SMITHS STRANGEWAYS POLL

Stop Me uh uh oh Stop Me...

"Stop Me" just for Marr's solo.

DEATH OF A DISCO DANCER

I Won't Share You, but what a great record. So many good songs.

I'm not sure it's full of great songs, but it's full of good ideas for songs (harpsichord! Moz on piano!). The album's a lyrical regression in a couple of cases. Oh -- I hate the drum sound.

that font's gotta go, too.

i voted for a rush and a push and other stuff.

Death at One's Elbow

Unhappy Birthday is a gem

Tough one - I'll pick a Rush and A Push and Etc. Etc.

I remember feeling great joy when good 'ol USA Today listed the songs that would be in the Friday Miami Vice episode in the Life Section - especially when 'Last Night I Dreamt That Somebody Loved Me' graced its listing.

I voted Girlfriend in a Coma to annoy the purists but actually I think my favorite is Paint a Vulgar Picture

rush and a push

this is surprisingly difficult

i think i have to go w/ paint a vulgar picture, even though in many ways its the least quintessentially smiths/moz/marr song on the album -- thats its only real downside yeah? top-notch structure + lyrics + climax (song about star griping about stardom becomes song about about kid longing for it)

Paint A Vulgar Picture, but I could've gone for any except Death at One's Elbow and Stop Me.

Stop Me over Last Night I Dreamt for that great phrase Marr drops to take us into the chorus.

"A Rush and A Push...", but hoping to see serious showing by "Girlfriend in a Coma".

"last night ..."

</emo>

i think "stop me..." is leagues above everything else on the record. i loathe "girlfriend in a coma".

this was the first smiths album with songs I actively hated (girlfriend in a coma, unhappy birthday)

Automatic thread bump. This poll is closing tomorrow.

I could easily vote for 5-6 of these, but picked "Unhappy Birthday" cause it's gonna need some love, methinks

I vote with Shakey and the Googlers.

I had a dream that Death of A Disco Dancer won this poll. Ha!

I thought it would be impossible to choose between the best four tracks until I listened to the album again this morning. It's 'Stop Me If You Think You've Heard This One Before' by a mile, isn't it? It's the best tune, has most beautiful production of any of their records (those bridges are gorgeous), and has the cleverest and least arch lyrics, and the singing is great too. It's probably the closest they got to writing a proper standard - I can't imagine anyone covering 'The Queen Is Dead' or 'Panic' (mostly because of the lyrics I suppose). I wonder how it'd have done if they'd been able to release it as a single?

Then again, my iTunes tells me I listen to 'Last Night I Dreamt That Somebody Loved Me' the most, so what do I know?

Horrible sleeve, though.

I always thought that, from the title on down, "Stop Me" was an admission from Morrissey that after five years, three albums and a stack of singles, that he was beginning to repeat himself.
Not only that but the song's lyrics seemed to be made up of random jottings and half-finished lyric ideas that he had cobbled together.

That's some nice close-reading there, Lou.

"Last Night I Dreamt..."

Stop Me over Last Night I Dreamt for that great phrase Marr drops to take us into the chorus.

Automatic thread bump. This poll's results are now in.

By an overwhelming majority!

HAHAHAHHAa

But "Last Night.." was #2! I mean wow what the fuck is up with that? Not that I'm complaining but isn't that the one everyone complains is too long?

"I started something" wuz robbed -- one of Marr's best riffs. A go-to song if you need to explain to someone how the Smiths actually *rock*.

I WON'T SHARE YOU

At the time of it's release I felt it was a total letdown but I just listened to it for the first time in years and like it alot more but still don't love it. Maybe it's the sense of repitition observed upthread, or maybe Morrissey was just getting tired (as some of the lyrics seem prophetic of the breakup). Marr's guitar lines are the best part.

Too many half-assed songs for me to think it's their best, but the good songs suggest their next album woulda been killer.

I still think it's tremendous that this album starts with a song that doesn't feature Johnny Marr on guitar.

I was thinking about posting 'Strangeways Here We Come' to the Album titles that are already admissions of defeat thread! Also, part of a mini-canon of weary sounding final albums by bands on the verge of splitting up that are compelling because of how downbeat they are

I thought the story of how Johnny found the autoharp on the wall Wool Hall and came up with I Won't Share You was pretty cool.