Meat Is Murder is the second studio album by the English alternative rock band The Smiths. It was released in February 1985 and became the band's sole number one album in the UK charts during the band's lifetime, staying on the chart for 13 weeks. It reached number 40 in Canada and number 110 in the US. In 2003, the album was ranked number 296 on Rolling Stone magazine's list of the 500 greatest albums of all time. Meat Is Murder is the second studio album by the English alternative rock band The Smiths. It was released in February 1985 and became the band's sole number one album in the UK charts during the band's lifetime, staying on the chart for 13 weeks. It reached number 40 in Canada and number 110 in the US. In 2003, the album was ranked number 296 on Rolling Stone magazine's list of the 500 greatest albums of all time. false 2025-11-08 02:06:00 Meat Is Murder 1985 47 Indie Pop Indie Rock Jangle Pop 111752 2114494 9f37f4aa-603b-4a78-8aae-59f1e3a284e0 40f5d9e4-2de7-4f2d-ad41-e31a9a9fea27 0d56a04c-045a-37db-bcc3-6c7099e94f16 /media/data/media5/Music/The Smiths/Meat Is Murder/folder.jpg The Smiths The Smiths 1 1 The Headmaster Ritual 04:52 1 2 Rusholme Ruffians 04:20 1 3 I Want the One I Can’t Have 03:13 1 4 What She Said 02:42 1 5 That Joke Isn’t Funny Anymore 04:58 1 6 How Soon Is Now? 06:46 1 7 Nowhere Fast 02:37 1 8 Well I Wonder 04:00 1 9 Barbarism Begins at Home 06:57 1 10 Meat Is Murder 06:08 The Smiths were an English rock band formed in Manchester in 1982. Their line-up comprised singer Morrissey, guitarist Johnny Marr, bassist Andy Rourke and drummer Mike Joyce. They are regarded as one of the most important acts to emerge from the British independent music scene of the 1980s. The Smiths signed to the independent label Rough Trade Records and released their first album, The Smiths, in 1984. Based on the songwriting partnership of Morrissey and Marr, the Smiths' focus on a guitar, bass and drum sound, and fusion of 1960s rock and post-punk, were a rejection of the synth-pop sound that was predominant at the time. Several Smiths singles reached the top 20 of the UK Singles Chart and all their studio albums reached the top five of the UK Albums Chart, including the number-one album Meat Is Murder (1985). They achieved mainstream success in Europe with The Queen Is Dead (1986) and Strangeways, Here We Come (1987), both of which entered the top 20 of the European Albums Chart. Internal tensions led to their breakup in 1987, followed by lawsuits over royalties; the band have refused offers to reunite. Their live album Rank (1988) reached the top 10 in Europe.