They are a band that I liked a lot when I was younger. They are a band that I could never actually sit down and listen to today. They are a band that I don't mind hearing out somewhere. They are a band that is NOT CRAP

the smiths- okay

morrisey- total CRAP

i only have one album, The Queen Is Dead...i like it...don't really feel owning much of their other stuff to be terribly urgent/necessary...sometimes they can be pretty bland, sometimes pretty good...not crap, but far from amazing or anything like that...

Mr. Chimp wrote:Personally the Smiths bass player is in my top ten.

I love The Smiths and still listen to them regularly. They were my sole concession to "faggy" British 80's music of the semi-independent variety. The Cure? Heard one record and thought it was BORING (though their singles are okay). Echo & The Bunnymen? Never bothered. Bauhaus? Please. U2? I never understood why they were considered any better than Big Country or The Alarm, both of which I flirted with very briefly.

But The Smiths captured my imagination from the beginning, mainly because they sounded unlike anyone else and because, as "gay" as the singing was, the music absolutely kicked ass, albeit in a very lush, lyrical way. I agree that the bass playing is the foundation for everything, totally great, but all three musicians were ace. And Morrissey, however you judge him, was a singular something-or-other. Love him or hate him, he was audacious, a quality that goes a long way in being a successful rock frontman. He's also intelligent and articulate, which gives him a leg up (ulp!) on 90% of his lyrical competition.

If you ask me, and I realize you didn't, the three finest singles of the eighties (and by "singles," I mean songs you could actually here regularly on the radio) are as follows:

1. "Sweet Child o' Mine" by Guns N Roses
2. "When Doves Cry" by Prince & The Revolution
3. "There Is a Light That Never Goes Out" by The Smiths

robert thefamilyghost wrote:i only have one album, The Queen Is Dead...i like it...don't really feel owning much of their other stuff to be terribly urgent/necessary...sometimes they can be pretty bland, sometimes pretty good...not crap, but far from amazing or anything like that...

Robert, if you like that album, you can't go wrong with any of the others. The smiths never had "filler" on their records.

Brett Eugene Ralph wrote:3. "There Is a Light That Never Goes Out" by The Smiths

i prefer frankly mr. shankly.

speaking of echo and teh bunnymen... you should bother. they're pretty good.

Their singles are great, as are their albums, in an ENTIRELY different way. They're not crap for that alone.

Some of the best songwriters of the 80's, at the very least.

And Morrissey rocks. No one is like Morrissey. If you hear Morrissey, you think, "that's Morrissey". He is an uncompromising badass motherfucker.

I still listen to The Smiths all the time.

Not crap!

Their show in Dallas in 1986 -- the one where Morrissey danced around shirtless and sang about the Queen -- in the all-time top ten for me!

This is an easy one for me: CRAP!

Connor

I like the Smiths. Their songs are melodically compelling. Of course the Smiths are also super-mega-ultra gay. Still I like them, but don't put on their records too often.