Evening star struck one
Wondering how come
Suddenly becoming completely undone
Just as I looked in your eyes for the first time
I was already in love with you
The Smoking Popes are the Artist of the Week? Why you ask? Well because this is my blog and I can pretty much do whatever I want! The Smoking Popes are a rock group formed in 1991 that had a few hit songs, but never really lived up to the commercial hype. They were a rock band with very sensitive lyrics. Many of their songs are from the “good guys finish last” perspective. Unfortunately this band is no longer around, but they have an excellent archive of hits that you could always check out online!
The group is made up of three Caterer brothers (Matt, Josh and Eli), with Josh being the lead singer. Josh’s voice sound almost identical to Morrissey, which is who I thought I was listening to the first time I heard a song from the Smoking Popes. In 2005, Morrissey called “Born to Quit” (the band’s sophomore album) his 9th favorite album of all-time! Quite a compliment coming from Morrissey!
The band had mild success, until 1994 when the band released the track “Need You Around.” The track was played and featured on the soundtrack to the cult movie classic “Clueless.” The movie was a hit, and the song gained some major recognition because of it. Later on that year, the band was asked to open up for Green Day, who were busy ruining Punk, according to Dr. Justin! Record executives started to take notice and the Smoking Popes were dubbed the “Next Big Thing.” That phrase was the kiss of death because the band was never really heard from again.
The band cranked out one more album entitled “Destination Failure” which is their best work to date. The album is my personal favorite and features many standout hits. What I like about this album is the smooth delivery by Josh and the acoustic/rock sound of the album. Lyrically, all the songs are fantastic! They kept up with the theme that good guys finish last! This is evident from the opening of the album. The lead off track “Star Struck One” is a clear example of the tone of the album. The song ends with the lyric, “”Don’t be a pussy all your life!” Another standout hit was a cover: “Pure Imagination” which was featured in the original movie “Willy Wonka & The Chocolate Factory.” I love songs with titled after girls, so needless to say another great song is “Megan.” If you’ve never heard of the Smoking Popes, and you wanna check out an album, this is the album to buy or download!
The band released another album four years later, but by then it was too late. Other than the hard-core fan, no one really cared. Though I am a fan of this group, I’m not a fanatic, but their last album was very good! You have to wonder why some record companies get behind some bands and not others. It is disappointing when you hear a crappy song like Justin’s favorite “Fireflies,” but you never heard anything from the Smoking Popes! It just goes to prove my point that the radio executives tell you what to listen to!
Although the band briefly re-united a few years ago, and released an album in 2008. They are constantly on/off, so it is hard to tell whether they are making music. That shouldn’t stop you from following the links below and discovering this awesome band. Although they may be old, they’ll be new to you! Enjoy!
Top 5 Songs
4. Megan
Useful Links
“Need You Around” has been one of my all-time favorite songs since I stole my brother’s mix tape that had this song on it! I had no idea this song was in “Clueless”.. ugh.