Album of the Day

The Smiths cherry-picked elements from postwar British pop to make some of the most adventurous alternative rock of the 1980s; singer Morrissey and guitarist Johnny Marr combined encyclopedic musical knowledge with a literate, contemporary outlook to create songs that sounded classic but felt new. THE QUEEN IS DEAD shows the catholic tastes that informed the group's work on 10 tracks including such varied and distinctive originals as “Bigmouth Strikes Again,” “There Is A Light That Never Goes Out” and the single “The Boy With The Thorn In His Side.” Released 35 years ago today, the Sire set is widely considered to be the Manchester quartet's finest hour. THE QUEEN IS DEAD – long live The Smiths!