Earlier this summer, I posted a list of the “most forgotten” musical artists of the 60s and 70s, based on an analysis by Chris Dalla Riva on his Can’t Get Much Higher substack. Well, Dalla Riva has proved to be a gift that keeps on giving, because another of his recent analyses has inspired my posts for the next two weeks.
This time he set out to compile a list of the most underrated songs of the 80s, defining “underrated” as high quality mixed with relatively low popularity. To gauge quality, he aggregated critics lists of the best 80s songs to come up with a master list. To gauge present-day popularity, he used Spotify streams.
By this calculation, the most underrated song of the 80s is The Smiths’ ‘How Soon is Now?’ I can already hear daily commenter Dana groaning!
The song showed up at the top of the critics’ best-of list but ranks 252nd in popularity. That makes sense to me because, while this song was one of The Smiths’ most successful songs at the time of its release, the band’s modern-day streaming numbers come courtesy of die-hard fans. And die-hard fans are less likely to stream the “hit” than lesser-known deep cuts.
Indeed, ‘How Soon is Now?’ is only The Smiths’ seventh-most streamed song, despite being the only track in their discography to break into the Top 40 of any Billboard chart (Dance, in this case). Normally, a band’s biggest U.S. hit is also its most streamed song.
‘How Soon is Now?’ is an excellent song, worthy of this title. It’s also quite unlike the rest of The Smiths’ output, except in that it is a heart-wrenching depiction of adolescent loneliness.
I’m featuring the truncated single version today because I posted the full version way back in July of 2009. In that post I called it the best thing on the album Meat is Murder, an opinion I no longer have. Now, I would give that honor to ‘Well I Wonder.’
That post also features a sweet story about how this song contributed to me falling for my wife, accusations of pretentiousness by Dana because I used the word “screed,” and occasional commenter Amy declaring her dislike of “trans” music (I believe she meant “trance”).
I am the son and the heir
Of a shyness that is criminally vulgar
I am the son and heir
Of nothing in particular
[Chorus]
You shut your mouth, how can you say
I go about things the wrong way?
I am human and I need to be loved
Just like everybody else does
[Verse]
I am the son and the heir
Of a shyness that was criminally vulgar
I am the son and heir
Of nothing in particular
[Chorus]
You shut your mouth, how can you say
I go about things the wrong way?
I am human and I need to be loved
Just like everybody else does
[Bridge]
There’s a club if you’d like to go
You could meet somebody who really loves you
So you go and you stand on your own
And you leave on your own
And you go home and you cry
And you want to die
[Bridge]
When you say, “It’s gonna happen now”
Well, when exactly do you mean?
See I’ve already waited too long
And all my hope is gone
[Chorus]
You shut your mouth, how can you say
I go about things the wrong way?
I am human and I need to be loved
Just like everybody else does
Meet Me In Montauk 
This song (whether trans or trance) being number 1 on the most underrated songs list, where lack of streaming was part of the metrics, underscores the reason why The Smiths are not likely to make it into the the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame – something I will lose zero sleep over.😆
Just reread the 2009 blog and loved the story of you and Alex ❤️