The Smiths

In 1985, the Smiths completed lengthy tours of the UK and the US; among the band’s most enticing shows of ’85 was their homecoming Manchester gig, performed on 31st March at the city’s Palace Theatre.

Early in 1985, the Smiths released their second studio album, Meat Is Murder. More strident and political than its predecessor, it included the pro-vegetarian title track (Morrissey forbade the rest of the group from being photographed eating meat), the light-hearted republicanism of "Nowhere Fast", and the anti-corporal punishment "The Headmaster Ritual" and "Barbarism Begins at Home". The band had also grown more diverse musically, with Marr adding rockabilly riffs to "Rusholme Ruffians" and Rourke playing a funk bass solo on "Barbarism Begins at Home". The album was preceded by the re-release of the B-side "How Soon Is Now?" as a single, and although that song was not on the original LP, it has been added to subsequent releases. Meat Is Murder was the band's only album (barring compilations) to reach number one in the UK charts.