 |
    |
|
|
| At the beginning of the '80s, both the British pop and independent charts were filled with synth-pop, goth-rock, and lightweight new wave. In this climate, {The Smiths}' first single, "Hand in Glove," caused a quiet revolution. With their first album and singles, {The Smit |
 |
|
|
|
|
 | Singles
Released: 1995 |
|
|
|
At the beginning of the '80s, both the British pop and independent charts were filled with synth-pop, goth-rock, and lightweight new wave. In this climate, {The Smiths}' first single, "Hand in Glove," caused a quiet revolution. With their first album and singles, {The Smiths} led rock & roll into a new era, where songs were again of the utmost importance, guitars replaced synthesizers as the prominent instrument on the pop and indie charts, and where lyrics were unabashedly personal and poetic; in short, they helped post-punk become alternative rock. In their native England, the band were superstars; each of their albums hit the Top Ten. America never warmed to their distinctly British sensibility, yet they did earn a sizable cult following across the USA. Ten years after the release of their first album, their influence is still substantial; from {The Stone Roses} to {Suede}, the Smiths were the root of nearly every significant development in British music since 1984.
At its core, {The Smiths}' music was pure guitar-based pop/rock, recalling hooks and textures from the '60s. While their music was rooted in British pop, it also borrowed significantly from the energy and independence of punk; it never sounded dated or derivative. {Morrissey}'s yearning voice and literate lyrics complimented {Johnny Marr}'s understated, textured guitar to the point where the two were inseparable. {Marr} had a skill for writing melodic hooks that sounded simple and direct, yet were a incredibly complex web of interweaving guitar lines. But {Morrissey} was the focal point of the band. Some critics accused him of being tuneless, yet he was a great vocalist, effortlessly conveying the exaggerated angst and self-depricating humor of his words with unusual, unexpected pitches and phrasing. {Morrissey}'s introspective lyrics strongly connected with disaffected youth around the world, yet they aren't adolescent; beneath his grandly dramatic vocals, there is genuine emotion, humor, melancholy, and compassion in {Morrissey}'s writing.
The songwriting team of {Morrissey} and Marr was remarkably inventive and prolific; during their brief four-year career, {The Smiths} released four proper albums, several non-LP singles and B-sides, and two singles compilations. All of their material was remarkably consistent, proving the band's mastery of pop songwriting.
{The Smiths} broke up in early fall of 1987, just before the release of their fourth and final album, "Strangeways Here We Come." Bassist {Andy Rourke} and drummer {Mike Joyce} supported {Sinead O'Connor} for a time; {Joyce} eventually joined the reunited {Buzzcocks}. {Marr} went on to work with {The Pretenders}, The The, and Electronic. {Morrissey} began a solo career that proved just as popular as {The Smiths}'.
Bio written by: mr_mac |
|
|
| |
|  |
|
Discussion Topic
|
Creator
|
Favorite Smiths song?
I have many.. "Girlfriend in a
Coma", "Pretty Girls Make
Graves", "Panic",
"There is a Light that Never Goes
Out", "How Soon is Now",
"Asleep", "Girl
Afraid"...
ggggggggggggaaaaaaaaawd
I love the Smiths!
|
nausea |
| |
Replys
|
Listener
| | that joke isnt funny any more | bloodstains | | i LOVE girlfriend in a coma! | the_chicken_did_it | And it goes on...i would have to go
with..."THIS NIGHT HAS OPENED MY
EYES" | sufferlilchildren85 | Asleep, at the minute :) ooh and the boy with
a throrn in his side | Hopeisimportant | I don't really have a favourite Smiths
song...I just like to listen to the CDs all
the way through...too indecisive to chose
one. But anyone heard the Interlude duet with
Siouxsie Sioux? I suppose that would be my
favourite at the moment, but I'm sure it
will wear off soon. | SyntheticxDreams | Ohh, that’s impossible..*But* for the sake of
showing some Smiths love, I’ll say “Heaven
Knows I‘m Miserable Now.” Just because that’s
what’s playing at the moment. (All of the
songs previously mentioned are phenomenal, as
well.) | cLaNdEsTiNeGiRl | | This Charming Man | reptilia | | ShopLifters Of The World Unite ! | 2-Tone-Army | ahmm i love "paint a vulgar
picture", "panic" and
"pretty girls make graves"
"meat is murder" andd a whole
lot more! i love everything by the smiths! | clarisa_es_un_alien | There is a light that never goes out, heaven
knows I'm miserable now, ask... the list
goes on and on | Poem_On-A-Dog_Biscuit | heaven knows im miserable now....
| reptilia | My favorites are "Shoplifters of the
World Unite", "How Soon Is
Now?", "This Charming
Man", and "Handsome
Devil" and last but certainly not
least "Shakespeare's
Sister"
Smiths are totally awesome! | celtictwilight | I couldn't choose my favorite so I chose
three:
This Charming Man
William It Was Really Nothing
Well, I Wonder | NicoDaunt | | | |
|
|
|
|
|
Add to Profile
