The Formative Years – The Smiths
Of all the grand bands that emerged from Manchester, The Smiths hold a special place on the firmament in my musical cosmos. Fusing 1960s intoxicatingly melancholic rock music with post-punk sensitivities and a fierce rejection of what was becoming de rigour in terms of synth- and dance pop, the songwriting of Johnny Marr and his disgust for power chords resulting in the avoidance of rock guitar clichés , backed by Morrissey’s complex lyrical emissions created the alternative musical equivalent to lightning caught in a bottle.
Throughout the history of rock’n roll, there may be quite a few singer-songwriter duos that have created timeless music and whose compositions have stood the test of time, but the way Marr and Morrissey were in sync remains unrivalled with the resulting layered songs being borderline symphonic in nature, conglomerating each constituent of the band and merging into an idiosyncratic atmosphere.
Marr’s arpeggio laden signature chiming, Morrissey’s often woeful vocal harmonies and the distinctive duotone style that dominated The Smiths’ cover artworks depicting pop and film cult stars created an eccentric universe, which was masterfully counterpointed by the band dressing in ordinary clothes in a deliberate bid to contrast the exuberance of the mid-1980s exotic fashion extravaganza that was cultivated by contemporary bands like Flock of Seagulls, Spandau Ballet and Duran Duran.
While always having harboured a weak spot for bands from Manchester and a point being made for most having created a lane for themselves in their own right, I would be hard pressed to list one post-1982 that was not at least tangentially inspired by the vital and vigorous voice that was created via The Smiths’ oeuvre and the way they artfully elevated what was considered possible to create with a four-piece band.
A truly original band that not only produced landmark albums but actively subverted outworn stereotypes and norms with their own aesthetic simplicity, thereby delivering a blend that pre-empted and created the foundation for the commercial construct that was to become known as the Britpop movement.
