The Smiths - The Queen Is Dead

This is the value of working at cross-purposes: The Smiths were Morrissey's excuse to undulate his wry, disaffected lyrics, and Johnny Marr's vehicle for his sharp, chiming, pop songs. Their favorite kind of compromise made them essentially a singles band, and The Queen Is Dead has a couple of their best (notably "The Boy with the Thorn in His Side," one of the greatest pop expressions of the Love That Dare Not Speak Its Name). But it also has some wonderful compromises of different kinds: the bizarrely romantic "There Is a Light That Never Goes Out," and "Cemetry Gates," where Marr covers up for Morrissey's floridity with shimmying rockabilly. --Douglas Wolk Amazon.com

Undeniably tight, if a little overly-cited

Never was too crazy for this, but it's hard to deny a consistency and proficiency of craft on the rock solid release. Despite the rigidly detached vibe throughout, each song excels at showcasing why The Smiths are widely regarded as Britain's definitive 80's indie band, laying out blueprints for massive future ripoffs, the likes bands such as Joy Division and only a few others exclusively enjoy in ultimate bragging derivative rites. August 29, 2008

the best album of the 80s

the queen is dead is simply one of the best albums in history, by the way is the definitive best album of the 80s, morrissey lyrics are just perfect, and jhonny mar gitars sounds just better than anyone i heard before....
May 27, 2008

THEIR BEST ALBUM EVER!! - BUT NEEDS REMASTERING

I find it hard to believe that it's the year 2008 and the CD that is out there in the market is the same original crappy 16 bit mastering that robs much from the sound it was intended to be. It took Elektra Records (WB) over 5 years to get aound to remastering The Cure's albums (Still waiting for "Disintegration"), why can't they do the same for The Smiths? April 25, 2008

such is the ignorance of youth...

such is the ignorance of youth...

the year is 1987, and my musical universe was about to change forever. being a diehard U2 fan and tired of all the junk on the radio. A friend introduced the smiths to me on a mix tape. the song "the queen is dead" and after that my eyes opened up to a whole new world.

i immediately went out and purchased this cassette and it just blew me away. i was just not able to put my walkman down, as i had to listen to each track.

"there is a light that never goes out", "some girls are bigger than others", "big mouth strikes again" and "the queen is dead" are by far my favorite songs on the album.

this is the best smiths album. sadly it was the last tour they would undertake as well, as "strangeways..." was completed with the band going separate ways.

i have since then upgraded my cassette to cd and it still takes me back to high school. April 9, 2008

THE BEST SMITHS ALBUM EVER!

I could write an essay on The Smiths, but this is the FOURTH CD that has, "mysteriously" disappeared from my CD collection. Enough said! :o) December 5, 2007

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