MM
a great debt. They also an important part of
Manchester’s massive contribution to music and
there is a clear link between them and later bands
such as The Stone Roses and Oasis. However, it
is another group of northern miscreants where
I hear their influence most clearly. They are
Sheffield’s Arctic Monkeys.
From Morrissey to the
Monkeys
Although the musical set-up of bass, guitars,
drums and vocals is much the same it is
arguable that The Arctic Monkeys don’t possess
a craftsman of the quality of Marr. But there is a
very English take on life found in Alex Turner’s
bittersweet lyrics from the depressing council
estates of ‘A Certain Romance’, the regretful
swagger of ‘Fluorescent Adolescent’ and the all
too realistic feel of relationships in ‘Mardy Bum’
which certainly echoes The Smiths’ preoccupation
with life in a northern town. And the parallels go
further – the Arctic Monkeys are also signed to
a small independent record label Domino; they
used the internet (much like The Smiths used
those early gigs) to build a large following. They
and subsequent rehiring only exacerbated these
have also released a great deal of material in a
frictions, but ultimately it was Johnny Marr who
relatively short space of time (like The Smiths,
decided to call it a day in the summer of 1987.
giving proper attention to B sides) and there is
He was tired of the touring and of having to act
the same refusal to play the game (not attending
as a go-between for Morrissey’s dealings with
the Brits, being drunk at the Mercury Awards,
the rest of the band and the record company.
rejecting the current celebrity culture). Although
He was also perhaps frustrated that The Smiths
Turner may lack the charisma and perverse
hadn’t truly broken America as bands like U2 had.
eccentricity of Morrissey, there is a power and
Some of this bad feeling was levelled at Rough
excitement surrounding the Arctic Monkeys
Trade’s MD Geoff Travis; but there is a feeling
which takes me back to the halcyon days of The
that Morrissey’s ambition at that time was not to
Smiths.
allow his beloved Smiths to become just another
So when those same students ask me wistfully
stadium band.
about what it was like in the 1980s and being
In the past twenty years Marr has played
alive as The Smiths records were being released,
with a number of bands and artists and is still
I direct them to the current and well-deserved
highly regarded as a top guitarist. He recently
heroes from the other side of the Pennines and
played on a number one American single with
tell them to enjoy the moment, much as I did all
the band Modest Mouse. Rourke and Joyce are
those years ago.
also still involved in the music industry, but were
embroiled in a successful but bitter court battle
Where to get the albums
against the songwriting partnership in the mid-
All The Smiths back catalogue is available
90s for royalties on Smiths’ songs. The chances of
relatively cheaply. Start with 1984’s compilation
a Smiths’ reunion then seem very remote.
Hatful of Hollow, much better than their debut
Morrissey has had a very interesting solo career
album. It‘s a collection of early B sides and Radio
which, although lacking the consistency of The
One sessions and it is pretty fantastic. Their studio
Smiths’ recordings, has had considerable peaks
albums are all well worth having, but 1986’s The
(with albums such as the brilliant Vauxhall and I
Queen is Dead is an essential purchase.
and the more recent deeply personal Ringleader
of the Tormentors) and troughs (accusations of
John Fitzgerald teaches Media and Film Studies at Wyggeston
racism, the poorly received album Maladjusted).
and QE1 College, Leicester, and is an Examiner for Film Studies
He is, however, never less than interesting, and
FS3.
according to the viewers of BBC2’s The Culture
Show, he is the greatest living Englishman
On MoreMediaMag
– which might say more about the age and
Visit MoreMediaMag for John Fitzgerald’s
background of the audience than anything else.
Ten to Download, other 80s classics, and
During the 1980s The Smiths were also at the
essential Smiths reading.
centre of a more literate approach to pop music.
Bands such as Prefab Sprout, Aztec Camera
and Lloyd Cole and the Commotions all placed
an emphasis on wordy lyrics and their music
was, like The Smiths, largely structured around
guitars. This influence lives on today. The studied
coolness of Franz Ferdinand, the independent,
sometimes chaotic sound of The Libertines, the
lovelorn nature of Maximo Park and the regional
fixation of The Young Knives all owe The Smiths
22 MediaMagazine | February 2008 | english and media centre
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