The Smiths "Strangeways Here We Come" Rough 106 UK 1st press A2/B2 + inner 1987
£
15
$
19
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Description
The Smiths ? "Strangeways, Here We Come" Rough Trade ?ROUGH 106 UK 1st press. Vinyl, LP, first pressing released with embossed titles on front sleeve and lyrics printed on a glossy picture liner.
The vinyl does have a couple of surface scuffs but they don't interfere with the music. The LP played through beautifully on my elderly stereo - no hop, stick or jump. The printed inner sleeve shows minimal signs of wear and is in great shape - no rips or writing. The embossed sleeve has a couple of dinks to corners but is otherwise in good condition, again, no rips or writing. The spine is intact and legible. Matrix / Runout Side 1 : ROUGH 106 A-1U-1-2 GUY FAWKES WAS A GENIUS Matrix / Runout Side 2 : ROUGH 106 B-2U-1-1 TY1
"Strangeways, Here We Come" is the Smiths' fourth and final studio album. Released on 28 September 1987 by Rough Trade Records, it reached number two on the UK Albums Chart, staying in the chart for 17 weeks. All of the songs were composed by Johnny Marr, with lyrics written and sung by Morrissey. The album was certified gold by the British Phonographic Industry on 1 October 1987 and also by the Recording Industry Association of America on 19 September 1990.
Slant Magazine listed the album at No. 69 on its list of "Best Albums of the 1980s", writing that "Whether or not 'Strangeways, Here We Come' ended the Smiths' brief career with their best album has been the subject of considerable debate for nearly a quarter century, but it definitively stands as the band's most lush, richest work."
The Smiths recorded what was to be their final studio album at The Wool Hall studios in Beckington, Somerset, England (established and then-owned by the band Tears for Fears). Between the album's recording in March and its release in September 1987, Johnny Marr exited the group, ending the band. 'Strangeways' is the only Smiths album to feature Morrissey playing a musical instrument: piano in the song, "Death of a Disco Dancer".
Marr felt the band was ready to enter a new musical phase, and was determined to avoid formula and move away from their previous "jingle jangle" sound. He started to look for different influences, finding an interest in The Beatles' White Album. The band used synthesised saxophone and string arrangements and drum machine additions.
The sleeve for 'Strangeways, Here We Come', which was designed by Morrissey, features a murky shot of East of Eden co-star Richard Davalos. Davalos is looking at James Dean, who is cropped from the image. Dean was a hero of Morrissey's, about whom the singer wrote a book called 'James Dean Is Not Dead'.
Morrissey and Marr feel the album is the band's best, with Morrissey asserting that, "We say it quite often. At the same time. In our sleep. But in different beds."
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![Strangeways, Here We Come [VINYL], 0825646658794, The Smiths](https://www.popsike.org/php/thumbnail.php?url=https://www.popsike.pics/pix/20160311/391404256438.jpg)
