Morrissey and Marr Collaborate On New Smiths B-Sides and Rarities Comp

Morrissey and his old pal Johnny "Modest Mouse” Marr have paired up once again, but sadly not to record any new material. The two have got back together to compile a new Smiths rarities compilation, simply titled The Sound of the Smiths, which will hit shelves November 3 via Rhino.

While both Morrissey and Marr played a part in choosing the comp’s tracklisting, Morrissey was apparently the creative brains behind the collection’s title and Marr supervised the album’s mastering (which we’re thinking took a bit more time and effort than coming up with a title as plain Jane as The Sound of the Smiths).

With the album, fans will have the choice of either a one- or two-disc version. The one-disc edition will come sporting 23 tracks, featuring singles or songs that were meant to be singles but were later shelved. The two-disc version contains an extra 22-track disc of B-sides and live recordings.

If all this reissuing, repacking and re-evaluating (minus a tacky badge) isn’t enough to get your excitement flowing, a box set of the Smiths’ seven-inch singles is also to be released on November 3 exclusively from Rhino.co.uk. Further details on that release are to be announced shortly.

Here is the tracklisting for The Sound of the Smiths, which is apparently the same compilation Morrissey recently slagged but now supports:

Disc One:

1. "Hand in Glove”
2. "This Charming Man”
3. "What Difference Does It Make? (John Peel Session)”
4. "Still Ill”
5. "Heaven Knows I'm Miserable Now”
6. "William, It Was Really Nothing”
7. "How Soon Is Now? (12-inch version)”
8. "Nowhere Fast”
9. "Shakespeare's Sister”
10. "Barbarism Begins at Home (7-inch version)”
11. "That Joke Isn't Funny Anymore”
12. "The Headmaster Ritual”
13. "The Boy with the Thorn in His Side”
14. "Bigmouth Strikes Again”
15. "There Is a Light That Never Goes Out”
16. "Panic”
17. "Ask”
18. "You Just Haven't Earned It Yet, Baby”
19. "Shoplifters of the World Unite”
20. "Sheila Take a Bow”
21. "Girlfriend in a Coma”
22. "I Started Something I Couldn't Finish”
23. "Last Night I Dreamt That Somebody Loved Me”

Disc Two:

1. "Jeane”
2. "Handsome Devil (Live)”
3. "This Charming Man (New York Vocal)”
4. "Wonderful Woman”
5. "Back to the Old House”
6. "These Things Take Time”
7. "Girl Afraid”
8. "Please, Please, Please Let Me Get What I Want”
9. "Stretch Out And Wait”
10. "Oscillate Wildly”
11. "Meat Is Murder (Live)”
12. "Asleep”
13. "Money Changes Everything”
14. "The Queen Is Dead”
15. "Vicar in a Tutu”
16. "Cemetry Gates”
17. "Half a Person”
18. "Sweet and Tender Hooligan”
19. "Pretty Girls Make Graves (Troy Tate Demo)”
20. "Stop me If You Think You've Heard This One Before”
21. "What's the World? (Live)”
22. "London (Live)”

The Smiths "Girlfriend in a Coma”