The Smiths

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Manchester, England (1982 – 1987)

The Smiths were an alternative rock band which formed in 1982 in Manchester, England. The band originally consisted of Steven Morrissey (Vocals, Lyrics), Johnny Marr (Guitar, Music), Mike Joyce (Drums) and Andy Rourke (Bass). Hugely influential, The Smiths lasted all of five years from 1982 to 1987, releasing during this period four studio albums (The Smiths , Meat Is Murder , The Queen Is Dead and finally Strangeways, Here We Come ) and three compilation albums (Hatful of Hollow, The World Won’t Listen and Louder Than Bombs). Meat Is Murder went on to enter the British charts at number one in February of 1985, and The Queen Is Dead further confirmed the band’s popularity with its release in spring 1986. Greeted with enthusiastic reviews and peaking at number two on the U.K. charts, the album also developed The Smiths’ cult following in the U.S., breaking into the Top 100.

After the band’s split in 1987, a further six albums have been released, bringing the total number of Smiths albums to 13. These albums consisted of another five compilation albums (‘Best … I’, ‘…Best II’, ‘Singles’, ‘The Very Best of the Smiths’ and ‘The Sound Of The Smiths’), and one live album (‘Rank’) recorded before the band’s split during ‘The Queen Is Dead’ tour. Both ‘Best 1’ and ‘Best 2’ were heavily criticised by critics and some fans; however ‘The Very Best Of’, although with very similar content to said ‘Best’ albums, sold excellently, and drew much approval from critics.

The Smiths in popular culture

Tagged as:

indie, 80s, alternative, new wave, post-punk
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The Queen Is Dead
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Louder Than Bombs
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Meat Is Murder
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Top Tracks

1	There Is a Light That Never Goes Out	12,511
2	This Charming Man	8,561
3	How Soon Is Now?	7,276
4	Bigmouth Strikes Again	6,747
5	The Boy With the Thorn in His Side	5,353
6	Hand in Glove	5,244
7	Heaven Knows I'm Miserable Now	5,036
8	Please, Please, Please, Let Me Get What I Want	4,997
9	Panic	4,980
10	William, It Was Really Nothing	4,489
11	Ask	4,399
12	Girlfriend in a Coma	4,157
13	Still Ill	3,981
14	Some Girls Are Bigger Than Others	3,437
15	That Joke Isn't Funny Anymore	3,406

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Kaytleah22 wrote:
4 hours ago

love The Smiths,anyone wanna webcam chat? the link is in my profile.

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schelyekhov wrote:
yesterday evening

Miserable Lie

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Simon_FM wrote:
yesterday evening

Suffer Little Children.

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anjaa_a wrote:
yesterday evening

Shakespeare's Sister :)

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paradooxo wrote:
yesterday evening

girl afraid ♥

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raphaeloce wrote:
yesterday evening

they're saving my life right now... [2]

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mathesudo wrote:
yesterday afternoon

I am human and i need to be loved Just like everybody else does ♥

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alma_matters wrote:
yesterday afternoon

Who said the smiths are a one-hit wonder?? that expression should be used for bands that have ONE big commercial hit and then disappear. The Smiths never had that many commercial hits - I don't think they ever had a number one single, for instance . And of course, during their short career they produced 4 great studio albums and b-sides. However no-one can convince me that Death at one's elbow is a great song - I always skip that one. together with golden lights and a few more. Having said that they are my favorite band and Morrissey my favorite artist. As for Morrissey solo vs. smiths I believe the songs he wrote with Stephen Street (who co- produced meat is murder and the queen is dead) are the closest to the smiths sound - So I'd say Viva Hate and Bona Drag. Your arsenal is a great, album but more Rock, imo.

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Our_Lunacy wrote:
yesterday afternoon

Morrissey's solo stuff is completely differently, well not completely, but the music is different, and that's a large portion of the Smiths. Your Arsenal is probably the closest to a Smiths sound, everything else tends to be quite a bit more "produced" (added sounds, studio effects and things).

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girafa_sergio wrote:
yesterday afternoon

don't make the smiths a one-hit wonder because they are not.

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joeyknows wrote:
yesterday afternoon

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6y0wWE-TnCc so good! =]

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alma_matters wrote:
Tuesday evening

Suedehead, everyday is like sunday,all the songs on the Vauxhall & I album are better than many Smiths songs. In fact they are so great that sometimes less informed journalists even mention them as Smiths classics, when reviewing gigs.

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vihreakuolema wrote:
Tuesday afternoon

It's bizarre that liking the band a lot doesn't equate to liking Morissey's solo stuff. For Christmas I got Morrisey's new album on the pretense that I told him I liked/asked for the Smiths vinyl... I haven't opened the vinyl but I can't really exchange it...

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jamesflynn17 wrote:
Tuesday morning

it's only wrong if it matters to you what people think

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mercercy wrote:
Tuesday morning

Is it wrong that I like this band, yet can't stand Morrissey's solo work?

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gabu2ma wrote:
Tuesday morning

why isn't asleep in the top tracks... such a sad and real song... there is another world, a better world, there must be... genius

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tinosoft89 wrote:
Tuesday morning

Morrisey come back with The Smiths http://bit.ly/930NmR

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Kawww wrote:
Tuesday morning

Never listened to their music before now. This sounds great.

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francis_pt wrote:
Tuesday morning

they're saving my life right now

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boingocure wrote:
Monday evening

The Smiths gave me something that I won't forget too soon...

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