"Sixteen, clumsy and shy/that's the story of my life."
"Half a Person" is not only the best song on this odds/sods U.S. singles collection (which, aside from "The Queen is Dead," remains their most stunning achievement; the Smiths were very much a singles band throughout their entire history, releasing 24 in total, many iconic and better known than the album tracks), it's the best thing they ever recorded -- one of Johnny's all-time great chord sequences.
The title is borrowed from a line in Elizabeth Smart's extended prose poem By Grand Central Station I Sat Down and Wept.
And the cover star is Salford, Manchester playwright Shelaugh Delaney. I've been to Salford (see photo), it's rough but ready -- the famous men's club is basically on the same lane (Coronation Street) as the long-running Brit soap opera.
