Jam of the Day: Johnny Marr - "Hi Hello"

I will admit that Johnny Marr's post-Smiths solo work has never really done much for me, so imagine my surprise when I listened to his new record Call the Comet. Not only was it a good record, it is actually one of the most solid rock albums I have heard this year. Lead single "Hi Hello" is super catchy, with echoes of "There Is a Light That Never Goes Out" in its guitars and strings, but stands out as it own. Definitely check the record out if you get the chance.

Happy 30th Anniversary: The Smiths - The Queen is Dead

One of the seminal albums of my teenage years turns 30 today. I have owned this album on pretty much all formats and have worn out several copies. I would say it makes me feel old that this record is 30, but listening to it now it still sounds youthful and fresh, and still speaks to my younger self.

30 Day Song Challenge: Day One - Your Favorite Song

Day One: Your Favorite Song
The Smiths
"There Is A Light That Never Goes Out"

Favorite song is a little difficult to come up with, as I have far too many songs I love I could never ever say that one was definitively my favorite song. I guess this is more of a if-I-absolutely-have-to-pick-one it would be The Smiths "There Is A Light That Never Goes Out."

In 1986, while everyone else in my class was listening to Bon Jovi and all the other hair metal bands, I was searching far and wide in the barren wilds of Savannah, Georgia for the college radio music I only was able to hear on frequent trips to Athens, Georgia to see UGA football games with my parents. It was the MTV show 120 Minutes that provided the only oasis in the desert of crap music I was forced to endure, and it was this video that drew me into the song.

I'd already loved The Smiths from their debut and Meat Is Murder, and countless singles, but The Queen Is Dead was the album that stuck with me the most. The simple and melodic "There Is A Light That Never Goes Out" still captivates me to this day. The lyrics expertly straddle the line between maudlin and over-the-top, never going too far over one edge or the other, transcending to sublime. The delicate cry of the strings perfectly intertwines with the chiming guitars. Being an "arty" kid stuck in a small town growing up was the perfect backdrop for what The Smiths wrote about and stood for, and this song will always bring me back to those days when the only thing laying before you was an endless sea of possibilities.