The Sound of the Smiths

by The Smiths

Overview

Depending on your count, The Sound of the Smiths is the third or fourth posthumous Smiths compilation -- a number that may be a bit excessive considering the group's rather concise catalog, containing just four studio albums and singles rounded up on three singles compilations (and two of those covered the same essential territory, too). That's a lot of repetition but whether it's taken in either its single-disc or double-disc deluxe editions, The Sound of the Smiths is the best of these posthumous overviews. The single-disc -- which is the first disc of the deluxe set -- is the hits disc, containing every cut from the 18-track 1995 compilation Singles and expanding it with five cuts all dating from the mid-'80s: "Still Ill," "Nowhere Fast," "Barbarism Begins at Home," "The Headmaster Ritual," and "You Just Haven't Earned It Yet Baby." As a Smiths-basics goes, it's first-rate, an introduction and summary that's compulsively listenable. The second disc on the deluxe The Sound of the Smiths splits the difference between a rarities compilation and a "more of the best" collection of album tracks, rounding up non-LP singles and B-sides like "Jeane," "Wonderful Woman," "Money Changes Everything," and the New York Vocal version of "This Charming Man," live versions of "Handsome Devil," "Meat Is Murder," "What's the World?" and "London," the Troy Tate demo of "Pretty Girls Make Graves," and a bunch of great Smiths songs including a hefty chunk of The Queen Is Dead. It falls short of being the long-awaited collection of Smiths rarities, the absence of which remains a mystery, but it's the best stab at one to date and a pretty entertaining listen in its own right. ~ Stephen Thomas Erlewine

Product Details

Release Date:	11/11/2008
Label:	Rhino
UPC:	0081227988906

Tracks

1. Hand In Glove
2. This Charming Man
3. What Difference Does It Make? [Peel Session Version]
4. Still Ill
5. Heaven Knows I¿¿¿m Miserable Now
6. William, It Was Really Nothing
7. How Soon Is Now? [12 " Version]
8. Nowhere Fast
9. Shakespeare¿¿¿s Sister
10. Barbarism Begins At Home [7" Version]
11. That Joke Isn¿¿¿t Funny Anymore
12. The Headmaster Ritual
13. The Boy With The Thorn In His Side
14. Bigmouth Strikes Again
15. There Is A Light That Never Goes Out
16. Panic
17. Ask
18. You Just Haven¿¿¿t Earned It Yet Baby
19. Shoplifters Of The World Unite
20. Sheila Take A Bow
21. Girlfriend In A Coma
22. I Started Something I Couldn¿¿¿t Finish
23. Last Night I Dreamt That Somebody Loved Me

Album Credits

Performance Credits

The Smiths   Primary Artist

Technical Credits

Frank Arkwright   Mastering,Remastering Engineer
James Rose   Project Assistant
Kevin Cummins   Photography
Keith Ormondroyd   Project Assistant
Helen Varley   Project Assistant
Morrisey   Composer,Lyricist
Fred Godfrey   Composer
Rick Conrad   Project Coordinator
Jonathan W. II Cross   Project Assistant
Gary Lancaster   Project Assistant
Kathy Kelly   Project Assistant
Bennett Scott   Composer
Stephen Wright   Photography
Lee Alexander   Project Assistant
Allan James Mills   Composer
Tom Sheehan   Cover Photo
Stephen Street   Producer
Bill Inglot   Project Assistant
Johnny Marr   Composer,Lyricist,Producer,Mastering Supervisor
John Porter   Producer
Neill King   Engineer
Phil Bush   Engineer
Morrissey   Composer,Lyricist
Roger Pusey   Producer
Paul Slattery   Photography