Morrissey courts controversy; tours UK and US

Morrissey brought a political stance to many of his interviews, courting further controversy. Among his targets were the Thatcher government , the British monarchy and the famine relief project Band Aid . Morrissey famously quipped of the last, “One can have great concern for the people of Ethiopia , but it’s another thing to inflict daily torture on the people of England” (“torture” being a reference to the music that resulted from the project). The subsequent single-only release ” Shakespeare’s Sister ” reached number 26 on the UK singles chart, although the only single taken from the album, ” That Joke Isn’t Funny Anymore “, was less successful, barely making the top 50. In 1985, the Smiths completed lengthy tours of the UK and the US.