Morrissey’s and The Smiths’ Official Most Downloaded Tracks Revealed

10: Suedehead (1988)

Mozza’s first solo single had the honour of giving him his highest chart position to date, beating any of his previous hits with his former Smiths bandmates. The sombre video for Suedehead was filmed in iconic movie star James Dean’s childhood home in the USA. In Autobiography, Morrissey talks about his fears of going it alone: “Recording Viva Hate (the first solo album) was very difficult owing to the enslaved echo, coming from virtually everywhere, that told me I could never possibly be as good as The Smiths”. 25 years on, we rather think he did pretty OK.

PEAK POSITION: 5
CHART FACT: Suedehead was the first of seven consecutive Top 20 hits for Morrissey.

9: What Difference Does It Make? (1984)

The Smiths’ third single to be released was one of Morrissey’s least favourite tracks from the band’s self-titled debut album. Morrissey has said that he wanted to release Pretty Girls Make Graves instead, but the title was thought too controversial and he was overruled. The song has no accompanying video as Morrissey claimed in an interview on legendary music show The Tube that the trend for music videos was going to “die very quickly”.

PEAK POSITION: 12
CHART FACT: What Difference Does It Make may not have had much love from Mozza, but it was The Smiths’ first Top 20 hit.

8. Panic (1986)

Next up is one of The Smiths’ most famous songs, with its memorable plea to “burn down the disco” and do something unspeakable to your friendly neighbourhood DJ. Morrissey has said that he fully expected Panic to be the band’s first Number 1, but alas it was not to be – it nudged at the Top 10 but didn’t progress any further.

PEAK POSITION: 11
CHART FACT: Panic was the seventh Smiths track in a row to miss the Top 10. 

7. Heaven Knows I’m Miserable Now (1984)

Following from the unloved (by Morrissey at least) What Difference Does It Make, the band’s next single gave The Smiths something to celebrate. It was their first ever Top 10 on the Official Singles Chart. The song’s title has haunted Morrissey ever since. In his autobiography he tells of his annoyance at headlines in newspapers like “Heaven Knows He’s Miserable Now”. Well, you did write it, Moz.

PEAK POSITION: 10
CHART FACT: Heaven Knows I’m Miserable Now was the first Top 10 hit for The Smiths. The next one would follow three years later: Sheila Take A Bow also peaked at Number 10 in April 1987.

6. Everyday Is Like Sunday (1988)

Morrissey’s second solo single gave him another Top 10 and was the first track he performed without his Smiths bandmates on BBC’s music show Top Of The Pops. This being Morrissey, he wore a T-shirt featuring – what else? – the cover of a Smiths album. Which one did he choose? Why, The Queen Is Dead, of course.

PEAK POSITION: 9
CHART FACT: Everyday Is Like Sunday’s parent album, Viva Hate, was an Official Albums Chart Number 1 – the first of three solo chart-toppers for Morrissey. 1994’s Vauxhall And I and 2006’s Ringleader Of The Tormentors also made it.

5. First Of The Gang To Die (2004)

Morrissey was enjoying big chart success with his comeback album You Are The Quarry, his first release in seven years. First Of The Gang To Die was the second single, following up Morrissey’s first ever Top 3 hit Irish Blood, English Heart. Moz was back! Back! BACK!

PEAK POSITION: 6
CHART FACT: First Of The Gang To Die was the second of four consecutive Top 10 hits for Morrissey – the first time he had achieved that feat in 15 years, when Interesting Drug peaked at Number 9. He’s had 33 Top 40 hits in total as a solo artist.

4. Please Please Please Let Me Get What I Want (1984)

While this track features high on the most downloaded tracks countdown, it was never actually a single! Please Please Please Let Me Get What I Want was the B-side to Number 17 hit William, It Was Really Nothing, so why so popular, you may ask. The song has featured in major Hollywood movies like Ferris Bueller’s Day Off and Pretty In Pink and has been covered by a wide range of artists. A cover of the song also happened to feature in a major Christmas ad campaign by a big department store.

PEAK POSITION: N/A
CHART FACT: Though the song never charted for The Smiths, Slow Moving Millie recorded an acoustic version for the John Lewis Christmas ad campaign in 2011 and took Please Please Please Let Me Get What I Want to Number 31 on the Official Singles Chart.

3. There Is A Light That Never Goes Out (1986)

This track from The Smiths’ third album The Queen Is Dead was never a single while the group were together. It was released five years after they split, to promote the band’s greatest hits collection Best, which hit Number 1 on the Official Albums Chart. Morrissey reveals in his autobiography that he never wanted There Is A Light That Never Goes Out included on The Queen Is Dead. “It is often a relief to be wrong,” he says.

PEAK POSITION: 25
CHART FACT: Morrissey must have made his peace with There Is A Light That Never Goes Out – he re-recorded it and released it as a double-A side with Redondo Beach, taking it to Number 11 in 2005.

2. How Soon Is Now (1985)

Like Please Please Please Let Me Get What I Want, How Soon Is Now was originally a B-side to William, It Was Really Nothing in 1984. When it was officially released the following year, it gave the band their fifth Top 40 hit. How Soon Is Now was covered by controversial Russian duo tATu for their debut album and was sampled by Soho on their only chart hit Hippychick, which reached Number 8 in 1991. The song would live again in 1992 when it was rereleased to promote The Smiths’ greatest hits collection Best.

PEAK POSITION: 16 (in 1992)
CHART FACT: How Soon Is Now is one of two Smiths’ tracks to chart on two separate occasions. The other? Coming right up…

1. This Charming Man (1983)

At the top of Morrissey’s and The Smiths’ most downloaded track countdown is the song that started it all: This Charming Man. 
First charting at Number 55 this week 30 years ago, the track peaked at Number 25 and new stars – one in particular – were born.

Speaking to Official Charts, Greg Cochrane of NME.com says: "This Charming Man remains an absolute classic. Even now step into an indie clubnight and you're guaranteed to hear it – a testament to its enduring popularity. A truly iconic track."

This Charming Man would best its original chart placing on rerelease in 1992, giving The Smiths their third and final Top 10 hit on the Official Singles Chart.

PEAK POSITION: 8 (in 1992)
CHART FACT: This Charming Man has sold 139,000 downloads, 42,000 ahead of nearest rival How Soon Is Now.