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| The Smiths: a beginner's guide | The Smiths: a beginner's guide |
| (7 months later) | |
| Last week we asked our followers on Twitter and Facebook to nominate the best Smiths songs for newcomers. Here are the results: 10 key tracks we hope will act as a rounded introduction to their music. | Last week we asked our followers on Twitter and Facebook to nominate the best Smiths songs for newcomers. Here are the results: 10 key tracks we hope will act as a rounded introduction to their music. |
| You can listen to these tracks as a YouTube playlist, or you can watch each individual video. We've included a little bit of information on the songs, comments from the people who recommended them, and some links to our Smiths coverage from the last few years. | You can listen to these tracks as a YouTube playlist, or you can watch each individual video. We've included a little bit of information on the songs, comments from the people who recommended them, and some links to our Smiths coverage from the last few years. |
| 1) There Is a Light That Never Goes Out | 1) There Is a Light That Never Goes Out |
| The ultimate expression of adolescent longing. Morrissey would rather be killed by a double decker bus than face going home alone. Johnny Marr's lushly textured guitar line and the hopeful repetition of "there is a light and it never goes out" in the final verse make it a call to arms for morbid romantics everywhere. | The ultimate expression of adolescent longing. Morrissey would rather be killed by a double decker bus than face going home alone. Johnny Marr's lushly textured guitar line and the hopeful repetition of "there is a light and it never goes out" in the final verse make it a call to arms for morbid romantics everywhere. |
| There Is a Light. They're hitting on all cylinders on that one. | There Is a Light. They're hitting on all cylinders on that one. |
| @MarkTrainer | @MarkTrainer |
| 2) This Charming Man | 2) This Charming Man |
| Even those with an aversion to any sort of popular music from the last 40 years will have some notion of what This Charming Man is all about. But take a minute to look past its status as an indie club floor filler and forget about that time David Cameron named it as one of his Desert Island Discs; Marr's spiky introduction is flawless and Morrissey yodels – in the words of one worried parent – as if he's having his legs sawn off. Two minutes, 21 seconds of pop perfection. | Even those with an aversion to any sort of popular music from the last 40 years will have some notion of what This Charming Man is all about. But take a minute to look past its status as an indie club floor filler and forget about that time David Cameron named it as one of his Desert Island Discs; Marr's spiky introduction is flawless and Morrissey yodels – in the words of one worried parent – as if he's having his legs sawn off. Two minutes, 21 seconds of pop perfection. |
| This Charming Man, it was the first major song they put out & showed everyone the great songs they could write straight away. | This Charming Man, it was the first major song they put out & showed everyone the great songs they could write straight away. |
| @JoelToDaFunk | @JoelToDaFunk |
| 3) How Soon Is Now? | 3) How Soon Is Now? |
| The Smiths song that doesn't really sound like a Smiths song. Marr swaps his signature guitar jangle for sinister echoing and heavy walls of chords. Morrissey is on top form too, proffering pessimistic words of advice: "There's a club if you'd like to go, you could meet somebody who really loves you. But you go and you stand on your own and you leave on your own and you go home and you cry and you want to die." It's enough to put you off socialising for life. | The Smiths song that doesn't really sound like a Smiths song. Marr swaps his signature guitar jangle for sinister echoing and heavy walls of chords. Morrissey is on top form too, proffering pessimistic words of advice: "There's a club if you'd like to go, you could meet somebody who really loves you. But you go and you stand on your own and you leave on your own and you go home and you cry and you want to die." It's enough to put you off socialising for life. |
| How Soon Is Now, Marr at his best. | How Soon Is Now, Marr at his best. |
| @Jack_Flash92 | @Jack_Flash92 |
| 4) Ask | 4) Ask |
| Despite its slightly depressing subject matter, Ask is the Smiths at their most upbeat. The effortlessly catchy riff confirms their position as a singles band and even Morrissey seems to be in a good mood: "Ask me, ask me, ask me. Ask me, I won't say no, how could I?" Presumably the statement doesn't apply to any meat-related requests. | Despite its slightly depressing subject matter, Ask is the Smiths at their most upbeat. The effortlessly catchy riff confirms their position as a singles band and even Morrissey seems to be in a good mood: "Ask me, ask me, ask me. Ask me, I won't say no, how could I?" Presumably the statement doesn't apply to any meat-related requests. |
| Ask ... 'writing frightening verse to a bucktoothed girl in Luxembourg.' Genius. Almost as good as Howard Devoto. | Ask ... 'writing frightening verse to a bucktoothed girl in Luxembourg.' Genius. Almost as good as Howard Devoto. |
| @WILDCAT2007 | @WILDCAT2007 |
| 5) What Difference Does It Make? | 5) What Difference Does It Make? |
| One of the the Smiths' first chart hits and a song which harnessed the vitality of their early live shows. Marr's domineering blues riff offsets Morrissey's 20-second falsetto outro. | One of the the Smiths' first chart hits and a song which harnessed the vitality of their early live shows. Marr's domineering blues riff offsets Morrissey's 20-second falsetto outro. |
| I still remember the first time I heard it … even after all these years it sounds as fresh now as it did then. | I still remember the first time I heard it … even after all these years it sounds as fresh now as it did then. |
| Merty Robinson | Merty Robinson |
| 6) Handsome Devil | 6) Handsome Devil |
| Much is made of the songwriting partnership between Morrissey and Marr but the power behind many of the Smiths' greatest songs was down to the innovations of their rhythm section. Handsome Devil showcases the complexities of Andy Rourke's bassline and Mike Joyce's muscular beats. The lyrics also offer a rare glimpse of Morrissey's primal side, desperate to "crack the whip" and get his hands "on your mammary glands". Cripes. | Much is made of the songwriting partnership between Morrissey and Marr but the power behind many of the Smiths' greatest songs was down to the innovations of their rhythm section. Handsome Devil showcases the complexities of Andy Rourke's bassline and Mike Joyce's muscular beats. The lyrics also offer a rare glimpse of Morrissey's primal side, desperate to "crack the whip" and get his hands "on your mammary glands". Cripes. |
| 7) The Queen Is Dead | 7) The Queen Is Dead |
| Title track from their 1986 album sees Morrissey at his most vehemently anti-royal. Joyce's relentless pounding in the song's introduction and the pure joy of hearing Morrissey rhyme "spanner" with "piano" turn it into one of the best album openers of all time. | Title track from their 1986 album sees Morrissey at his most vehemently anti-royal. Joyce's relentless pounding in the song's introduction and the pure joy of hearing Morrissey rhyme "spanner" with "piano" turn it into one of the best album openers of all time. |
| 8) Some Girls Are Bigger Than Others | 8) Some Girls Are Bigger Than Others |
| Every music legend is entitled to a moment of temporary misjudgment. Bob Dylan released a Christmas record, Iggy Pop was on a car insurance advert and Lou Reed made an entire album with Metallica. With the Smiths, it was the out-of-character crudeness of Some Girls Are Bigger Than Others. But listen again and it becomes clear it isn't misjudged at all. It features one of Marr's most hypnotic melodies and Morrissey's tongue-in-cheek observation that "some girls' mothers are bigger than other girls' mothers" provides some relief from the heavier subject matter of The Queen Is Dead. | Every music legend is entitled to a moment of temporary misjudgment. Bob Dylan released a Christmas record, Iggy Pop was on a car insurance advert and Lou Reed made an entire album with Metallica. With the Smiths, it was the out-of-character crudeness of Some Girls Are Bigger Than Others. But listen again and it becomes clear it isn't misjudged at all. It features one of Marr's most hypnotic melodies and Morrissey's tongue-in-cheek observation that "some girls' mothers are bigger than other girls' mothers" provides some relief from the heavier subject matter of The Queen Is Dead. |
| It's what the Smiths are all about. | It's what the Smiths are all about. |
| @jijitz | @jijitz |
| 9) Reel Around the Fountain | 9) Reel Around the Fountain |
| Temporarily the centre of a tabloid scandal after the Sun mistakenly reported that the BBC had refused to broadcast the track because of its "suggestions of paedophilia", Reel Around the Fountain is actually one of the Smiths' most ambitious songs. A six-minute ballad of swirling chords and inimitable Morrissey one-liners: "I dreamt about you last night and I fell out of bed twice." | Temporarily the centre of a tabloid scandal after the Sun mistakenly reported that the BBC had refused to broadcast the track because of its "suggestions of paedophilia", Reel Around the Fountain is actually one of the Smiths' most ambitious songs. A six-minute ballad of swirling chords and inimitable Morrissey one-liners: "I dreamt about you last night and I fell out of bed twice." |
| First track from the first album. Take it from there and you'll never look back … | First track from the first album. Take it from there and you'll never look back … |
| Lee Oman | Lee Oman |
| 10) Last Night I Dreamt That Somebody Loved Me | 10) Last Night I Dreamt That Somebody Loved Me |
| The two-minute introduction, the angry mob noises spliced from a BBC Sound Effects LP, the crying whales; sit through them because it'll be worth it when the first verse kicks in and Morrissey dismisses his fantasy lover with the heartbreaking line: "No hope, no harm, just another false alarm." Both Morrissey and Marr have cited this as their favourite Smiths song. It's easy to see why. | The two-minute introduction, the angry mob noises spliced from a BBC Sound Effects LP, the crying whales; sit through them because it'll be worth it when the first verse kicks in and Morrissey dismisses his fantasy lover with the heartbreaking line: "No hope, no harm, just another false alarm." Both Morrissey and Marr have cited this as their favourite Smiths song. It's easy to see why. |
| The wait for the chorus is SO long but so worth it. | The wait for the chorus is SO long but so worth it. |
| @mollichu | @mollichu |
| Want more? | Want more? |
| David Cameron to Smiths: what difference does it make? PM refuses to stop liking the Smiths despite Johnny Marr joining Morrissey in ridiculing Cameron for listening to their music | David Cameron to Smiths: what difference does it make? PM refuses to stop liking the Smiths despite Johnny Marr joining Morrissey in ridiculing Cameron for listening to their music |
| Johnny Marr on the Smiths, Morrissey and putting politics back in pop With the release of his first solo album The Messenger, the former Smiths guitarist talks to Dave Simpson about finally embracing his old sound, David Cameron and why he and Morrissey don't talk any more | Johnny Marr on the Smiths, Morrissey and putting politics back in pop With the release of his first solo album The Messenger, the former Smiths guitarist talks to Dave Simpson about finally embracing his old sound, David Cameron and why he and Morrissey don't talk any more |
| These charming fans: Smiths devotees pose outside Salford Lads Club – in pictures Photographer Stephen Wright captures Smiths fans recreating the famous image of the band outside Salford Lads Club | These charming fans: Smiths devotees pose outside Salford Lads Club – in pictures Photographer Stephen Wright captures Smiths fans recreating the famous image of the band outside Salford Lads Club |
| Morrissey and me: how an ordinary Asian fell in love with the Smiths The Smiths as Asian? On the release of a CD box set, Sukhdev Sandhu reflects on his teenage passion for a band whose songs echoed his own introversion and working-class life | Morrissey and me: how an ordinary Asian fell in love with the Smiths The Smiths as Asian? On the release of a CD box set, Sukhdev Sandhu reflects on his teenage passion for a band whose songs echoed his own introversion and working-class life |
| Grace Dent attends a weekend of lectures on the Smiths Academics and fans gathered in Manchester to dissect the impact of the Smiths. Grace Dent hears tortured tales of dead dogs, bisexual love triangles and lonely youths. | Grace Dent attends a weekend of lectures on the Smiths Academics and fans gathered in Manchester to dissect the impact of the Smiths. Grace Dent hears tortured tales of dead dogs, bisexual love triangles and lonely youths. |
| Reading on mobile? Listen to this Spotify playlist | Reading on mobile? Listen to this Spotify playlist |
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