''Kill Uncle'' is the second solo

studio album An album is a collection of audio recordings (e.g., music) issued on a medium such as compact disc (CD), Phonograph record, vinyl (record), audio tape (like 8-track cartridge, 8-track or Cassette tape, cassette), or digital distribution, dig ...

by the English

alternative rock Alternative rock (also known as alternative music, alt-rock or simply alternative) is a category of rock music that evolved from the independent music underground of the 1970s. Alternative rock acts achieved mainstream success in the 1990s w ...

singer

Morrissey Steven Patrick Morrissey ( ; born 22 May 1959), known :wikt:mononym, mononymously as Morrissey, is an English singer and songwriter. He came to prominence as the frontman and lyricist of rock band the Smiths, who were active from 1982 to 198 ...

, released on 4 March 1991 by

EMI Records EMI Records (formerly EMI Records Ltd.) is a British multinational record label owned by Universal Music Group. It was originally founded as a British flagship label by the music company EMI in 1972, and launched in January 1973 as the succes ...

and

His Master's Voice His Master's Voice is an entertainment trademark featuring a dog named Nipper, curiously peering into the horn of a wind-up gramophone. Painted by Francis Barraud in 1898, the image has since become a global symbol used across consumer elect ...

. The title comes from the

black comedy Black comedy, also known as black humor, bleak comedy, dark comedy, dark humor, gallows humor or morbid humor, is a style of comedy that makes light of subject matter that is generally considered taboo, particularly subjects that are normally ...

film '' Let's Kill Uncle'' (1966).

Recording

''Kill Uncle'' was recorded during a transitional phase for Morrissey, having parted ways with record producer

Stephen Street Stephen Brian Street (born 29 March 1960 in Hackney, London) is an English record producer best known for his work with the Smiths, the Cranberries and Blur. Street collaborated with Morrissey on his debut album '' Viva Hate'' following the ...

but not yet working with his future long-term team of guitarists Alain Whyte and

Boz Boorer Martin James "Boz" Boorer (born 19 May 1962 in Edgware, Middlesex, England) is an English guitarist and producer. He founded the new wave rockabilly group the Polecats, and starting in 1991 had a 30-year collaboration with singer Morrissey as c ...

. The album was produced by

Clive Langer Clive Langer (born 19 June 1954) is an English record producer and songwriter, active from the mid-1970s onwards. He usually works with Alan Winstanley. He composed the music for the films '' Still Crazy'' and '' Brothers of the Head''. Biog ...

and

Alan Winstanley Alan Kenneth Winstanley (; born 2 November 1952) is an English record producer and songwriter, active from the mid-1970s onwards. He usually works with Clive Langer. Early life He was born in Fulham in November 1952 to parents Ken and Doreen. ...

with most of the music written by Fairground Attraction's guitarist Mark E. Nevin.

Content

The opening track, " Our Frank", describes "frank and open, deep conversations" that get the singer nowhere and leave him disheartened. The final verse, however, sees Morrissey singing "Won't somebody stop me from thinking? From thinking all the time. So deeply, so bleakly ...", which critic David Thompson interprets as indicating that the conversations he so dreads are in fact with himself. "Asian Rut" tells of the murder of an Asian boy by three English boys, in which Morrissey's vocals are backed only by strings, bass, and sound effects. The song continues the trope of Morrissey writing about English

racism Racism is the belief that groups of humans possess different behavioral traits corresponding to inherited attributes and can be divided based on the superiority of one Race (human categorization), race or ethnicity over another. It may also me ...

from a unique angle, as with "Bengali in Platforms" on his debut solo studio album '' Viva Hate'' (1988). " Sing Your Life" has Morrissey encouraging the listener to express themselves, as he sings, "Walk right up to the microphone and name all the things you love, all the things you loathe." A

rockabilly Rockabilly is one of the earliest styles of rock and roll music. It dates back to the early 1950s in the United States, especially the Southern United States, South. As a genre, it blends the sound of Western music (North America), Western musi ...

version of the song also exists, recorded live at

KROQ-FM KROQ-FM (106.7 MHz) is a commercial radio station licensed to Pasadena, California, serving Greater Los Angeles. Owned by Audacy, Inc., it broadcasts an alternative rock format known as "The World Famous KROQ" (pronounced "kay-rock"). The sta ...

Los Angeles Los Angeles, often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, most populous city in the U.S. state of California, and the commercial, Financial District, Los Angeles, financial, and Culture of Los Angeles, ...

after Morrissey started working with new guitarists Boz Boorer and Alain Whyte. "Mute Witness" tells of an attempt to get information out of a shocked witness who cannot speak at a trial, featuring piano backing composed by

. "King Leer" follows, a relaxed tune with sardonic lyrical puns. "Found Found Found", another Langer track, is the only heavy song on the album. Morrissey sings that he's found "someone who's worth it in this murkiness" but ends complaining this person is "somebody who wants to be with me... all the time". "Driving Your Girlfriend Home" is a

ballad A ballad is a form of verse, often a narrative set to music. Ballads were particularly characteristic of the popular poetry and song of Great Britain and Ireland from the Late Middle Ages until the 19th century. They were widely used across Eur ...

in which Morrissey tells of driving home the girlfriend of an unspecified person. He reveals she asks him, "'How did I end up so deeply involved in the very existence I planned on avoiding?'" and that "She's laughing to stop herself crying." These outpourings are interspersed with directional instructions. Morrissey tells us "I can't tell her" the answer to her question and that the ride concludes with them "shaking hands goodnight so politely." The next track, "The Harsh Truth of the Camera Eye", is often cited as Morrissey's most misunderstood song. The lyric is describing the "pain because of the strain of smiling" and the dichotomy between one's public image and private personality. The music consists of a carnival-like synthesizer and also features sound effects like a door slamming and a camera shutter snapping, along with piano accompaniment. In "(I'm) The End of the Family Line", the singer rues he will never have children, an insult into the "fifteen generations... of mine" that produced him. The lyric is complemented by a subdued guitar backing, and ends with a similar 'false' fadeout similar to such Smiths songs as " That Joke Isn't Funny Anymore". The original album closes with "There Is a Place in Hell for Me and My Friends", a simple piano piece that reflects the existential longing of the album and showcases Morrissey's

torch song A torch song is a sentimental love song, typically one in which the singer laments an unrequited or lost love, either where one party is oblivious to the existence of the other, where one party has moved on, or where a romantic affair has affect ...

influence. This version was replaced in the 2013 expanded edition by the recording from the three-song live EP ''

At KROQ ''At KROQ'' is a three-song live extended play, EP by Morrissey, released on 18 September 1991. It was recorded at a live session in 1991 for Los Angeles radio station KROQ-FM, while Morrissey was touring in support of his second album ''Kill Un ...

''. The 2013 expanded edition of the album added the songs "East West" and "Pashernate Love", as well as changing the running order of some tracks.

Release

''Kill Uncle'' was released on 4 March 1991 by record labels

EMI EMI Group Limited (formerly EMI Group plc until 2007; originally an initialism for Electric and Musical Industries, also referred to as EMI Records or simply EMI) was a British transnational conglomerate founded in March 1931 in London. At t ...

and

. " Our Frank", the album's

lead single A lead single (or first single) is the first single to be released from a studio album by an artist or a band, usually before the album itself is released and also occasionally on the same day of the album's release date. A similar term, "debut ...

and opening track, reached No. 26 in the UK Singles Chart and No. 2 in the US

Modern Rock Tracks Alternative Airplay (formerly known as Modern Rock Tracks between 1988 and 2009, and Alternative Songs between 2009 and 2020) is a music chart published in the American magazine ''Billboard'' since September 10, 1988. It ranks the 40 most-playe ...

chart. " Sing Your Life" was also released as a single, reaching No. 33 in the UK and No. 10 on the US Modern Rock Tracks chart. On 5 February 2013, Morrissey announced the reissue of the album along with a remastered version of his 1989 single " The Last of the Famous International Playboys", both to be released 8 April 2013. This was as part of a Morrissey reissue campaign by

Parlophone Parlophone Records Limited (also known as Parlophone Records and Parlophone) is a record label founded in Germany in 1896 by the Carl Lindström Company as Parlophon. The British branch of the label was founded on 8 August 1923 as the Parloph ...

. This version of the album includes three additional tracks and is available as a gatefold CD and heavyweight gatefold LP. The

picture disc Picture discs are gramophone record, gramophone (phonograph) records that show images on their playing surface, rather than being of plain black or colored vinyl. Collectors traditionally reserve the term picture disc for records with graphics ...

single and album feature new cover artworks. The press release mentioned that "the album has a revitalised quality, which accentuates some of its more subtle, experimental qualities and nuances; in particular, some of the more unusual musical styles which Morrissey explored for the first time".

Critical reception

''Kill Uncle'' has generally divided opinion amongst music critics. In a retrospective review,

Stephen Thomas Erlewine Stephen Thomas Erlewine (; born June 18, 1973) is an American music critic and former senior editor for the online music database AllMusic. He is the author of multiple artist biographies and record reviews for AllMusic, as well as a freelance ...

AllMusic AllMusic (previously known as All-Music Guide and AMG) is an American online database, online music database. It catalogs more than three million album entries and 30 million tracks, as well as information on Musical artist, musicians and Mus ...

panned the album, describing it as "Morrissey's least distinguished record" with "neither melody nor much wit". Mark Hogan of ''

Pitchfork A pitchfork or hay fork is an agricultural tool used to pitch loose material, such as hay, straw, manure, or leaves. It has a long handle and usually two to five thin tines designed to efficiently move such materials. The term is also applie ...

'' wrote that the album "is best appreciated as a campy celebration of the decorative and artificial." Mat Snow in '' Q'' magazine described it as "further evidence of woodworm in the creative rafters" and highlighted the short running time of the album.

Track listing

Personnel

Credits are adapted from the ''Kill Uncle'' liner notes. Musicians *

– vocals * Mark E. Nevin – guitar * Mark Bedford – bass guitar * Andrew Paresi – drums;

percussion A percussion instrument is a musical instrument that is sounded by being struck or scraped by a percussion mallet, beater including attached or enclosed beaters or Rattle (percussion beater), rattles struck, scraped or rubbed by hand or ...

* Seamus Beaghen – keyboards * Steven Heart – keyboards * Nawazish Ali Khan – violin * Linder Sterling – backing vocals Production and artwork *

–

production Production may refer to: Economics and business * Production (economics) * Production, the act of manufacturing goods * Production, in the outline of industrial organization, the act of making products (goods and services) * Production as a stat ...

– production * Simon Metcalfe –

engineering Engineering is the practice of using natural science, mathematics, and the engineering design process to Problem solving#Engineering, solve problems within technology, increase efficiency and productivity, and improve Systems engineering, s ...

assistance * Gino Sprio – sleeve photography * Jo Slee – sleeve art coordinator

Charts

Certifications

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Kill Uncle Morrissey albums 1991 albums Albums produced by Alan Winstanley Albums produced by Clive Langer Sire Records albums Glam rock albums by English artists