release date: Nov. 12, 1984
format: vinyl (ROUGH 76) / cd
[album rate: 4 / 5]
producer: John Porter, The Smiths, Roger Pusey, Dale 'Buffin' Griffin
label: Rough Trade Records - nationality: England, UK
Tracklist: A) 1. "William, It Was Really Nothing" (5 / 5) - 2. "What Difference Does It Make?" (4,5 / 5) - 3. "These Things Take Time" - 4. "This Charming Man" (5 / 5) - 5. "How Soon Is Now?" (4 / 5) - 6. "Handsome Devil" - 7. "Hand in Glove" (4 / 5) - 8. "Still Ill" (4 / 5)
B) 1. "Heaven Knows I'm Miserable Now" (5 / 5) - 2. "This Night Has Opened My Eyes" (4 / 5) - 3. "You've Got Everything Now" (4 / 5) - 4. "Accept Yourself" - 5. "Girl Afraid" (4 / 5) - 6. "Back to the Old House" (4 / 5) - 7. "Reel Around the Fountain" (4 / 5) - 8. "Please, Please, Please Let Me Get What I Want" (5 / 5)
Compilation album by The Smiths, and a sort of a strange release. It's the band's second album out but instead of a new studio release they send out a compilation album... I mean, how many bands release that after just one studio album? [I think The Beatles did, actually]. Anyway, this album was issued only 9 months after the debut and only 3 months before sending out a second studio album with brand new material. Hatful of Hollow contains the band's singles with B-sides and alternate recordings from John Peel sessions on BBC 1, but it's partly a clever record company decision, as the band had faced great success with their singles following the album debut. Another aspect is that Morrissey and Marr didn't fully appreciate the production sound by John porter on the debut, and they wanted the songs recorded in better versions.
The singles "Heaven Knows I'm Miserable Now" / "Suffer Little Children", and "William, It Was Really Nothing" / "How Soon Is Now?" both fared rather well and had only one song on the debut album. So, in that way this album is not 'just' an ordinary compilation of tracks you already know of.
Highly recommendable.
[ allmusic.com, Uncut, Select 5 / 5, Rolling Stone, Q Magazine 3 / 5 stars ]
