'll always love The Smiths. There will always be room for a witty band that doesn't care about being slick and just plays the heck out of a song. That's good stuff. That's why I love The Smiths.
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