File under: why I love the internet; and it doesn’t really get much better than this, does it? Our friends at Slicing Up Eyeballs have saved our Christmas by unearthing some pretty amazing unreleased demo tracks and instrumentals spanning the entire Smiths catalog. A Smiths die-hard ripped the vinyl and posted tracks and downloads to Morrissey-solo.com. You can also download it here. Also, check out streams of a few of the tracks after the jump.
You’ll be treated to a reggae-like early version of “Girlfriend In A Coma” and “There Is A Light That Never Goes Out” with a noticeably different lyric in the outro (“There is a light in your eye and it never goes out.”) There are a few instrumentals which have never been heard, including the previously untitled “I Misses You” and “Heavy Track” from the Meat Is Murder and Strangeways, Here We Come sessions, respectively.
I especially love the “Ask” and “Reel Around The Fountain” demos. The version of “Frankly, Mister Shankly” has a cool trumpet bit in it that could have been left in as far as I’m concerned! And the demo for “The Queen Is Dead” sounds like the pre-mix for the version we already know and love. The whole thing is a vinyl rip, but it sounds great and kind of adds a bit of authenticity to the 20+ year old recordings.
Streams and full tracklisting of the download of The Smiths – Unreleased Demos and Instrumentals after the jump.
The Smiths – Unreleased Demos and Instrumentals Track Listing
1. The Hand That Rocks The Cradle, 2. Reel Around The Fountain, 3. Rusholme Ruffians, 4. The Queen Is Dead, 5. Sheila Take A Bow, 6. This Night Has Opened My Eyes, 7. Untitled One – Marr Instrumental (“I Misses You”?), 8. Ask, 9. There Is A Light That Never Goes Out, 10. Is It Really So Strange?, 11. Frankly, Mister Shankly, 12. Shoplifters Of The World Unite – Instrumental 13. Girlfriend In A Coma, 14. Death Of A Disco Dancer, 15. Paint A Vulgar Picture, 16. Untitled Two – Marr Instrumental (“Heavy Track”?)
Streaming
The Smiths, ‘Rusholme Ruffians’ (Early Version, 1984) by Slicing Up Eyeballs
The Smiths, ‘Untitled One’ (aka ‘I Misses You’) by Slicing Up Eyeballs
The Smiths, ‘Girlfriend In A Coma’ (Unreleased 1987 demo) by Slicing Up Eyeballs
