Still charming men

The Smiths Seven Inch Vinyl Single Box Set Rhino  *****

If any band can justify an extravagantly packaged box set of their singles, it's The Smiths. Influenced both by the "if you can't say it in three minutes, you can't say it at all" immediacy of punk and the Tamla Motown back catalogue, The Smiths distilled their sound so tersely that their best work often came in at under three minutes. It's surprisingly thrilling to have all these moments on vinyl again, from the jangly pop of This Charming Manthrough to the more studio- layered work which saw them stretch the definition of "indie".

One gets a palpable sense of The Smiths' musical progression over these tracks. The instant pop thrill of the early singles (which were always over-reliant on Johnny Marr's guitar) gives way to more soundscape-sounding work - albeit with the pop punch still intact. You would expect these songs to sound dated, but Marr's guitar work is still box-fresh, the rhythm section

of Mike Joyce and Andy Rourke still sounds super-taut, and Morrissey's lyrics have simply never been bettered (and make the likes of Razorlight sound like hapless illiterates).

The first 10 UK-issued singles are all here, complete with two sort of rarities: Still Ill, which was supposed to be their fourth single but got bumped at the last moment by Heaven Knows I'm Miserable Now.There's also the Dutch release of The Headmaster Ritual, which, for completists, is perhaps their most sought-after vinyl release. To add to their authenticity, these singles all use the original production masters from the period.

This is supposedly limited to 10,00 copies, so get your order in now. As for the tacky badges that come with the package, they confused me for a moment until I remembered those lines from Paint a Vulgar Picture: "Re-issue, re-package, re-evaluate the songs/Double pack with a photograph, extra track and a tacky badge". How very Morrissey.

Download tracks: Still Ill, What Difference Does It Make