The Smiths – Hatful of Hollow (1984)

From wiki:-

Hatful of Hollow is a compilation album by English rock band The Smiths, released on 12 November 1984by Rough Trade Records. The album features BBC Radio 1 studio recordings and two contemporary singles with their B-sides.

The album consists mainly of songs recorded over several BBC Radio 1 sessions in 1983. Tracks shown with an asterisk were included on the album.

1. For John Peel on 18 May 1983 (broadcast 31 May): “Handsome Devil*”, “Reel Around the Fountain*”, “Miserable Lie”, “What Difference Does It Make?*” (all four songs were later released as the Peel Sessions EP)
2. For David Jensen on 26 June 1983 (broadcast 4 July): “These Things Take Time*”, “You’ve Got Everything Now*”, “Wonderful Woman”
3. For Jensen on 25 August, 1983 (broadcast 5 September): “Accept Yourself*”, “I Don’t Owe You Anything”, “Pretty Girls Make Graves”, “Reel Around the Fountain”
4. For Peel on 14 September, 1983 (broadcast 21 September): “This Charming Man*”, “Back to the Old House*”, “This Night Has Opened My Eyes*”, “Still Ill*”

When first broadcast, these radio sessions mainly featured songs which were otherwise unavailable. All were subsequently re-recorded for singles or for the band’s debut album the following year. “This Night Has Opened My Eyes” was recorded in the studio in June 1984, but the only version ever released was the September Peel session.

Hatful of Hollow also features the band’s debut single, “Hand in Glove”, and their two most recent singles prior to the album’s release, “Heaven Knows I’m Miserable Now” and “William, It Was Really Nothing”, along with their respective B-sides, “Girl Afraid”, “How Soon Is Now?” and “Please Please Please Let Me Get What I Want”.

The radio session versions of songs are different from other studio recordings. Some of the major differences are:

• “What Difference Does It Make?” has heavier and more natural-sounding guitars than the version on The Smiths. It is also in a higher key than the version on The Smiths.
• “These Things Take Time” features bass that is more prominent and drums that are less controlled than in the version from the “What Difference Does It Make?” 12″ single. Sliding guitar figures accompany the chorus.
• “This Charming Man” has softer and more upbeat vocals, guitars and even drums than the version released as a single and on some versions of The Smiths. The bass line is louder and altered slightly. Additionally, there is no solo guitar introduction.
• “Still Ill” opens and closes with a harmonica solo, and sounds less hollow and slightly slower than the version on The Smiths.
• “You’ve Got Everything Now” is slower than the version on The Smiths and does not have any keyboard part. The bass line is also altered slightly.
• “Back to the Old House” is an acoustic piece with melancholic guitars and vocals, as opposed to the full band version on the “What Differences Does It Make?” single.
• “Reel Around the Fountain” has duller-sounding drums and acoustic guitars than the version on The Smiths. The bass is more prominent, but the piano and organ parts are not included. It is also in a higher key than the version on The Smiths.

In addition, the original single version of “Hand in Glove” is included, not the remixed version that appears on The Smiths. It features a fade-intro and fade-out, louder bass, and vocals that sound very distant.

JC adds……

That’s your facts.

These days, Hatful of Hollow is the Smiths release I’ll lean on as my go-to album as it takes me back to the innocent and wonderful era when the band was being discovered.  All those radio sessions had been recorded onto cassette by someone or other in our ‘gang’, and numerous copies were made and passed around, with ever decreasing sound qualities and ever-increasing hissing.  I’m not sure that all the recordings were even in stereo.

It all meant that when the debut album was released in February 1984, it felt something of an anti-climax as so many of the songs were familiar, and indeed, even though the sound quality of the home-made cassettes was lousy, we felt the radio sessions were better versions.

The release of Hatful of Hollow in November 1984 went a long way to rectifying matters.

One other reason for looking back on this album so fondly?   It was responsible for my first ever written review of any album, thanks to the editor of the Strathclyde Telegraph, the University’s student newspaper, asking me to come up with a couple of hundred words.  I think he did so as he knew I had a copy of the album and there was so much interest in the group that he felt it better feature, even though Rough Trade hadn’t sent one in for review purposes.

Unfortunately, I no longer have a copy of the review….which I’m sort of glad about as no doubt it was appallingly written….but it was good for the ego to see my name in print.

mp3:  The Smiths – This Night Has Opened My Eyes

As wiki states, Hatful of Hollow was the only place that this track, which was an essential part of so many of the early live shows, was ever given a release.

Oh, and it shouldn’t be forgotten that three of the band’s best and subsequently most enduring studio recordings, previously only available as b-sides, were included on the album.

JC

A few weeks back, I posed a question about whether The Smiths should make a reappearance on TVV after more than five years.  I was trying to read the room, as I felt I couldn’t really look at the musical happenings of 1983 without bringing the band into consideration.

A lively debate/discussion ensued via the comments section, with diverse opinions on offer. Many of those who contributed have been long time supporters of the blog, either through regular comments or guest postings, and it soon became apparent that whatever I decided upon, I was going to disappoint a few close friends.

Overall, it felt that most who engaged with the post did think it was possible to detach the art from the artist, with a number of folk making the point that The Smiths were much more than just one member. This, from my dear friend flimflanfan, really hit home:-

“The Smiths were a big part of 1983. I think you should consider their inclusion. That would be an accurate account of then – not now. The achievements of The Smiths other band members deserve to be spoken about without the shadow of the singer’s appalling beliefs. I still can’t listen to The Smiths, but hope in time that I might be able to. The singer’s songs? No. They won’t be listened to again.”

So, when the time comes, the 1983 series will feature The Smiths.

When I came up with the idea of the series looking at the changing cost of vinyl, I wondered whether the change of attitude from many towards The Smiths had resulted in any downward spiral in the prices being asked.

Given that I bought just about everything back in the 80s, I’ve never had to dip into the Discogs market other than for one 12″ single, which I failed to get at the time of release, but much later picked up a second hand copy (in near mint condition for the vinyl and the sleeve) for £6.99, plus P&P, in March 2008:-

mp3: The Smiths – Last Night I Dreamt That Somebody Loved Me

The asking price for the version I have, and rated as near mint/near mint, is in the vicinity of £50.  Copies with sleeve wear and a vinyl assessment of Very Good+, are about half that price.

The increase in cost, in fifteen years, is over 600%, all of which can be attributed to the vinyl revival that was only just beginning to take shape back in 2008.

It’s frightening.

The two b-sides were taken from a session recorded for the John Peel Show in August 1984.

mp3 : The Smiths – Nowhere Fast (Peel Session)
mp3 : The Smiths – Rusholme Ruffians (Peel Session)

It was genuinely strange to listen to these three songs again after so long.  But it’ll still be the very occasional dip into the band’s back catalogue, rather than their singles or albums being on heavy rotation here in Villain Towers.

Oh, and the comeback just happens to be at the same time as I happen to be in Manchester for a few days…..

JC

…..in a hotel room in Manchester, having come down on the train yesterday.  It’s a three night stay, the purpose of which is to catch up with a few folk for the first time in years, including Swiss Adam.  There’s also a visit planned to the above building to take in what, by all accounts, is an excellent exhibition on the early years of Factory Records.

I did think about offering up a Factory band of some sorts today, but then I thought I’d go back to an old favourite.  A band who haven’t been featured on the blog since ICA 150 back in December 2017.  A band I no longer listen to at all, dating back to not long after that posting for very obvious reasons.  And while I really miss the brilliance of their songs, it really is a point of principle.  But, given that I am in their home city and the mode of transport used to get me here, and of course the very important fact that this song is an instrumental,  I’ll enjoy this today:-

mp3: The Smiths – The Draize Train

A few folk I know have emptied their collection of the singles and albums by The Smiths as well as the material issued throughout the singer’s solo career.   I haven’t quite been able to go that far.

JC

The first ICA was 19 June 2014. It featured The Smiths. Little did I know how popular the series would become or just how many fantastic guest contributions it would result in. Now that the series has hit #150, allow me a little self-indulgence with a long-overdue Volume 2:-

Side A

1. Girl Afraid

To me, the great single that never was. There are some critics out there who feel the tune is let down by a trite and simplistic lyric. Maybe it was one that Morrissey wasn’t completely convinced by and so it ended up initially as the extra track on the 12” release of Heaven Knows I’m Miserable Now. It was one of the first of the second batch of songs that fans got to enjoy (i.e. it wasn’t on the debut album nor had it been aired on a BBC radio session) and to those of us who liked to throw ourselves all over the student union dance floor, it was deemed an instant classic. It’s still one that I love to air whenever I’m lucky enough to be putting together playlists for club nights. The lengthy instrumental introduction set a standard for indie music that very few, if any, matched over the remainder of the decade.

2. The Boy With The Thorn In His Side

Released in August 1985. One that annoyed me back in the day for the heinous crime of having a promo video. Morrissey’s multiple statements from 1983 that The Smiths would never make a video to accompany any 45 had meant a lot when they were uttered. In an era when big-name bands were on what seemed like a suicidal mission to outspend one another on lavishly filmed features complete with nonsensical storylines in which the musicians were free to deploy abysmal acting and lip-synching skills, that my band were different was something to be proud and boastful about. I was such a sensitive prick in those days.

I also felt, back in the day, that this was one of the weaker tracks on The Queen Is Dead, mostly as there were so many other songs that would have made better 45s. As time has gone on, it has become one of my favourite numbers in the entire back catalogue – it’s one of the best examples of Johnny Marr’s quietly understated guitar work that is perfectly complemented by a gentle and whimsical vocal delivery.

3. This Charming Man

This didn’t make the first ICA? Really???? It seems not……

Just to be different, I’ve gone for the ‘London’ version of the song. Worth mentioning that Johnny wrote the tune, partly as a response to being slightly jealous that Aztec Camera were enjoying chart success. The London version was the first stab at cutting the 45 but was discarded for version recorded a few days later back up north in Stockport. There’s a great on-line description of the song which states “Early Elvis would have approved of the music, Wilde of the words”. Wish I’d thought of that back in the day.

4. I Know It’s Over

It was tempting at this point, having gone Girl, Boy, Man to launch into Wonderful Woman, and then perhaps complete side A with a name check for Jeane, Sheila,William or Mr Shankly. But I take these things seriously!!

Ballads were important to the band and their fans; the quality of the slow songs, from the very beginning, marked out just how special and unique The Smiths were. This was only kept off Volume 1, by the very slimmest of margins, by Last Night I Dreamt That Somebody Loved Me. I sometimes look at ICA1 and think I might have got it wrong. But only sometimes.

5. You Just Haven’t Earned It Yet Baby

One of the songs that benefitted from there being a fifth, temporary member of the band in the shape of Craig Gannon. It’s one that was initially thought of as a possible single in 1987 but had such a spectacular fall from grace in terms of the politics of the band that it was never ever performed live nor featured in any radio or TV performances. Johnny, realising that he had written something rather special (again!!) was more than happy to return to the studio the following year and contribute to a superb version by his good pal Kirsty MacColl. Even Morrissey would, belatedly, acknowledge its worth by including his own solo version within a live CD released in 2009.

Side B

1. A Rush and a Push and The Land Is Ours

The strange ghost story piano number that opens up the band’s final album is ridiculously camp, even by Moz standards. But it’s one of his best, and I’ve always considered the couplet “There’s too much caffeine in your bloodstream / And a lack of real spice in your life” as being laugh-out loud for all the right reasons. And having, at the time, just gotten through a rather messy break-up of my own, I empathised entirely with not wanting to mention love as I hated the pain and the strain all over again.

It’s a song that gives an indication of just where the band could have gone to with a sixth and subsequent studio LP is they hadn’t combusted so spectacularly.

2. London

In complete contrast, here’s Johnny wigging out big-style on the guitar. Fast, furious and as frenetic as a late-running Virgin Train West Coast Line service trying desperately to make up time as it speeds onto Euston. It’s two minutes of musical mayhem and it’s also one of Morrissey’s most clever lyrics as he faced up to his critics, such as the late Tony Wilson, who weren’t happy that the band had decamped south in pursuit of their career. I’m sure there was plenty of jealousy in the eyes of the ones who had to stay behind and look on as The Smiths churned out one great song after another. I’ve included the rarer John Peel session version in this ICA, not on the grounds that it is superior, but just because it seems only right to have it feature just ahead of something else that is different…..

3. Reel Around The Fountain

A website dedicated to all things Smiths/Moz provides the following info:-

“The song was written in the spring of 1983. It was first professionally recorded on 18 May 1983 for the band’s first appearance on John Peel’s BBC programme (first broadcast on 31 May 1983), with producer Roger Pusey. It was professionally recorded again in July/August 1983 at London’s Elephant Studios with producer Troy Tate during the initial sessions for the band’s debut album.

It was recorded again on 25 August 1983 for the band’s second appearance on David Jensen’s BBC programme (first broadcast on 5 September 1983), with producer John Porter. However, because of controversy, the song was banned by the BBC and this version of “Reel Around The Fountain” was not broadcast until two years later when the whole session was repeated on Janice Long’s programme.

The definitive version was recorded in mid-October 1983 at Pluto Studios in Manchester, with producer John Porter. Additional mixing was done during sessions in November 1983 at Eden Studios in London.”

A flatmate had captured, in high quality, that first Peel session and that was the version of the song that I knew so well by the time the debut album was released. It was a fragile sounding song that ran to almost six minutes in length and felt like nothing else that any other band had ever recorded. I’ve no idea how many times I ended up copying this onto compilation tapes over the summer of 1983 as I desperately wanted to share it with everyone. The studio version on the debut LP, which was much more polished and accomplished, lost something along the way.

I’ve therefore gone for the middle ground and fished out the lesser known Jensen session from August/September 83. It’s one that captures the band on the cusp of true greatness.

4. Sweet and Tender Hooligan

The Smiths weren’t strangers to the BBC studios, broadcasting on four Peel Sessions (May 83, September 83, August 84 and December 86) as well as two Jensen sessions (July 83 and September 83). A number of these performances, going back to This Night Has Opened My Eyes in 1983, became the only time they were ever officially released songs either as tracks on compilation albums or b-sides, thus demonstrating just how seriously they took such events and how, having felt the radio sessions couldn’t be bettered, they never really returned to them in the studio.

This is a close cousin to London in that Johnny plays very hard and fast while Andy Rourke and Mike Joyce work hard to keep up with him. Its inclusion in the set list for Morrissey’s frantic and chaotic solo debut in Wolverhampton in 1988, in which he was backed by the duo as well as Craig Gannon, has always seemed as s two-fingered gesture at Johnny as if to say that the band was capable of continuing without him.

5. These Things Take Time

Indeed they do. Another classic b-side from the early days. “The most inept that ever stared”. I love that line so much.  Substitute ‘typed’ for stared and that’s sometimes how I feel in 2017!

JC

The last night of the fair
By the big wheel generator
A boy is stabbed, his money is grabbed
And the air hangs heavy like a dulling wine

The last night of the fair
She is famous, she is funny
An engagement ring doesn’t mean a thing
To a mind consumed by brass(money)

And though I walk home alone
Though I walk home alone
My faith in love is still devout
Though I walk home alone
My faith in love is still devout

The last night of the fair
From a seat on a whirling waltzer
Her skirt ascends for a watching eye
It’s a hideous trait on her mother’s side

The last night of the fair
From a seat on a whirling waltzer
Her skirt ascends for a watching eye
It’s a hideous trait on her mother’s side

And though I walk home alone
Though I walk home alone
My faith in love is still devout
I may walk home alone
My faith in love is still devout

Then someone falls in love and and someone’s beaten up
Someone falls in love
The pulses being beat are mine

And someone falls in love
And someone’s beaten up, someone’s beaten up
And the senses being dulled are mine

And tonight I will walk home alone
I will walk home alone
But still my faith in love is still devout
Though I woke home alone
I may walk home alone
My faith in love is still devout

This the last night of the fair
And by the big wheel generator
A boy is stabbed and his money is grabbed
And the air hangs heavy like a dulling wine

She is famous, she is funny
An engagement ring doesn’t mean a thing
To a mind consumed by brass(money)

Though I walk home alone
Yes I might walk home alone
Sill, my faith in love is still devout
I might walk home alone tonight
My faith in love is still devout

So scratch my name on your arm with a fountain pen
This means you really love me
Scratch my name on your arm with a fountain pen
This means you really love me

And then… I might walk home alone
I might walk home alone
But my faith in love is still devout
My faith in love is still devout
My faith in love is still devout

This is the last night of the fair
And the grease in the hair of the speedway operator
Is it all a tremulous heart requires?
A girl is denied
She said: “How quickly would I die if I jumped from the top of the parachutes?”

This is the last night of the fair
And the grease in the hair of a speedway operator
Is all a tremulous heart requires
A girl who is denied says
“How quickly would I if I jumped from the top of the parachutes?”

Please….scratch my name on your arm with a fountain pen
And this means you really love me
Scratch my name on your arm with a fountain pen
And this means you really love me

And yes, I walk home alone
I might walk home alone
But still, my faith in love is still devout

mp3 : The Smiths – Rusholme Ruffians (early version)

Indeed.

JC

The latest installment in the monthly series looking back at the songs which were #1 in the indie charts on the first day of the month 30, 20 and 10 years ago.

Last month gave us what you would imagine to be an atypical trio of indie hits over the decades with New Order, Oasis and Arctic Monkeys featuring. September 1987 continues in a similar vein but the #1s from the following two decades are as far from indie as you can imagine….especially 2007.

1 September 1987 : mp3 : The Smiths – Girlfriend In A Coma

Some four weeks prior, the UK weekly newspaper NME had exclusively revealed the break-up of The Smiths just as the band were preparing to promote the first single to be lifted from their fourth studio LP although details were hazy.  The story was followed up a week later with the revelation that guitarist Johnny Marr had left the band (or been sacked depending on the spin you believed) but that a replacement was being sought to allow things to carry on as normal.  It was a bizarre time for fans of the band and things weren’t really helped with the first exposure to the new single which, at just over 2 mins in length and with a nonsensical lyric over a lightweight tune, isn’t easy to fall in love….well, not until repeated exposure and then you realise there is some wonderful guitar playing within it as well as the hints of strings, albeit synthetically reproduced thanks to electronica. It’s grown on me over the years but I still think it is one of, if not the, weakest single the band released back in the day.

1 September 1997 :  Tina Moore – Never Gonna Let You Go

I have no idea what this sounds like…can’t recall it at all.  Nope.  Think it’s the first time I’ve ever heard it.  It’s ghastly.  Turning to wiki:-

“Never Gonna Let You Go” is a single by American singer Tina Moore. Originally released in 1995, the song reached #27 on the Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart. In 1997, a UK garage remix of the song by Kelly G was released and became a Top 10 hit in the UK, peaking at #7 on the UK Singles Chart.

DJ Magazine ranked it number 62 in their list of Top 100 Club Tunes in 1998. MTV Dance placed “Never Gonna Let You Go” at #92 in their list of The 100 Biggest 90’s Dance Anthems Of All Time in November 2011.

If you must listen…..

It qualified for the indie charts via that loophole I mentioned in an earlier posting;

“Inclusion on the indie chart was always about distribution. Initially, the record needed to be delivered by a distribution service that was independent of the four major record companies: EMI, Sony Music Entertainment, Warner Music Group and Universal Music Group and the genre of music was irrelevant. The major labels however got round this by setting up subsidiary labels and outsourcing the shipping of those singles to smaller distribution services.

It took until June 2009 to close this loophole when the industry altered the rules so that in addition to distribution criteria a single was only eligible for the Indie Chart is it was on a label that was at least fifty per cent owned by an entity that was not one of the main four record companies.”

Tina Moore was on a subsidiary of Warner Bros.

But here’s probably the best possible example of the rules being bent….

1 September 2007 : Elvis Presley – My Baby Left Me

If you look this up, you’ll find that it’s a song that dates back to 1950 and that Elvis Presley recorded and released it in 1956 as a b-side to I Want You, I Need You, I Love You.  I have no idea why it was released as a single in 1997 – it was of course the 20th anniversary of his death and it could well have been related to that.  It was put out on Memphis Recordings but let’s face the facts….Elvis was really part of RCA Records most of his career up until his death and so all recordings can be traced back to whichever multinational was in ownership of the songs in 2007 (I think it was Sony).

Much more of these outcomes and I’ll be dropping this series for breaching trading standards descriptions.

JC

ORIGINALLY POSTED ON TUESDAY 25 MARCH 2008

(and again on 31 October 2013)

The position of this song in the chart will come as a shock to many regular readers and to those who have known me for many years. There’s at least one mate who tipped it to be #1….

I was fortunate enough to be around when The Smiths first came to prominence. They remain my all-time favourite band, and I don’t think they will ever lose that particular mantle however long I manage to live.

I was present at their first ever gig in Scotland – at the Queen Margaret Union in Glasgow on Saturday 2nd March 1984. This was a truly astonishing night in a small student-venue that was packed to the rafters. It was very hot, sweaty and tightly-packed and it is probably the nearest I’ve ever came to passing-out at a concert.

The Smiths had not long cracked the Top 20 with their third single What Difference Does It Make?, while their recently-released debut LP had gone Top 10. So they were hardly a secret.

The venue was woefully inadequate for the demand for tickets, and there were dozens of folk outside pleading for the lucky few to sell for way over the cost (which I can’t recall, but was no more than £4 or £5). The level of expectancy was enormous, and the build-up to the band taking the stage bordered on insane hysteria. I’d never experienced anything like it beforehand, and never again since (although the first five minutes down the front of the Morrissey ‘comeback gig’ at the MEN Arena in 2003 came awfully close).

Steven, Johnny, Mike and Andy took to the stage to a crescendo of noise – I was worried that the crowd was so loud that we wouldn’t hear anything above it. The opening notes of Hand In Glove were struck – if anything this only cranked up the atmosphere. The one song that those of us who had been in from the start adored above all else – the song that had been the flop single with the controversial nude male on the sleeve – and the song that seemed more than anything to sum-up what was a truly unique relationship between the band and its fans.

And that is why Hand In Glove is my all time favourite single by my all time favourite band.

And because it is my favourite, I was prepared to pay a fair amount of money to pick up a mint copy of the single on e-bay as a replacement for the one lost all those years ago in Edinburgh. Let’s face it, the b-side, which to my knowledge has never appeared on any subsequent compilation, is every bit as amazing:-

mp3 : The Smiths – Hand In Glove
mp3 : The Smiths – Handsome Devil (live at The Hacienda)

As with The Wedding Present, there would have been multiple entries for The Smiths in this chart were it not for the one single per artist rule that I set. In fact as much as one-quarter of the chart could have been a Morrissey/Marr compilation.

I surprised myself when I identified six other 45s that were even more of a favourite than this.

You’ll soon learn what they are over the coming days, but I suspect that many of you will be beginning to narrow it down pretty accurately.

 

A GUEST POSTING FROM DAVE GLICKMAN

For the second OCD EP, I have chosen The Smiths. Maybe I went a bit overboard with the foreshadowing in the previous installment, but I’ll leave that type of literary analysis to future generations of academics who choose to study the golden age of indie music blogging.

A much more challenging task to narrow things down this time, as over the years, quite a bit of previously unreleased material has been “leaked” on the internet – a couple sets of recordings from the aborted Troy Tate sessions for the debut album, unreleased BBC radio sessions, and various demos, outtakes and alternative versions of songs spanning the lifetime of the band. Everything in my Smiths’ library is generally accessible on the internet, so if you are hoping for A Matter of Opinion or the complete version of I Want a Boy for My Birthday, then I am sorry to disappoint you. For the most part, in what follows, I’ve chosen to focus on what I find interesting, not necessarily most enjoyable or better than the official released versions.

Side One

1. Accept Yourself (Troy Tate alternate vocal and piano version)

In his book “The Songs That Saved Your Life,” Simon Goddard mentions two different versions of Accept Yourself from the Troy Tate debut album sessions. Of this second version we have here, he says:

“…the second version being particularly impressive with its staccato rock ‘n’ roll piano punches during the pre-chorus breakdowns, Morrissey’s doubled vocal and some enlivening falsetto shrieks.”

There is certainly something to the piano work that could have found its way into later versions, but obviously didn’t. As for the alternative vocals, I suspect everyone involved was comfortable moving in a different direction.

2. The Queen Is Dead (original unedited version)

To be consistent with the overall theme of this EP, I should really put the trumpet version of Frankly, Mr. Shankly here. However, while unique, I just don’t find it that interesting a listen. So instead, here is the complete, high octane version of TQID, before the decision was made to trim it down a bit for the album. It’s all the greatness you’ve come to expect from the song, with 17% more free!

Side Two

3. Never Had No One Ever (studio outtake)

It’s not that I don’t like the album version of this song, it’s just that I Know It’s Over is a very tough act to follow. However, when I first heard this version with the extended trumpet solo and Morrissey’s moans and laughing, it was a complete revelation. There was a bluesy lounge song hidden there all this time just waiting to get out. This is one case where I think the alternative version (fully worked up) might actually have worked well in place of the official album track.

4. Sheila Take A Bow (original John Porter version)

I don’t really have anything to add to Analog Loyalist’s notes from when this track originally leaked:

“One of the more famous episodes in Smiths session history, this song was originally produced by John Porter, signed, sealed and delivered, ready to go. Then for whatever reason the band had a rethink, decamped to another studio with Stephen Street, and re-recorded the song (sampling some of Porter’s guitar work in the process, to save time – which miffed Porter, understandably, since they never asked for permission).

This original version is much more jangly, with Porter on emulated sitar, while the final Street take is all T.Rex‘ed out. Marr’s zingy guitars are all over the stereo field and it’s really a wonderful recording. It’s almost as if Porter knew this was the last time he’d be working with the band (it was), so he had Marr lay down 30 times more guitars than normal as a parting gift.”

5. Girlfriend In A Coma (early take)

It’s the Bob Marley version.

Dave

Not only is this a fantastically funny, upbeat and wonderful single, you flip it over and find two quite special b-sides:-

mp3 : The Smiths – Sheila Take A Bow
mp3 : The Smiths – Is It Really So Strange?
mp3 : The Smiths – Sweet and Tender Hooligan

Here’s some facts and background info.

It was released in April 1987, reaching No. 10 in the UK Singles Chart, their highest chart single placing while The Smiths were together.

Morrissey‘s original idea had been to bring back Sandie Shaw to be a second vocalist on the track but after she had recorded her vocals, that version was scrapped. Sandie was not happy in being reduced to what she perceived just to be a backing vocalist. Another early version of the track was produced by John Porter but it was also deemed unsatisfactory, this time by the band. It featured a prominent sitar-sounding riff:-

mp3 : The Smiths – Sheila Take A Bow (John Porter version)

Stephen Street came on board. He scrapped the sitar (which had been played by Porter) and instead used a brief audio clip of a marching temperance band from the 1954 film Hobson’s Choice in the song’s intro.

Oh and to complete the catalogue of woes, the scheduled promo video had to be scrapped at the 11th hour when Morrissey refused to show up for the taping.

The two b-sides were lifted from a John Peel session recorded and aired in late December 1986. Just as well as the band never got round to recording and releasing their own studio versions of what are rather outstanding songs.

In the midst of life we are in debt, etc.

The first of a new series.

It’s inspired in part by the fact that a framed limited edition copy of the above print, signed by the photographer, hangs directly above the space in my house where I have the PC and where I try my best to come up with entertaining words for this blog. It was given to me a year ago yesterday as a 50th birthday present by a dear friend and occasional contributor to the old blog, Mr John Greer.

It’s strange that while The Smiths remain my all time favourite band, I don’t write about them all that much these days, albeit there is a regular series on Morrissey being re-used as filler for posts on Sundays. I thought I’d address the situation by featuring the band in the first of what will be a very occasional series in which I take one of my favourite bands or singers and list what I think would make the idea ‘Best of’ album with a few words on why. The only proviso is that I’m going to do it as a proper old-fashioned LP…10 tracks in total with an A-side and a B-side and it’s got to hang together like a proper LP and not just a collection of greatest hits. Without further ado, here’s my go at The Smiths:-

Side A

1. The Queen Is Dead (Original Unedited Version)
2. Still Ill
3. How Soon Is Now?
4. Rubber Ring
5. Asleep

Side B

1. The Headmaster Ritual
2. Last Night I Dreamt That Somebody Loved Me
3. Accept Yourself
4. Bigmouth Strikes Again
5. There Is A Light That Never Goes Out

It’s taken about three hours of humming and hawing and numerous changes of mind before I settled on the above. There are loads of songs that I can’t believe didn’t make the final cut which may well invite ridicule from other fans. But the logic is:-

1. The opening track is where any myth that The Smiths were just a singer and guitarist augmented by two session musicians is nailed once and for all….especially on this version with its extra 70 seconds or so of pulsating drums, bass and wah-wah guitar work

2. Self-deprecating and joyous; and impossible not to dance to.

3. Pride of place as the centrepiece of the all-important opening side of the album.

4. The band were better than most at recording something which, on the first few listens, sounded disposable and throwaway and yet with the passing of time revealed itself as something special. Rubber Ring is a tremendous example of this and perfectly complements what had come just before it on this imaginary LP

5. Because Asleep has to follow Rubber Ring. It is the law. And besides it’s time to show the band didn’t need guitars to be very special.

6. If the band had never written and recorded The Queen Is Dead then this was a stick-on to open the LP

7. Every LP recorded by The Smiths had its share of tear-jerking ballads. This is the one I’ve chosen, after much deliberation.

8. An early song thrown away on a 12″ b-side that has more than stood the test of time and long been a personal favourite

9. The song that marked the comeback after 18 months inactivity. It proved they still had it…and a joyous single that deserved to reach #1

10. It’s not a personal favourite but I can’t think of a better way to have a one-off record by the band beautifully fade out and leaving the listener wanting to pick up the vinyl, turn it over and start all over again.

mp3 : The Smiths – The Queen Is Dead (Original Unedited Version)
mp3 : The Smiths – Still Ill
mp3 : The Smiths – How Soon Is Now?
mp3 : The Smiths – Rubber Ring/Asleep
mp3 : The Smiths – The Headmaster Ritual
mp3 : The Smiths – Last Night I Dreamt That Somebody Loved Me
mp3 : The Smiths – Accept Yourself
mp3 : The Smiths – Bigmouth Strikes Again
mp3 : The Smiths – There Is A Light That Never Goes Out

That was incredibly difficult to do.