The Smiths.

Genres involved in: Alternative rock, indie pop.

The first album released by The Smiths on 20 February 1984, states quite simply on the album cover that they are ‘The Smiths’ plain and simple. They believed that all other groups at the time with names such as ‘Orchestral Manoeuvres’ in the dark and ‘Spandau Ballet’ were fancy and pompous. They picked to call the album and the group ‘The Smiths’ because it was the most common surname at the time. The lead singer Steven Patrick Morrissey later stated “I chose to name the group and the album the smiths because I thought that it was time that the ordinary folk of the world showed their faces.” Basically what he was saying was that the mass followers of pop music should break away from mainstream pop and embrace the new generation of Alternative rock. The cover of the album is in black and white which i think makes it stand out and sets itself apart from vibrant coloured album sleeves of the time. The image on the cover showcases Morrissey’s obsession with pop culture. The text on the top right of the album cover is a neutral colour and blends in with the black and white album cover. This was done to show the ordinary colours representing the ordinary people of the world who he wished for them to show their faces.

Meat is murder was the second studio album released on 14th February 1985.This album title is representing Morrissey’s obsession with vegetarianism and how he was so passionate about not eating meat that he forbade the rest of the group from being photographed eating meat. This shows that The Smiths are not afraid to be controversial and speak out about things they believe in. The image on the album cover is an edited still from Emile de Antonio’s 1968 documentary ‘In the year of the pig’, a documentary about the origins of the Vietnam War. The writing on the soldiers helmet originally read ‘Make war not love’ but the smiths changed it to read ‘Meat is murder’. This album cover is also done in black and white like the previous album (The Smiths).The colours on the album sleeve are basic yet affective as they represent the struggles that Morrissey believed vegetarians faced in the world of meat eaters. Just as in the war it was two different sides who believed in different things.

The queen is dead was the third album released by The Smiths on 16 June 1986.The album title and single that was released and got to number two in the UK charts, was referring to Michael Fagin who broke into Buckingham Palace and sat on the queens bed for 10 minutes before the alarm was raised. The colour of text used on the cover makes the album stand out with its bold pink font which is supported by a dark negative image of a body. The pink title is to represent the queen seeing as pink is usually a feminine colour. This