My Early Burglary Years [ENHANCED]

Morrissey

Product Details

• Audio CD (September 15, 1998)
• Original Release Date: September 15, 1998
• Number of Discs: 1
• Format: Enhanced
• Label: Warner Bros / Wea
• ASIN: B00000AG90
• In-Print Editions: MP3 Download
• Average Customer Review: 4.2 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (28 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #23,522 in Music (See Bestsellers in Music)

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com

Reissue, repackage, repackage. The Morrissey melodrama continues on My Early Burglary Years, the ex-Smiths frontman's third U.S. compilation of previously released material. So what do we get for our trouble and pain? This time around the prince of loneliness offers a handpicked disc of his favorite B-sides along with a few live cuts and some scattered album tracks. It's a fairly strong collection, actually--and worthwhile, especially if you haven't bothered keeping up with Mozzer's U.K.-only singles. Highlights? The hummable "Nobody Loves Us," the Smiths-reminiscent "Sister, I'm a Poet" ("Is evil just something you are / Or something you do?"), and the only-Moz-could-get-away-with-it pathos of "Boxers." Typically Morrissey, the collection drips with melancholy. But call him morbid, call him pale, it's hard to resist curling up in bed on a gray Sunday morning with nothing but a stack of Moz CDs and a six-disc changer. --Steve Landau

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

9 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars "So I sit and support with a dutiful smile", April 27, 2001

By	Jason Tassey (Atlanta, GA United States) - See all my reviews

Arguably Morrissey's (DON'T YOU DARE CALL HIM STEVE) best compilation since "Bona Drag," "My Early Burglary Years" gives us die-hard fans a chance to rejoice. And while he is not a marketing wizard (how many times can you release "Suedehead," "The Boy Racer," or "Everyday is like Sunday"?), he truly shines when at his best. Prime examples are "Sunny," "Nobody Loves Us," "The Girl Least Likely To," and "Boxers." There are some lowpoints, which keep me from rating it 5 stars. I'm sorry folks, but I wasn't overly impressed with "The Boy Racer," or "Pashernate Love" the first time I heard them. It is a crime that these incredible B-sides did not make it onto any album (compiliations not included). "The Girl Least Likely To," while by no means a new track, is one of his best lyrical achievements ever (even with the Smiths). "Nobody Loves Us" is classic Morrissey and undeniably deserved A-Side status. I truly believe that Morrissey purposely walks the fine line of stardom and obscurity and ambushes his own career by deliberate choice. The singles he releases are usually not the best tracks on the album, and he sends hauntily brilliant songs into B-side obscurity which I can only explain as deliberate sabotage. Definitely not his worst, and at times close to his best, "My Early Burgarly Years" is an excellent musical choice for new listeners and a slightly bromic pill for the tried and true fan.

8 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars morrissey did it again!, December 1, 1999

By	ardee antonio (san diego ca, united states of america) - See all my reviews

As a tired consumer of buying re-packaged songs, this cd is not bad at all. "Pashernate Love" is perhaps the best song. Hard to find B sides will flourish your stereo at home or work or play. Added bonus if you have a computer and a true Morrissey fan, you even get a freebee video for the song "Sunny". Bottom line, it is a good compilation of Moz' B side songs in one family fun packed cd. Hurray for Moz. Let it rip!

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars a safe buy, December 11, 2003

By	Author Brian Wallace (Mind Transmission, Inc.) (Texas) - See all my reviews (TOP 500 REVIEWER)

an extremely strong collection of songs and very worthwhile buy. I've heard the complaints - so much Smiths and Morrissey in re-circulation.

With this one you get solid, interesting songs that tell a very different tale than the one your local radio station is piping out. Elegant melodies and richly biting lyrics permeate this disc and remind those of us who have followed Morrissey for so many years why we stick around.