'' is a
Compilation Album by
English band
The Smiths . It compiles the band's then-latest (but not last) three
Singles and their
B-side s in reverse-
Chronological order. ''Stop Me'' was released in
January 1988 by their
Japan ese
Record Company ,
RCA Victor .
In
1987 , The Smiths'
UK record company,
Rough Trade , planned to release three singles from the newly-recorded ''
Strangeways, Here We Come ''
Album . In
August 1987 "Girlfriend in a Coma" was scheduled to be released as planned when news broke that the band had split up. This presented Rough Trade with a problem as no new material would be available to complement the other singles on their B-sides. It was decided to release the singles as planned, using archive material for B-sides.
Singer Morrissey remained involved in the singles' sleeve design.
The second single off ''Strangeways, Here We Come'' was scheduled to be "Stop Me If You Think You've Heard This One Before", an up-tempo pop-rock song. Unfortunately, the song contains the lines
I crashed down on the Crossbar
And the pain was enough
To make a shy, bald Buddhist reflect
And plan a Mass Murder
and Rough Trade deemed it unwise to release the song in the wake of the
Hungerford Massacre , fearing a
BBC Radio ban. In the UK, "I Started Something I Couldn't Finish" was chosen instead, but other countries (
United States ,
Canada ,
Australia ,
The Netherlands ) opted to keep "Stop Me If You Think You've Heard This One Before", releasing it in 7",
12" and
CD Single formats.
In
Germany , the track was released as a double A-side with "Girlfriend in a Coma"; the 12" and CD versions featured the latter's original B-sides "Work Is a Four-Letter Word" and "
I Keep Mine Hidden ". The band's Japanese record company went one further and decided to compile their latest three singles, none of which had been released in Japan, and all of their B-sides onto a compilation album that bore an abbreviated version of the latest (international) single's title. By the time of the album's release, another single had been issued in the UK ("Last Night I Dreamt That Somebody Loved Me",
December 1987), but it was not included.
The cover sleeve, designed as usual by Morrissey, features
Murray Head in a still from the
1966 Film ''
The Family Way ''. The same design was used for the
Europe an and
Australia n
1987 single editions, but not for the contemporary UK single "I Started Something I Couldn't Finish", which had its own sleeve design (yet used the same B-sides as "Stop Me...").
# "Stop Me If You Think You've Heard This One Before": a catchy, up-tempo pop-rock song that finds an urgent Morrissey in conflict with life and love. International single instead of "I Started Something I Couldn't Finish".
# "Pretty Girls Make Graves": the deepest dig into the archives, a clippety-clopping, slower take on ''
The Smiths '' album track, taken from the discarded first attempt with producer
Troy Tate , formerly of
The Teardrop Explodes (
1983 ).
# "Some Girls Are Bigger Than Others": another archive recording, this live version of ''
The Queen Is Dead ''’s final track, taken from what would prove to be the band's final concert, at the
London Brixton Academy on
December 12 ,
1986 . Notable for Marr's fine guitar work and the inclusion by Morrissey of an additional verse.
# "Girlfriend In a Coma": the first single to be released off ''Strangeways, Here We Come'', which juxtaposes a bouncy musical backing with Morrissey's morose musings on life and death.
# "Work Is a Four-Letter Word": cover of a
Cilla Black song which failed to enthuse Marr. Still, the musical backing sparkles, while Morrissey sings somewhat off-key.
# " for more details.
# "Sheila Take a Bow": the first single of 1987, a glam-rock stomp musing about liberation from obligations. It was a Top 10 hit in the UK. "Sheila Take a Bow" was later included on ''
Louder Than Bombs '' in the United States and on the present compilation in Japan; it only became available on album in the United Kingdom when Rough Trade decided to release ''Louder Than Bombs'' as well.
# "Is It Really So Strange?": a relatively simple
Rhythm And Blues song, originally recorded for
BBC Radio 1 's John Peel programme.
# "Sweet and Tender Hooligan": scorching, spiteful rock song about a
Repeat Offender being
Tried and appealing for leniency with the
Judge , also recorded for the John Peel show.
# Stop Me If You Think You've Heard This One Before
# Is It Really So Strange? ''(
John Peel session)''
# Sweet and Tender Hooligan ''(John Peel session)''
- " are exclusive to this compilation.
