Ranking Moz’s lead singles

Yes, it was a flop commercially, as was the album. But I still really like Alma and prophetic lines in 'my career to wreck my own way' ;)
Dont recall it being a flop, did it not make number 15 (or close) in chart back in 1997 which was a decent chart entry for a song some folks dont seem to rate. I reiterate, I think it's a great track with upbeat jangling, layered guitars but with gloomy laden lyrics sung by Moz in a soaring style, love it. TOTP appearance was memorable too.
 
Dont recall it being a flop, did it not make number 15 (or close) in chart back in 1997 which was a decent chart entry for a song some folks dont seem to rate. I reiterate, I think it's a great track with upbeat jangling, layered guitars but with gloomy laden lyrics sung by Moz in a soaring style, love it. TOTP appearance was memorable too.

Top 20 peak in a 6th album Lead single is commendable but an underperformance is still an underperformance especially during the peak of Moz’s popularity in the 90’s
 
I think it has probably already been done. The Maladjusted-era I really like, a bit Vauxhall pt 2. If you take the best b-sides of the era and replace them with the weakest songs on the album it would be a huge improvement. What let it down commercially was the lack of a hit song and perhaps the refusal to try something new.
Disagree with lack of a hit song, I've just checked Alma reached number 16 and spent 3 weeks in the top 75 which is very respectable for Moz. Roy's Keen for all its detractors even made no.42 with third single Satan Rejected My Soul edging into the top 40 at number 39. All in all the 3 singles done reasonably well back in the day.
 
Top 20 peak in a 6th album Lead single is commendable but an underperformance is still an underperformance especially during the peak of Moz’s popularity in the 90’s
Well Alma was his first Top 20 ranking single since Vauxhall's The More You Ignore Me with Hold On To Your Friends, both Southpaw singles, Boxers & Sunny all missing the Top 20...it done better than many of you think.
 
Well Alma was his first Top 20 ranking single since Vauxhall's The More You Ignore Me with Hold On To Your Friends, both Southpaw singles, Boxers & Sunny all missing the Top 20...it done better than many of you think.
You can add Interlude to the six singles that missed Top 20 in that inbetween period.
 
Each to their own.

I do remember it getting some airplay in the U.K., but I also remember one DJ saying, "When is this song going to end???" They really ought to have trimmed it down a fair bit. The video was broadcast relatively little in the U.K. from what I recall.

too long? In the studio it was originally 8 minutes long !

;)



Kidding aside, according to Wiki the line ‘it’s my life to ruin my own way ‘ was taken from A taste of honey. Or maybe It wasn’t.

 
Well Alma was his first Top 20 ranking single since Vauxhall's The More You Ignore Me with Hold On To Your Friends, both Southpaw singles, Boxers & Sunny all missing the Top 20...it done better than many of you think.

Thx to to his than label sabotaging the entire era claimed by Moz but with the “Maladjusted” era Moz performed the single in letterman, Top of The Pops, the Graham show and he still couldn’t go top 10, the single sucked then and sucks now
 
Disagree with lack of a hit song, I've just checked Alma reached number 16 and spent 3 weeks in the top 75 which is very respectable for Moz. Roy's Keen for all its detractors even made no.42 with third single Satan Rejected My Soul edging into the top 40 at number 39. All in all the 3 singles done reasonably well back in the day.

I don't really think the sales of Roy's Keen and Satan Rejected My Soul can be defended too much. Especially as Morrissey went to the trouble of appearing on TV shows to promote them.

Alma Matters performed reasonably, but I wouldn't say that it really entered the public consciousness too much.
 
I don't really think the sales of Roy's Keen and Satan Rejected My Soul can be defended too much. Especially as Morrissey went to the trouble of appearing on TV shows to promote them.

Alma Matters performed reasonably, but I wouldn't say that it really entered the public consciousness too much.
Well think about it, if he's invited onto a tv show to perform his latest single he's likely to accept the invitation but it's absolutely no guarantee of chart success. Again I'll defend all 3 singles of the Maladjusted album because apart from liking all 3 songs, the 6 b-sides are terrific, so as a complete package they were great for me and still are.
 
Are you ready?


1 Ignore me
2 Alma Matters
3 YHKM
4 Irish blood
5 Suedehead
6 Dagenham
7 We hate it
8 Our Frank
9 Paris
10 Spent...
11 Bobby
12 WP
 
Ok. It's only looking at this list of songs that I realise that lead singles haven't necessarily been Moz's strength. The album tracks are often superior.

1, Suedehead
2, The More You Ignore Me, The Closer I Get
3, Bobby, Don't You Think They Know?
4, Irish Blood, English Heart
5, Spent the Day in Bed
6, You Have Killed Me
7, I'm Throwing My Arms Around Paris
8, Our Frank
9, Alma Matters
10, We Hate It When Our Friends Become Successful
11, Wedding Bell Blues
12, World Peace is None of Your Business
13, Dagenham Dave

Pretty much my list too, except that I would put Alma Matters a little higher, but I agree that it feels like a Morrissey by the numbers song.
Lead singles are chosen by the record company, or not?
They were rarely among my favorite tracks on the album they were preceding, with the exception of 1, 2 and 3.
 
1. “Suedehead” (10/10)
2. “Irish Blood, English Heart” (9.5)
3. “The More You Ignore Me, the Closer I Get” (9,5)
4. “You Have Killed Me” (9,5)
5. “I'm Throwing My Arms Around Paris” (9)
6. “Alma Matters” (9)
7. “We Hate It When Our Friends Become Successful” (8,5)
8. “Spent the Day in Bed” (8,5)
9. “Bobby, Don't You Think They Know?” (8)
10. “Our Frank” (8)
11. “World Peace Is None of Your Business” (7,5)
12. “Dagenham Dave” (7)
13. “Wedding Bell Blues (7)

First 8 promoted its album more dan adequately. Bottom 5 less so.

Have you changed your mind on Bobby?
I remember you saying at the time of its release that it was likely to be the best song of 2020, or something along these lines.
 
Have you changed your mind on Bobby?
I remember you saying at the time of its release that it was likely to be the best song of 2020, or something along these lines.
I was listening to Bobby in the car last night. It was absolutely flipping brilliant! There's so much to it. A musical feast or, indeed, a mini opera as one reviewer pointed out. Heartbreaking that it was released at a time in Steve's career when radio stations and indie clubs (rightly) refused to play his new songs.
 
We Hate It When Our Friends Become Successful
Bobby, Don't You Think They Know?
Suedehead
Alma Matters
The More You Ignore Me, the Closer I Get
Irish Blood, English Heart
You Have Killed Me
Spent the Day in Bed
Dagenham Dave

I'm Throwing My Arms Around Paris
World Peace Is None of Your Business
Our Frank
Wedding Bell Blues


This is an almost impossible exercise with a number of factors influencing positioning, but here is today’s version...
 
1.The more you ignore me
2.Irish blood English heart
3.Spent the day in bed
4.Bobby don’t you think they know
5.Alma matters
6.You have killed me
7.world peace is none of your business
8.We hate it when our friends become successful
9.Suedehead
10.I’m throwing my arms around
11.Our frank
12.dagenham Dave
 
Have you changed your mind on Bobby?
I remember you saying at the time of its release that it was likely to be the best song of 2020, or something along these lines.
No I still really like it, but I like those other 8 slightly more. And yes, I haven’t heard many 2020-songs that have surpassed it. Although the year is still long ;)
 
I was listening to Bobby in the car last night. It was absolutely flipping brilliant! There's so much to it. A musical feast or, indeed, a mini opera as one reviewer pointed out. Heartbreaking that it was released at a time in Steve's career when radio stations and indie clubs (rightly) refused to play his new songs.

Totally agree. But if you think of the lead single as a teaser for the musical direction on the album, then they should have gone with "Knockabout World". It has the combination of a breezy pop song + synths, features you can find on several other tracks. Bobby strikes me more as a brilliant oddity in the Morrissey discography.
 
LEADERBOARD

1) Suedehead - 114 pts
2) The More You Ignore Me, The Closer I Get - 111.5 pts
3) Irish Blood, English Heart - 90.5 pts
4) You Have Killed Me - 85.5 pts
5) Alma Matters - 73 pts
6) Spent The Day In Bed - 71 pts
7) We Hate It When Our Friends Become Successful - 69.5 pts
8) Bobby, Don't You think They Know? - 64.5 pts
9) I'm Throwing My Arms Around Paris - 62 pts
10) Our Frank - 52 pts
11) Dagenham Dave - 51.5 pts
12) World Peace Is None Of Your Business - 35.5 pts
13) Wedding Bell Blues - 29.5 pts
 
Totally agree. But if you think of the lead single as a teaser for the musical direction on the album, then they should have gone with "Knockabout World". It has the combination of a breezy pop song + synths, features you can find on several other tracks. Bobby strikes me more as a brilliant oddity in the Morrissey discography.
I agree wholeheartedly re Knockabout should have been a lead single for Dog as it's defo more representative of album but am I not right in saying that Bobby wasn't actually a single but more an instant grat? There was no singles for Dog?
 
I agree wholeheartedly re Knockabout should have been a lead single for Dog as it's defo more representative of album but am I not right in saying that Bobby wasn't actually a single but more an instant grat? There was no singles for Dog?

Again I agree. There were several teasers prior to the release of IANADOAC, and then there finally was the album. But none of these 3 tracks released before the album ever felt like a real single because there never wasn't any promotion and I didn't hear them on the radio and there was no video and so on. Spent The Day In Bed was probably his last real single, and while enjoyable, most songs on Dog are definitely better and Bobby is far superior.
 
Back
Top Bottom