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In 1987, the Smiths released their final studio album, Strangeways, Here We Come. Named after a notorious (and now renamed) Manchesterprison, the first side of the album is regarded as superb by many fans, while the second side is maligned as evidence of the breakdown within the group.
About the album
The Smiths recorded what was to be their final studio album at the Wool Hall studios in Bath, England. Although still firmly an indie record, it finds the band (and especially musical director Johnny Marr) pushing the envelope as far as possible within those constraints, experimenting with overtly synthesizedsaxophone and string arrangements and drum machine additions.
Had this not been the band's final album, it would have been considered a transitional effort. Between the record's recording in March and its release in September, 1987, however, the band had broken up after Johnny Marr announced in August that he had left the band. Despite (or perhaps thanks to) the break-up shock, the album rose to No. 2 in the British and No. 55 in the American charts.
Strangeways, Here We Come may be The Smiths' last album, but it does not feature their last-ever recordings, as a final two songs were recorded in May 1987 to provide B-sides for the album's lead single, "Girlfriend in a Coma" (see the entry on "I Keep Mine Hidden", B-side for this single and the last song The Smiths ever recorded). Two more singles were taken off Strangeways, Here We Come; they were supplemented on their B-sides by archive recordings.
Cover
The sleeve for Strangeways, Here We Come, which was designed by Morrissey, features a murky shot of East of Eden co-star Richard Davalos.
Track-by-track description
The album starts off with "A Rush and a Push and the Land Is Ours", one of the few Smiths songs to feature no guitar. The track maintains the quality of "The Queen Is Dead", the opening track on the last Smiths studio album.
The second track is the guitar-laden "I Started Something I Couldn't Finish", a single which hit No. 23 in the UK. Both it and the first track feature some strange new glottal growling from Morrissey, which would appear again on his solo song "Hairdresser on Fire" and then never be heard from again.
"Death of a Disco Dancer", ostensibly about AIDS, is both uncharacteristic of the Smiths and pleasantly surprising. The first half of the song is filled with bass and is extremely subdued for a Smiths song. The second half features a demented Morrisseypiano part and a riveting drum solo from Mike Joyce. This song is the place where The Smiths' influence on Radiohead is most obvious.
The sleeve of "Girlfriend in a Coma" featuring playwrightShelagh Delaney.Track four, "Girlfriend in a Coma", is a tongue-in-cheek, music hall inflected song that clocks in at a mere two minutes and two seconds. Though "lightweight", the song is extremely catchy and features some excellent guitar work from Johnny Marr. Because of this, it was able to reach No. 13 in the UK.
The fifth track is the excellent "Stop Me if You've Heard This One Before". A classic Smiths song, it is considered by fans to be both funny and musically compelling.
The second side of the album represents a dramatic, mostly negative change in terms of quality and style.
"Last Night I Dreamt That Somebody Loved Me" commences with two minutes of noise from a riot with intermittent piano chords. It eventually develops into an emotional and powerful song, which when released (in a single edit) hit No. 30 in the United Kingdom.
This is followed by the by-the-books spite of "Unhappy Birthday", in which Morrissey revels in a fantasy about the untimely death of some unnamed adversary. With its upbeat and jangly guitars, the song is the one instance where lyrics and music do not sit happily together.
Next comes "Paint a Vulgar Picture", commonly considered the standout track from the second side. The story of a record company's attempt to make money from a dead pop star by touting his back-catalogue ("Reissue! Re-package!... Extra-Track and a tacky badge"), and of a devoted fan's reaction, it became embarrasingly ironic in the light of subsequent issuings of multiple Best of Smiths compilations.
"Death at One's Elbow", though jangly, is generally considered musically bleak, repetitive, and lyrically lacking.
The album concludes with "I Won't Share You", a simple and melodic song featuring only vocals, sparse bass notes and a fragile and distantly-recorded acoustic guitar part. Its lyrics contain a typically maudlin lament about the "sick and cruel" nature of life, alongside flashes of the self-aware pride associated with Morrissey ("with the drive and the dreams inside / this is my time"); the track is a fitting close to the career of the Smiths.
Track listing
All songs written by Morrissey/Marr.
LP
Side A
"A Rush and a Push and the Land Is Ours"
"I Started Something I Couldn't Finish"
"Death of a Disco Dancer"
"Girlfriend in a Coma"
"Stop Me If You Think You've Heard This One Before"
Stephen Street – additional drum machine programming on "I Started Something I Couldn't Finish", "Paint a Vulgar Picture" and "Death at One's Elbow", and strings arrangement for "Girlfriend in a Coma"
The sleeve notes list Orchestrazia Ardwick as being responsible for performance of the strings and saxophone arrangements; in reality, this is Johnny Marr and his synthesizer.
Technical staff
Johnny Marr, Morrissey and Stephen Street – producers
