The colour field

Press, 6 February 1986, Page 14

The colour field

GREEN ON RED “No Free Lunch” (Mercury 826 346-1). THE SMITHS “The Boy With The Thorn In His Side” (Rough ’ Trade 12-inch single).Green On Red are yet another American band harking back to the roots of rock’n’roll, this time absorbing equal parts of country music and 60’s garage punk, on their debut mini-LP, “No Free Lunch.”

Vocals are provided by one D. Stuart, possessor of one of the broadest Southern drawls your reviewer has heard, almost sounding like parody in places.

The music could be compared to a less manic Violent Femmes, with Stuart often adopting the plaintive wail of The Femmes’ Gordon Gano.

The similarity is most obvious on the opener “Time Ain’t Nothing” the most accessible track on ‘“No Free Lunch,” with some tasty 60’s keyboards from Cacavas (the credits here are rather enigmatic).

“Ballad of Guy Fawkes” steals the line “Take my money, my cigarettes” from Al Green’s classic “Take Me To The River,” and impresses as a good country-tinged example of the band’s flair for melody. Unfortunately, none of the other tracks come up to the standard of these two, and it is hard to see why overseas papers have singled out Green On Red for special praise — competent, but uninspired. Meanwhile, The Smiths, from Manchester, have

added another killer single to their already impressive tally with their new 45, “The Boy With The Thorn In His Side.” This band write pop songs like no other — “This Charming Man” and “How Soon Is Now” are 80s classics, and Johnny Marr’s spine-tingling guitar carries this one to similar heights. “Rubber Ring” is a jaunty, reggae-tinged ode to the musical roots of the singer, Morrissey, and the other song on the flip, “Asleep,” stays just on the right side of schmaltz. The Smith have a unique tension in their music, and “Thorn” is a good sample — buy this, and then investigate their brilliant “Meat Is Murder” LP. — TONY GREEN.