The Queen Is Dead
The Queen Is Dead is the third studio album by the English rock band the Smiths, released on 16 June 1986 by Rough Trade Records. Following the release of their second album Meat Is Murder, the Smiths retreated to Greater Manchester to begin work on new material, with Johnny Marr and Morrissey writing extensively at Marr's home in Bowdon as the band sought to escape the pressures of London and their label Rough Trade. The album was produced by Morrissey and Marr, with engineering by Stephen Street; its music blends indie rock and post-punk. Recording for the album took place between July 1985 and December of that year, with sessions held at RAK Studios in London, Jacobs Studios in Farnham and Drone Studios in Manchester.
The Queen Is Dead spent 22 weeks on the UK Albums Chart, peaking at number two. It reached number 70 on the US Billboard Top Pop Albums chart and was certified Gold by the Recording Industry Association of America in late 1990. The album received widespread critical acclaim, praised for Marr's guitar work and Morrissey's witty and emotional lyricism. It has been included in multiple lists of the greatest albums of all time. Rolling Stone ranked the album 113th on its 2020-updated list of the "500 Greatest Albums of All Time". In its 2013 list, NME named The Queen Is Dead the greatest album of all time.
Background
Following the completion of Meat Is Murder in December 1984, guitarist Johnny Marr began developing new ideas for the Smiths' next album. In early 1985, the band returned to Greater Manchester, with Morrissey settling in Hale and Marr purchasing a home in Bowdon; the latter served as a writing base for the band. Marr described this period as an attempt to "shut out the outside world" and focus creatively, distancing themselves from the pressures of London and their record label. Drummer Mike Joyce likened Marr's home to a personal Brill Building due to the creative intensity. During this time, Morrissey channeled his frustrations with the media and music industry into lyrics.Recording and production
The Queen Is Dead was developed over a period of more than eighteen months, from its earliest musical sketches to its release. The album was produced by Morrissey and Marr, working predominantly with engineer Stephen Street, who had engineered the band's 1985 album Meat Is Murder. The three shared a strong bond in the studio, helped by their similar ages and interests, which created a relaxed atmosphere. At the time the band was having difficulty with its record label Rough Trade Records. However, according to Street, "this didn't get in the way of recording because the atmosphere in the studio was very, very constructive". The first song from the album to be completed, "The Boy with the Thorn in His Side", was recorded at Drone Studios in Manchester in July 1985. Marr later recalled composing the song's melody while riding a bus during the Meat Is Murder tour. "Frankly, Mr. Shankly", "I Know It's Over" and "There Is a Light That Never Goes Out" were written by Morrissey and Marr in a "marathon" writing session in the late summer of 1985 at Marr's home in Bowdon.In August 1985, "Bigmouth Strikes Again" and "Some Girls Are Bigger Than Others" were recorded at RAK Studios in London, along with the B-sides to "The Boy with the Thorn in His Side"; "Asleep" and "Rubber Ring". Kirsty MacColl sang a backing vocal for "Bigmouth Strikes Again" but her take was deemed to be "really weird" by Marr, and was replaced with a sped-up vocal by Morrissey in the final mix, processed by Street who ran his voice through a harmoniser. The same vocal manipulation was performed for "The Queen Is Dead", and both were attributed to "Ann Coates" on the record sleeve. Morrissey liked to experiment with effects on his voice, but he rarely used backing vocals or harmonies aside from the harmoniser, though he enjoyed experimenting during sessions. "Some Girls Are Bigger Than Others" has an opening which fades in, out, and back again. This effect was devised by Street, who aimed to create a mix that sounded similar to a door closing and opening again.
During the same session, a first version of "Never Had No One Ever" was recorded. The said track, completed in August 1985, was based on an instrumental demo which Marr had recorded in December 1984. Marr described the track's atmosphere as representative of the album's overall mood and recording experience. According to Marr, "Cemetry Gates" originated during an informal writing session in his kitchen with Morrissey. Marr recalled that he was uncertain about the song and had considered discarding it, but Morrissey responded enthusiastically. Marr described the creative process as coming together "effortlessly and easy". "The Boy with the Thorn in His Side", "Bigmouth Strikes Again" and "Frankly, Mr. Shankly" were debuted live during a tour of Scotland in September and October 1985, while "The Queen Is Dead" and "There Is a Light That Never Goes Out" were played during a soundcheck.
The bulk of the album was recorded in the winter of 1985 at Jacobs Studios in Farnham, under the working title "Margaret on the Guillotine", which was later used for Morrissey's song about Margaret Thatcher from his 1988 album Viva Hate. "Frankly, Mr. Shankly" was an attempt to recreate the "vibe" of Sandie Shaw's "Puppet on a String", although "it didn't quite work out that way", according to Marr. Linda McCartney was asked to play piano on the track, but declined, and a first take featuring a trumpeter was scrapped. A technical fault on the tape rendered the first completed version of the song unusable, and so it was re-recorded with John Porter at Wessex Studios in London. "The Queen Is Dead" was among the last songs to be recorded. Its distinctive tom-tom loop was created by Joyce and Street using a sampler. A line of guitar feedback was played by Marr through a wah-wah pedal throughout the song. The album was shortly completed before Christmas 1985.
Title and cover
The album title is taken from American writer Hubert Selby Jr.'s 1964 novel, Last Exit to Brooklyn. The cover of The Queen Is Dead features a still of French actor Alain Delon from the 1964 film The Unvanquished. Delon granted permission for the image's use, though according to Morrissey's Autobiography, the actor mentioned that his parents were dismayed by the album's title.Musical style
Music critics have categorised The Queen Is Dead as an indie rock and post-punk recording. Marr was heavily influenced by the Stooges and the Rolling Stones while crafting the album. A central thematic tension in the album is the interplay between melancholy and other emotions. Humour, anger and joy are also notable concepts throughout the album. Mark Lindores praised Morrissey's lyrics for their wit and sensitivity, noting his ability to craft both humorous and genuinely moving lines. Pitchfork Simon Reynolds noticed that Morrissey's lyrics were inspired by both surreal humour and black comedy. The album addresses a distinct criticism of the United Kingdom. According to Kevin Korber of PopMatters, Morrissey's writing has largely centred on two themes: himself and the United Kingdom. He often portrays himself as a misunderstood figure at odds with a world that fails to comprehend him. Marr notes that the album captures the progressive and the "night time" side of the Smiths.The album's opener and title track "The Queen Is Dead" was based on a song Marr began writing as a teenager. Influenced by the Velvet Underground and the Detroit garage rock scene, it is strongly anti-monarchist, portraying the royal family as "useless, taxpayer-funded tabloid fodder", according to Korber. "Frankly, Mr. Shankly" functions as a "meta" reflection on Morrissey's position within the music business, featuring a self-aware admission of his "insatiable lust for attention". This is captured in lines such as "Fame, fame, fatal fame / It can play hideous tricks on the brain", and his declaration that he would "rather be famous than righteous or holy". Lyrically, "I Know It's Over" shares elements with the two mentioned ballads: the suicidal connotations of "The Queen Is Dead" and the agonising diary of many mornings waking up alone of "Frankly, Mr. Shankly". Despite what Simon Goddard described as Morrissey's "obvious depression", the song retains some hope in its message, stating that being "kind and gentle" is a noble trait that requires rare courage, and that love is "natural and real", even if not for Morrissey, whose unfulfilled heart's desire is further tormented by the sight of "loutish lovers" taking their partners for granted.
The composition for "Never Had No One Ever" was based on the song "I Need Somebody" by the Stooges. The lyric to the song reflects Morrissey's feeling unsafe and, being from an immigrant family, not at home on the streets of Manchester. In interviews, he explained that the song expresses the frustration he felt at age 20, when he found himself unable to feel at ease or at home in the very streets where he had been born and raised. Musically, the track was composed by Marr, who sought to evoke a mood that was both "beautiful and dark", inspired by his teenage experiences listening to Raw Power by the Stooges. "Cemetry Gates" features what NME described as a light, "jaunty pop backing", which Street has described as a "nice bit of blessed relief" within the broader flow of The Queen Is Dead. Reynolds said that it retains a sense of emotional strength and is characterised as "sprightly and carefree". The lyrics focus on "plagiarists receiv the sharp lash of the Morrissey tongue".
The track "Bigmouth Strikes Again" is driven by fast drum rolls, which give it what has been described by Korber as a "shot of punk adrenaline". Lyrically, Morrissey criticises the media and society, presenting himself as a martyr, with Reynolds saying there is a "hint of reveling in the martyr posture". This theme is underscored by imagery evoking the execution of Joan of Arc by fire. "The Boy with the Thorn in His Side" presents Morrissey's recurring theme of being misunderstood, this time framed in more universal terms. Described by NME as one of his most poetic moments, the lyrics refer allegorically to the band's experience of the music industry that failed to appreciate it. It also reflects a self-perception of rejection, encapsulated in the line: "How can they hear me say those words and still they don't believe me?" "Vicar in a Tutu" centres on a cross-dressing clergyman, with Terence Cawley of The Boston Globe noting its "casual dismissal of gender norms", further describing as "sneakily subversive". Musically, the song features musical elements characteristic of the music hall tradition with Korber describing it as a "slight-yet-enjoyable rockabilly pastiche".
"There Is a Light That Never Goes Out" features lyrics drawn from "Lonely Planet Boy" by the New York Dolls. According to Marr: "When we first played it, I thought it was the best song I'd ever heard". Reynolds interpreted Morrissey's depiction of doomed love and romanticised death, highlighted by the iconic image of being hit by a double-decker bus, as evoking sincere yearning without lapsing into parody. It is grouped with other emotionally intense tracks such as "I Know It's Over" and described as part of the album's "life-and-death serious stuff", contributing to what Louder called the band's impression of being "simultaneously in love with both life and death". The song's guitar part drew on the Rolling Stones' cover of Marvin Gaye's "Hitch Hike", whose original version by Gaye himself had acted as an inspiration for the Velvet Underground's "There She Goes Again". "Some Girls Are Bigger Than Others" features lyrics that Morrissey described as a deliberate reduction of meaning, intended to highlight, in his words, "the basic absurdity of recognising the contours of one's body".