Smith “Minus-Plus”

The second and last album from Smith—I wrote about their first, some years ago—what did I say? I liked it—and I like this record a lot, too—so why’d they split up? You know there’s no way to answer that—the more interesting question is, bands that stay together—how do they do it? (Sometimes the answer might be no more complicated than: it’s better than flipping burgers.) Anyway, this is a great sounding, soulful record. A couple different band members from the first record, and more original songs, I guess. Because I have the first one, I’m going to have to get it out and compare the two. Oh, right, I remember this record, it’s good—even though I don’t have it permanently sitting out for putting on anytime day or night, it is a record I’m glad I had the occasion to come back to. Their version of “Baby It’s You” is striking and weird, a great take on the song, excellent, and no wonder it was a hit. They were definitely a hot band, but their secret weapon is Gayle McCormick’s singing—so the more of that, the better. My favorite songs on this record are: “You Don’t Love Me (Yes I Know),” “Comin’ Back to Me,” and “Since You’ve Been Gone.”

Why are (were) they called Smith? My sources say they evolved from a band called “The Smiths” (not the Morrissey one) and you can hardly blame them for distancing from their real names, which all sound like someone else who is famous (Alan Parker), and/or prominent food products (McCormick, Bob Evans). What could they have done differently? For that I need two as equally miraculous fantasies—a functioning time machine, and that people actually listen to me—and I’ll go back and work as their manager, for peanuts (or in today’s dollars, peanuts). First, that album cover—in the foreground there’s about 20 garishly colorized “small-folk-from-another-land” dancing jigs, wearing weird shoes and hats, possibly having sex, and worst of all, playing bagpipes—just the suggestion of which is enough to kill sales. The band, black and white, is barely visible in the back (somehow all left-handed). I would suggest a simple full album cover picture of the band in action, because they look great. Also, the band logo, made out of wood, is terrible—nearly any other font would be an improvement, even Jokerman. Better yet, the back cover picture of the band members sitting on top of a mountain—make that the front cover—and while we’re at it, change the title to “Take a Look Around.” And the biggest change of all—change the band’s name! Now, I know that’s an activity that can, in itself, break up a band, as well as make strong men weep—so, guys (and gal) just defer to your new manager who’s got a system (random word from a book). So… Hand. Hand Band? No. Okay, fuck that. Okay, try this one: Mons Huygens. I like it! Remember, it’s 1970. People were less squeamish about references with an overt sexual nature, back then.

4.24.26