The Moz/Smiths Top 100, Part 187: THE NATIONAL FRONT DISCO

[Houdini]

Let's compile our own Morrissey/Smiths Top 100 by rating all 232 Moz/Smiths-songs.

Song for Today: THE NATIONAL FRONT DISCO

Voting should be something along these lines:
10: Perfection
9: Near perfect, brilliant
8: Really good Moz/Smiths song
7: Good Moz/Smiths song
6: OK, Nothing special
5: Uninspired
4: Poor
3: Bad
2: Should never have been released
1: He/They should be ashamed

The songs so far (voting is still open, click to vote):

Part 186: The More You Ignore Me, The Closer I Get
Part 185: The Loop
Part 184: The Lazy Sunbathers
Part 183: The Last Of The Famous International Playboys
Part 182: The Headmaster Ritual
Part 181: The Harsh Truth Of The Camera Eye
Part 180: The Hand That Rocks The Cradle
Part 179: The Father Who Must Be Killed
Part 178: The Edges Are No Longer Parallel
Part 177: The Draize Train
Part 176: The Boy With The Thorn In His Side
Part 175: The Boy Racer
Part 174: That's Entertainment
Part 173: That Joke Isn't Funny Anymore
Part 172: Teenage Dad On His Estate
Part 171: Sweetie Pie
Part 170: Sweet And Tender Hooligan
Part 169: Sunny
Part 168: Suffer Little Children
Part 167: Suedehead
Part 166: Such A Little Thing Makes Such A Big Difference
Part 165: Stretch Out And Wait
Part 164: Stop Me If You Think You've Heard This One Before
Part 163: Still Ill
Part 162: Spring-Heeled Jim
Part 161: Speedway
Part 160: Southpaw
Part 159: Sorrow Will Come In The End
Part 158: Some Girls Are Bigger Than Others
Part 157: Slum Mums
Part 156: Skin Storm
Part 155: Sister, I'm A Poet
Part 154: Sing Your Life
Part 153: Shoplifters Of The World Unite
Part 152: Sheila Take A Bow
Part 151: Shakespeare's Sister
Part 150: Seasick Yet Still Docked
Part 149: Satan Rejected My Soul
Part 148: Rusholme Ruffians
Part 147: Rubber Ring
Part 146: Roy's Keen
Part 145: Reel Around The Fountain
Part 144: Redondo Beach
Part 143: Reader Meet Author
Part 142: Pretty Girls Make Graves
Part 141: Pregnant For The Last Time
Part 140: Please Please Please Let Me Get What I Want
Part 139: Piccadilly Palare
Part 138: Pashernate Love
Part 137: Papa Jack
Part 136: Panic
Part 135: Paint A Vulgar Picture
Part 134: Our Frank
Part 133: Ouija Board, Ouija Board
Part 132: Oscillate Wildly
Part 131: On The Streets I Ran
Part 130: Oh Well, I'll Never Learn
Part 129: Nowhere Fast
Part 128: Now My Heart Is Full
Part 127: Now I Am A Was
Part 126: November Spawned A Monster
Part 125: Noise Is The Best Revenge
Part 124: Nobody Loves Us
Part 123: No One Can Hold A Candle To You
Part 122: Never Had No One Ever
Part 121: My Love Life
Part 120: My Life Is A Succession Of People Saying Goodbye
Part 119: Mute Witness
Part 118: Munich Air Disaster 1958
Part 117: Moonriver
Part 116: Money Changes Everything
Part 115: Miserable Lie
Part 114: Michael's Bones
Part 113: Mexico
Part 112: Meat Is Murder
Part 111: Margaret On The Guillotine
Part 110: Maladjusted
Part 109: Lucky Lisp
Part 108: Lost
Part 107: London
Part 106: Little Man, What Now?
Part 105: Lifeguard Sleeping, Girl Drowning
Part 104: Life Is A Pigsty
Part 103: Let the Right One Slip In
Part 102: Let Me Kiss You
Part 101: Late Night, Maudlin Street
Part 100: Last Night I Dreamt That Somebody Loved Me
Part 99: King Leer
Part 98: Journalists Who Lie
Part 97: Jeane
Part 96: Jack The Ripper
Part 95: It's Hard To Walk Tall When You're Small
Part 94: Is It Really So Strange?
Part 93: Irish Blood, English Heart
Part 92: Interlude
Part 91: Interesting Drug
Part 90: In The Future When All's Well
Part 89: If You Don't Like Me, Don't Look At Me
Part 88: I've Changed My Plea To Guilty
Part 87: (I'm) The End Of The Family Line
Part 86: I'm Not Sorry
Part 85: I'll Never Be Anybody's Hero Now
Part 84: I'd Love To
Part 83: I Won't Share You
Part 82: I Will See You In Far Off Places
Part 81: I Want The One I Can't Have
Part 80: I Started Something I Couldn't Finish
Part 79: I Like You
Part 78: I Know Very Well How I Got My Name
Part 77: I Know It's Over
Part 76: I Know It's Gonna Happen Someday
Part 75: I Knew I Was Next
Part 74: I Keep Mine Hidden
Part 73: I Just Want To See The Boy Happy
Part 72: I Have Forgiven Jesus
Part 71: I Don't Owe You Anything
Part 70: I Don't Mind If You Forget Me
Part 69: I Can Have Both
Part 68: I Am Two People
Part 67: I Am Hated For Loving
Part 66: Human Being
Part 65: How Soon Is Now?
Part 64: How Can Anybody Possibly Know How I Feel?
Part 63: Hold On To Your Friends
Part 62: Heir Apparent
Part 61: Heaven Knows I'm Miserable Now
Part 60: He Knows I'd Love To See Him
Part 59: He Cried
Part 58: Have-A-Go Merchant
Part 57: Handsome Devil
Part 56: Hand In Glove
Part 55: Half A Person
Part 54: Hairdresser On Fire
Part 53: Good Looking Man About Town
Part 52: Golden Lights
Part 51: Glamorous Glue
Part 50: Girlfriend In A Coma
Part 49: Girl Least Likely To
Part 48: Girl Afraid
Part 47: Get Off The Stage
Part 46: Ganglord
Part 45: Friday Mourning
Part 44: Frankly Mr Shankly
Part 43: Found Found Found
Part 42: First Of The Gang To Die
Part 41: Everyday Is Like Sunday (follow this link for first 40 songs).

 

[Skinner]

AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

My all time favorite!!!! This song has made me smile more times than any other! While hearing/seeing it live for the first time in NYC, I burst out into tears of joy and could not stop dancing and crying and screaming the lyrics out!

What joy this song brings me, I can't even tell you!!

A perfect 10 all the way! I can't imagine NOT loving this song!

 

[the judge]

Don't like it.
5

 

[Comtesse]

I remember when I first heard this song I thought, "At last - Morrissey has put all those silly 'racist' rumors to rest!!" It was so obvious to me that he was ridiculing the National Front with this song, and I thought it would finally banish all memories of "Bengali In Platforms" once and for all. Boy, was I ever wrong! Lesson learned: never underestimate the stupidity of the music press. They held onto that "England for the English" line as if it was Morrissey himself singing and believing it, instead of it obviously being said by the protagonist of the song. So dumb...

Anyway, besides all the racist furore the song generated, I'd have to say this song has never really impressed me much. It always sounded half-written to me, especially the chorus where he just seems to do a lot of mumbling where lyrics should be: "... you're going to... ahhhhhhhhhh... you're going to... yeah yeah yeah yeah... " Not exactly his best work there.

I also despised the live version where the last few minutes consisted of Boz and Alain making the most ungodly screeching feedback on their guitars. Really, I'd rather listen to the beginning of "Innocent & Vain".

Still, it's much better than "We Hate It..." and "Fatty..." so I give it a 7.

 

[TuQui]

one of my favorite!
10!!

 

[Stitchell]

One of my faves, and brilliant seeing it live last year. The lyric is more to do with the disenchantment felt by the youth rather than racism but when you call a song "National Front Disco", some people are gonna get confused. But those people are thick. The lyric could easily apply to to young Muslims who join extremist groups. And I love the live version from Beethoven!

 

[Dave]

I think a case could be made that the half-written yeah yeah yeah yeah yeah is like brilliant. Anyway, it's a 10.

It's one of his best, even completely putting aside any meaning, just the sounds of the words and the music.

 

[Dave2006]

Perfect 10.
The album was released in the UK on my birthday (July 27th) many years ago (1992? Maybe 1991?)

Given that the opening line is "David, the wind blows ,the wind blows ...
Bits of your life away" I just melted.

I couldn't help but think...how does he do it? Writing songs about me? Is he following me around? Why do I never bump into him?

Friends at college couldn't understand. "But you're not in the National Front, Dave. stop being silly..."

When I saw him play it live (after many years of not being allowed / being scared of) at Gmex I was very, very happy.

Dave

 

[treygar]

memo to all Solo-ists.

not every song can be a 10. not possible. or you have very very low standards.

 

[Comtesse]

memo to all Solo-ists.

not every song can be a 10. not possible. or you have very very low standards.

Personally, I'm a bit flabbergasted by the number of 10's this song is getting. I can't imagine what they see in it... but I suppose some people think the same thing of my love of "Work Is A Four-Letter Word".

 

[Kuiper]

10!!!!!!
Maybe my favorite song ever, it's hard to pick just one favorite, but this is definitely a contender. An amazing song on the album that comes alive perfectly when recorded and SHOULD sound explosive live, but well it doesn't usually, which is disappointing. Like even besides the ending to it on Beethoven which was a bit unnecessary, the main part of the song just sounds kind of flat. On the recent tour though it sounded a bit better, still a bit light, but I liked the added piano and I think the ending was much better.

 

[Your Arsenal]

A very powerful song, musically and lyrically.
I mean the way it just bombards you with guitars right from the beginning is Amazing. Love it to pieces. 10

 

[Maurice E]

After the disappointing recorded version of 'We Hate It When' (the first time we heard it live at the Amnesty TV show it sounded brilliant, as it does on Beethoven) and the not-very-good You're The One for Me, this was the first time that Alain Edgar Whyte showed he could write genius upbeat guitar pop.
The lyric is scarily empathic (it could equally be about Islamic extremism) and the vocal is one of the most emotional things that Moz has ever recorded, making it probably one of the top 10 Morrissey/Smiths songs of all time.
It's a real shame that Alain hasn't really come close to writing something this melodically powerful since (with the exception of First of the Gang and Nobody Loves Us).
An absolute joy to hear it again on the 2006 tour without the pointless, dreary feedback which had plagued previous versions...

 

[Radio Berlin]

8, the music gets you every time.

 

[celibate]

a 9

one of Arsenals best song, the lyrics are [talked about a lot] touchy
and along with the music brilliant, from soft easy going to speed-up
top of the song

the song has been discussed into pieces already, so I leave it with
this,just an overall short piece of text about this great song

ah, we've lost our boy

 

[celibate]

The album was released in the UK on my birthday (July 27th) many years ago (1992? Maybe 1991?)

1992, definately, without a doubt.

It was released in Grand Rapids, MTV coverage, 12 midnight. [mediarelease]

 

[Paulc]

There is an energy to this song that is hard to pinpoint. It has always been one of my favourites - you can listen to it when in a bad mood and it helps your aggression come out (in a positive way) or you can listen to it in a good mood and it will make you smile. Either way i have never once not enjoyed it - studio version, live, Beetoven it doesnt matter. Its up there with November Spawned a Monster, Speedway and Life is a Pigsty as among his finest moments. Easily a 10.

 

[Well I Wonder]

9/10. Excellent tune.​

 

[nugz]

memo to all Solo-ists.

not every song can be a 10. not possible. or you have very very low standards.

but this song can be a 10, b/c it is.


i wasnt standing next to Skinner when he actually played this in NY, but i was standing next to her when he played "London" and the opening "buzzzzzz" sounded like he was gonna play "National Front." I turned to her and the look on her face was f***ing priceless. i can only imagine what she looked like when he ACTUALLY busted it out. i'm afraid I missed a classic moment.

 

[Nikita]

Sounds a lot like Etienne Daho's Bleu comme toi which Alan Whyte likes a lot

Still a nice song