The Smiths/Morrissey - song-by-song discussion thread

Discussion in 'Music Corner' started by Turk Thrust, Mar 8, 2019.

  1. TexasBuck

    TexasBuck Forum Resident

    Location:
    Dallas, TX
    Our Frank - Not bad (Other than the closing part) but a poor opening track. It doesn't exactly get me excited about hearing the rest of the album. Also, I'm more of a guitar person and guitar is not featured predominately on this track. The pre-chorus reminds me a bit of the band Pulp. I'll give it a 2.5 out of 5 and perhaps that's a bit generous.
     
  2. Freek999

    Freek999 Forum Resident

    Probably the song "Mis-Shapes"? Cause it reminds me of that song also, but of course Morrissey was there first
     
  3. jalexander

    jalexander Forum Resident

    Location:
    Canada
    Bona Drag was the second Morrissey album I bought after Your Arsenal so it served its purpose: provide a newbie with an introduction to his solo career. In the context of an album, even the lesser songs work well, providing some variety and good overall flow. This is a top shelf Moz album for me. Taking out Suedehead and Sunday, however, would definitely bring it down a notch. Also, I found Viva to be a letdown after enjoying this one for a few years.

    5/5
     
    Luisboa, spacedyed and The MEZ like this.
  4. jalexander

    jalexander Forum Resident

    Location:
    Canada
    I’ve blogged in how to redeem Kill Uncle, which I’ll save for later, but Our Frank is simply ok. Others have noted its high points... an interesting opening guitar motif... a few gang vocals on the pre chorus... the funny red pullover line... but I’m being generous when I give it 3.5/5.
     
    The MEZ, Luisboa, spacedyed and 3 others like this.
  5. octophone

    octophone immaterial girl

    Location:
    Scotland
    For sure. There are two lyrical slants that indicate that yr favourite artist is on a downhill trajectory.

    1) Oh touring is so awful and fame is so lonely
    2) Journalists and critics are my enemy

    A sure sign of a disappearance beyond the sphincter.
     
  6. pwhytey

    pwhytey Forum Resident

    'Our Frank' isn't as bad as I'd remembered, although as a lead single it's a very big step down from 'Suedehead'. I checked my Morrissey CD single collection today and it's the first release I didn't buy, which says it all, I guess. I quite like the "oh, give us a drink and make it quick" part, except it's followed up by lazy lyrical rubbish about being sick. This was his weakest single to date — by a big margin. 2/5

    Is the video Morrissey's first (deeply unfortunate) flirtation with skinhead culture? Ugh. The horror begins.



    Like @Pavol Stromcek and @octophone, I can't see myself contributing much over the next week as there's only one song I like on Kill Uncle. I don't want to sound like a negative Nancy.
     
    Last edited: Jul 10, 2019
  7. Pop_Zeus

    Pop_Zeus Forum Resident

    Location:
    Southport, UK
    Kill Uncle for me is one of the worst albums in the history of recorded music. My brother bought this and 'Spartacus' by The Farm on the same day. He still refers to that day as 'Black Monday' 28 years on. £25 was a lot of money back then to waste on 2 appalling albums in one day. KU really is dreadful and Our Frank one of his worst singles by far. I will give it 1/5. Some of the songs on this deserve 0/5 but I doubt we can submit that score.

    The first half of KU is poor (save for Mute Witness) and the second half is diabolical. Between my brother & I we bought every Moz single and absolutely adored his music, and then KU came out. It went down like a lead balloon in our house. He never bought another Morrissey release again. I continued for some time as obviously Your Arsenal was a huge improvement. But boy was KU disappointing after the quality of the Bona Drag era. And I can't believe there wasn't more love for Girl Least Likely To. Easily good enough to have made Bona Drag for me. Loved it when the CD single came out and always have done.
     
  8. Gavaxeman

    Gavaxeman Take me back to dear old Blighty...

    Location:
    West Midlands U.K.
    Our frank...

    I remember nipping out in my lunch hour (now working in 1991 , so no need to wag school!) to buy this CD single , so starved of new Mozza music was I .

    And the whiff of disappointment started with the sleeve , wobbled with The a side, and then bombed with the two b sides , a real let down. And certainly not worth sacrificing my sandwiches for.

    Our Frank as a song is a strange one , it kinda threatens to be good , but doesn’t quite make it. Lyrics not great , music definitely not great , it’s just ...there .

    And the album had worse to come... sorry it’s a 2.5/5
     
  9. Hollow Horse

    Hollow Horse To pretend to be happy could only be idiocy

    Still has that Madness piano vibe, the song wouldn't touch my Mozza top fifty (if I had one) so...

    OUR FRANK

    2/5
     
  10. robbroncs

    robbroncs Forum Disgrace

    Location:
    NJ
    Frankly vulgar... 3/5

    i really want to give it a 4....but i think that is more me than honesty. compared to other songs in the canon, it just doesn't get there.
     
    Luisboa, Gavaxeman, spacedyed and 2 others like this.
  11. inglorious

    inglorious Forum Resident

    Location:
    England
    Our Frank
    Or Alf Wank as Johnny Marr called it, I seem to remember. Yeah its a bit pedestrian. Too much piano. Slightly humorous lyrics but not a great track by any means.
    As for the video, love his shirt, and probably the first time that real skinheads appeared anywhere, but of course Suedehead was the first skinhead/subculture reference of this sort, I suppose, though that was purely a title. The skinhead image was certainly well in with the Madness connection, even as late as ‘91, don’t forget.
    2.5/5
     
  12. ryno

    ryno Forum Resident

    Our Frank was the track that got me into Morrissey in the first place. I think Kill Uncle still is my favourite of his solo albums. For me it marks the brief period where Moz stopped trying to sound like the Smiths and before he wanted to sound like Bowie.
     
    pwhytey, Luisboa, The MEZ and 3 others like this.
  13. rararabbits

    rararabbits Forum Resident

    Location:
    LA, CA, USA
    Ugh, never seen the video before. The worried-looking bloke about 13 seconds in, what sort of message is that sending?

    Morrissey could use that Brando in Apocalypse Now lighting in his current videos...
     
    pwhytey and Luisboa like this.
  14. The MEZ

    The MEZ Forum Resident

    Location:
    CT
    Our Frank 3/5
     
    spacedyed and Luisboa like this.
  15. Turk Thrust

    Turk Thrust Forum Resident Thread Starter

    Location:
    U.K.
    The ratings for Our Frank:

    1-2
    2-6
    3-11
    4-2
    5-0
     
    The MEZ and spacedyed like this.
  16. Turk Thrust

    Turk Thrust Forum Resident Thread Starter

    Location:
    U.K.
    Today's song is Asian Rut:



    I guess I should remind people again that any comments about politics or race are banned on this board so hopefully people can be careful how this song is discussed.

    As it happens though, despite the title, this is one of Morrissey's more straightforward lyrics and it doesn't strike me as controversial at all. Another outsider song, the main character is very clearly the doomed hero in an uncivilized situation.

    Mark Nevin originally titled his music 'Idiot's Funeral' and, augmented by the authentic violin and vibraphone, it's one of the more effective pieces from this album. Its mournful nature is a good fit for the subject matter.

    It was a slightly strange choice to place second on the album and might have fit better later on, but it's still one of the stronger tracks.

    3.5/5
     
  17. ryno

    ryno Forum Resident

    Oh i forgot to give my rating for Our Frank 5/5. Asian Rut is my least favourite off of Kill Uncle, it's a bit dull to my ears and goes on for a bit too long a 3/5 for me.
     
  18. Lance LaSalle

    Lance LaSalle Prince of Swollen Sinus

    First time Ive heard Asian Boy, but for some reason -- perhaps the pithy lyric -- it really works for me.

    Very strong for me. 4.5/5
     
  19. guidedbyvoices

    guidedbyvoices Old Dan's Records

    Location:
    Alpine, TX
    Asian Rut - I like this one a bit. It’s like a short story, it unlike Brighton Rock or First of the Gang to Die. I like the violin and background melodrama.
    A generous 4 out of 5

    This one though didn’t work live at all with the rockabilly gang.
     
  20. rararabbits

    rararabbits Forum Resident

    Location:
    LA, CA, USA
    A drab dirge that sucks the energy out of the album.

    The title is more Morrissey trolling (in an interwebs not palare sense): “oh, you were expecting something about an Asian being stuck in a rut? Well, it’s rut in the sense of fight, hohoho.” The song itself feels like a clumsy attempt to make amends, but who knows. It doesn’t say much when you can only empathize with someone when they’re in the role of victim. But eroticizing victimhood is what Morrissey does, isn’t it? It would explain the last ten or so years of his career, anyway.

    Of course, there’s nothing incompatible between this song and the sentiment expressed in “Bengali”: the narrator here could say “well, I warned you”.
     
    jalexander and Luisboa like this.
  21. ARL

    ARL Forum Resident

    Location:
    England
    "Asian Rut"

    Musically it may be one of the more interesting songs on the album, but ultimately I don't enjoy it that much and never really have. 2/5.
     
  22. markreed

    markreed Forum Resident

    Location:
    Imber
    "Asian Rut" is absolute garbage. Musically it's dire, dull, and boring. Lyrically, Morrissey takes a very sensitive subject, and mauls it with a hammer. One of his worst songs. 0/5 (and only 0, because I can't put the song into an overdraft of minus numbers).
     
  23. spacedyed

    spacedyed Forum Resident

    Location:
    Washington DC
    "Asian Rut" really odd placement on the album but not a terrible song. Although not his best, I enjoy the lyrics and how Morrissey is pretty much describing a scene as he walks (cabs?) by, hoping to not get caught in the middle of it. Musically it's a weaker "Angel Angel Down We Go" without a real payoff. 2.5/5
     
  24. George P

    George P Notable Member

    Location:
    NYC
    Asian Rut - I always found this ethereal song to be almost hypnotizing. The ending lyric, "I'm just passing though here . . . " bit really makes it.

    4/5
     
    Last edited: Jul 10, 2019
  25. Luisboa

    Luisboa Forum Resident

    Location:
    Coimbra, Portugal
    My least favorite on KU, and the position 2th on the album dosent help either. Im really surprised with some higher ratings on the posts above. I thought it wouldnt get even a 3 from no one.
    2/5
     
    spacedyed and ARL like this.

Share This Page

molar-endocrine