Writing about Morrissey is perhaps not a task for the faint-hearted: in 1992, apparently without having read the book, the singer remarked of Johnny Rogan's exhaustive biography Morrissey and Marr: The Severed Alliance that he hoped the author would die ‘very soon in an M3 pile-up’.Footnote ¹ Nonetheless, as the editors of Why Pamper Life's Complexities argue, The Smiths’ contribution to popular music is sufficiently significant that the band deserves scholarly attention, particularly in light of the ‘radical reappraisal of The Smiths that has occurred in recent years’ (p. 1). This collection is born, in part, out of a symposium on The Smiths held at Manchester Metropolitan University in 2005, and forms part of Manchester University Press's Music and Society series.

The 14 essays – including a substantial introductory chapter by the editors – are not organised into sections, but have been thoughtfully arranged so that thematic links are implied. Eoin Devereux's discussion of the influence of Catholicism on the band, for example, references imagery of death, and particularly suicide, found in their work; in the following chapter, Kieran Cashell argues persuasively that Morrissey's stance on suicide – as exemplified in the song ‘Asleep’ – comes from a philosophical (rather than sociological or psychological) understanding of self-destruction. The book's closing chapters, by Kari Kallionieimi and Nabeel Zuberi, examine The Smiths’ relationship to England and Englishness.

Certain themes recur throughout the book: the political backdrop to the band's existence which, as Joseph Brooker points out, ‘roughly corresponded to Margaret Thatcher's second term in office’ (p. 22); the relationship between the band and notions of local and national identity; the imagery employed by the band in their lyrics and artwork; and its relationship to other media such as the ‘angry young men’ and kitchen-sink cinema (the last of these themes is brought into focus in Cecília Mello's chapter).

One of the editors’ aims for this collection was to ensure that it considered the impact of the band as a whole, rather than putting a disproportionate amount of focus on Morrissey's lyrics and persona. Whilst the research objectives are varied, many of the essays (particularly in the first half of the book) are based heavily on the analysis of The Smiths’ lyrics, interviews and, to a lesser extent, music. Inevitably, this puts the focus on Morrissey. The inclusion of his lyrics (including those from his solo career) in chapter and section titles, as well as the body of the text in certain chapters (e.g. Karl Maton's description of his correspondence with fellow Smiths fans as part of his undergraduate research), conspires to keep the focus on the singer. Speculation about Morrissey's sexuality is touched upon in several chapters, but is only the main focus of one, in which Sheila Whiteley examines four songs ‘that appear to contain paedophilic connotations’ (p. 106). Any focus on Morrissey may be considered a result of the dominance of the singer's character, rather than a failure on the part of the editors and contributors; the collection as a whole does not suffer for it.

The essays themselves are of a high standard, though some do perhaps raise more questions than they answer. Jonathan Hiam examines the interplay between the band's music and lyrics with a view to illustrating how particular emotions are conveyed in particular songs (desperation in ‘Shoplifters of the World Unite’; anxiety in ‘Stretch Out and Wait’). While not unconvincing, the chapter raises important questions about intentionality – particularly, as the author acknowledges, because the band's music and lyrics were often written separately (Morrissey's post-Smiths collaborators, including Stephen Street and Clive Langer, have confirmed that it was sometimes difficult to predict which section of music the singer would treat as a chorus and which as a verseFootnote ²). Frustratingly, the issue of intentionality is only noted in the closing paragraph of the chapter, and is too readily dismissed.

Some of the research presented here would benefit from slightly more careful consideration of its method. Julian Stringer examines ‘what The Smiths mean to Manchester’ by examining coverage of the band from the publications City Life (1983–1987) and the Manchester Evening News (2000–2007), paying ‘particular attention to online reports posted at [the MEN's] website (http://www.manchestereveningnews.co.uk)’ (p. 207). For at least part of the period under review, this website drew from City Life's online copy, and it is also worth noting that City Life and the MEN were very different kinds of publication. Given the scope of the research it seems justifiable to focus on two publications, but the essay would have benefited from a statement clarifying the differences and relationships between the two selected.

That the academic world is now ready for greater scholarly focus on The Smiths is evidenced from the relatively small pool of existing material on which the authors draw: the aforementioned biography by Johnny Rogan (who thankfully never did encounter that fatal road accident) is referenced frequently, as, to an even greater extent, is the work of Simon Goddard, cited in all but five of the essays. For the most part, the book is perhaps overly celebratory in tone, though more critical opinions of the band are hinted at, such as those of Gilbert and Pearson (as described by Colin Coulter in his chapter). The book also hints at the exciting potential for future research about the band (such as their creative processes, and how they are perceived outside the UK and Ireland), as well as wider issues concerning popular music (e.g. the relationship between academia and the media). Why Pamper Life's Complexities is a welcome volume, and one that will hopefully stimulate further discussion and debate about this artistically and culturally important group.