...Best II

...Best II
Cover to the standard edition of the album
Greatest hits album by
the Smiths
ReleasedNovember 2, 1992
Recorded1983–1987
GenreAlternative rock, indie pop
Length52:24
LabelWEA
ProducerVarious (see main text)
The Smiths chronology
Best...I
(1992) 		...Best II
(1992) 		Singles
(1995)
Alternative cover
US cover of ...Best II
Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic[1]
The Encyclopedia of Popular Music[2]

...Best II is a compilation album by the Smiths. It was released on November 2, 1992, by the new owner of their back catalogue, WEA (Sire Records in the United States). Its highest British chart position was #29; it did not chart in the U.S.

Background

WEA (now the Warner Music Group) had acquired the entire Smiths back catalogue in early 1992 (sister label Sire Records already had the North American rights). Along with the re-release of the eight original albums (the four studio albums, the Rank live album and the three compilation albums issued while the band were still active), they immediately set to work compiling a 'best of' collection in two volumes. It was the first time a regular best of compilation had ever been made of The Smiths' material and the first volume effortlessly reached the top of the British charts. This, the second volume, fared considerably worse. The British press continued to groan about sell-out and low track selection coherence.

The material is more or less picked and sequenced at random, and consists of both singles and album cuts. As with the first volume, in the UK a spin-off single was released: "There Is a Light That Never Goes Out" (which had originally been earmarked as a single back in 1986 but was ultimately passed over in favour of "Bigmouth Strikes Again"). The single was released ahead of the compilation album and reached No. 25.

Cover

The UK and European release of the record featured the right half of a 1960s biker couple photograph by Dennis Hopper on its sleeve, with Best...I completing the picture; the U.S. sleeve was designed by singer Morrissey and once again features Richard Davalos, co-star of East of Eden (other shots of Davalos grace the covers of Strangeways, Here We Come and the U.S. edition of Best...I).

Track listing

All tracks written by Morrissey and Johnny Marr (including "Oscillate Wildly"[3]).

  1. "The Boy with the Thorn in His Side" (album version) (From The Queen Is Dead) – 3:16
  2. "The Headmaster Ritual" (From Meat Is Murder) – 4:52
  3. "Heaven Knows I'm Miserable Now" (From Hatful of Hollow) – 3:34
  4. "Ask" (album version) (From The World Won't Listen) – 3:15
  5. "Oscillate Wildly" (Single B-side of "How Soon Is Now?") – 3:26
  6. "Nowhere Fast" (From Meat is Murder) – 2:35
  7. "Still Ill" (From The Smiths) – 3:20
  8. "Bigmouth Strikes Again" (From The Queen Is Dead) – 3:14
  9. "That Joke Isn't Funny Anymore" (album version) (From Meat is Murder) – 4:57
  10. "Shakespeare's Sister" (Single A-side) – 2:08
  11. "Girl Afraid" (From Hatful of Hollow) – 2:46
  12. "Reel Around the Fountain" (From The Smiths) – 5:56
  13. "Last Night I Dreamt That Somebody Loved Me" (album version) (From Strangeways, Here We Come) – 5:02
  14. "There Is a Light That Never Goes Out" (From The Queen Is Dead) – 4:02

Personnel

Additional musicians

Production

  • John Porter – producer (A2, A5-A6, B2-B3)
  • The Smiths – producers (A3-A4, A7, B4-B5)
  • Morrissey and Marr – producers (A1, B1, B7)
  • Johnny Marr, Morrissey and Stephen Street – producers (B6)

Charts

Chart performance for ...Best II
Chart (1992) Peak
position
Australian Albums (ARIA)[4] 190
UK Albums (OCC)[5] 5

Certifications and sales

Certifications and sales for ...Best II
Region Certification Certified units/sales
Brazil (Pro-Música Brasil)[6] Gold 100,000*
United Kingdom (BPI)[7] Gold 100,000^
United States — 208,357[8]

* Sales figures based on certification alone.
^ Shipments figures based on certification alone.

References

  1. ^ Allmusic review
  2. ^ Larkin, Colin (2007). The Encyclopedia of Popular Music (4th ed.). Oxford University Press. ISBN 978-0195313734.
  3. ^ "OSCILLATE WILDLY". repertoire.bmi.com. BMI | Songview Search. Archived from the original on November 23, 2022. Retrieved November 23, 2022.
  4. ^ "The Smiths chart history, received from ARIA on 27 May 2021". ARIA. Retrieved July 5, 2024 – via Imgur.com. N.B. The High Point number in the NAT column indicates the release's peak on the national chart.
  5. ^ "Official Albums Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 5 August 2023.
  6. ^ "Brazilian album certifications – The Smiths – Best 2" (in Portuguese). Pro-Música Brasil. Retrieved May 4, 2019.
  7. ^ "British album certifications – The Smiths – Best ...II". British Phonographic Industry. Retrieved August 5, 2023.
  8. ^ "Morrissey/Smiths US album sales in 2007 and total sales since 1992 - Morrissey-solo". www.morrissey-solo.com.