The Queen Is Dead
by The Smiths

The Queen Is Dead by The Smiths
Year: 1986
Release date: 1986-06-16
Overall rank: 16th   Overall chart history
Average Rating: 
88/100 (from 2,942 votes)
  Ratings distribution   Average rating history
Accolades:
Award Best album of 1986 (1st)
Award Best album of the 1980s (1st)
Award Top 20 albums of all time (16th)

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The Smiths - The Queen is Dead [New CD]
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The Smiths Vinyl LP Collection🎙️ The Queen Is Dead 🎸 Strangeways, Here We Come
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Smiths Queen Is Dead Double CD Like New
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The Smiths bestography

The Queen Is Dead is ranked as the best album by The Smiths.

The Smiths album bestography « Higher ranked
-
This album (16th)
The Queen Is Dead
Lower ranked (193rd) »
The Smiths

(N.B. Bestographies include all albums by an artist (and their variations), but do not include albums ranked outside the top 100,000).

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The Queen Is Dead track list

  Track ratings The tracks on this album have an average rating of 88 out of 100 (all tracks have been rated).

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Track pick (1000 - 100 votes) Top-rated track as rated by BestEverAlbums.com members.

The Queen Is Dead rankings

Rankings summary
Overall rank: 16th | 1980s rank: 1st | 1986 rank: 1st
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YearSourceChartRankRank Score
2026 PasticheTop 24 Music Albums of 19861/245
2026pjr428Top 31 Music Albums of 19863/315
2026Liks_on_musicTop 50 Greatest Music Albums23/5056
2026 RasmVTop 100 Greatest Music Albums41/10058
2026wizardalienTop 67 Music Albums of the 1980s2/6720
2026 AAL2014Top 100 Music Albums of the 1980s15/10017
2026 RomanelliMy Overall Chart: 101-20070/100 -
2026 flamingyesdeptTop 100 Greatest Artists16/100 -
2026NextWaveMusicMediaTop 100 Greatest Music Albums11/10089
2026 PurplepashTop 100 Music Albums of the 1980s7/10019
2026 RomanelliTop 100 Music Albums of the 1980s24/10015
2026TuurTop 25 Music Albums of the 1980s25/251
2026leniadTop 100 Greatest Music Albums33/10068
2026wizardalienTop 100 Greatest Music Albums7/10094
2026UnliveableWiltsTop 100 Greatest Music Albums73/10027
2026tim0505Top 22 Music Albums of 19861/225
2026matterhornriderTop 100 Music Albums of the 1980s3/10020
2026 videoheadcleanerTop 100 Music Albums of 198667/1002
2026jdizzle12345620th Century17/51 -
2026 paladisiactop albums, #0701-0800*40/79 -
Total Charts: Help The total number of charts that this album has appeared in. 2,497
Total Rank Score: Help The total rank score. 32,619
You can include this album in your own chart from the My Charts page!

The Queen Is Dead collection

The Queen Is Dead ratings

Average Rating: 
88/100 (from 2,942 votes)
  Ratings distribution Help Average Rating = (n ÷ (n + m)) × av + (m ÷ (n + m)) × AV
where:
av = trimmed mean average rating an item has currently received.
n = number of ratings an item has currently received.
m = minimum number of ratings required for an item to appear in a 'top-rated' chart (currently 10).
AV = the site mean average rating.

Showing latest 5 ratings for this album.  | Show all 2,942 ratings for this album.

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RatingDate updatedMemberAlbum ratingsAvg. album rating
 
95/100
 
6 hours ago michelefarina  Ratings distribution  6486/100
 
90/100
 
4 days ago Steve_Emmett  Ratings distribution  11867/100
 
90/100
 
04/30/2026 12:44 Liks_on_music  Ratings distribution  58881/100
 
85/100
 
04/29/2026 00:05 oilnoilnoilnoil  Ratings distribution  26778/100
 
60/100
 
04/15/2026 18:29 Leonard  Ratings distribution  6,56670/100

Rating metrics: Help Outliers can be removed when calculating a mean average to dampen the effects of ratings outside the normal distribution. This figure is provided as the trimmed mean. A high standard deviation can be legitimate, but can sometimes indicate 'gaming' is occurring. Consider a simplified example* of an item receiving ratings of 100, 50, & 0. The mean average rating would be 50. However, ratings of 55, 50 & 45 could also result in the same average. The second average might be more trusted because there is more consensus around a particular rating (a lower deviation).
(*In practice, some albums can have several thousand ratings)

This album is rated in the top 1% of all albums on BestEverAlbums.com. This album has a Bayesian average rating of 87.7/100, a mean average of 86.2/100, and a trimmed mean (excluding outliers) of 87.8/100. The standard deviation for this album is 16.1.

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The Queen Is Dead comments

Showing latest 10 comments | Show all 265 comments |
Most Helpful First | Newest First | Positive Sentiment First | Longest Comments First
(Only showing comments with -2 votes or higher. You can alter this threshold from your profile page. Manage Profile)

Rating:  
100/100
From 05/17/2024 04:33 | #303571
Another of my all-time favorites. It's incredible that it hasn't been long since I discovered The Smiths and they became one of my favorite bands/artists, they have a way of resonating with people (especially outsiders) in a specific way that few bands have, I like many of their songs, That being said I have my favorites, here are my ratings:

1. There Is A Light That Never Goes Out 100/100
2. Bigmouth Strikes Again 99/100 -> 100/100
3. Cemetry Gates 98/100 ->100/100
4. The Boy With The Thorn In His Side 97/100 -> 100/100
5. The Queen Is Dead 95/100
6. I Know It's Over 94/100 -> 95/100
7. Never Had No One Ever 92/100 -> 95/100
8. Some Girls Are Bigger Than Others 89/100 -> 90/100
9. Frankly, Mr. Shankly 87/100 -> 90/100
10. Vicar In A Tutu 80/100

Yes, I'm not really as much of a fan of their 'rockabilly' songs and some quirky but inane Morrissey's lyrics as in "Some Girls..". But I like all the tracks, even the particular one "Vicar in a Tatu".
Helpful?  (Log in to vote) | +2 votes (2 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
Rating:  
100/100
From 03/17/2024 11:10 | #302568
At one point I thought it was their weakest album. Over time it has become a significant work of art in British history. Become a National treasure
Helpful?  (Log in to vote) | 0 votes (0 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
Rating:  
100/100
From 02/29/2024 14:05 | #302301
Such a memorable album - the Smiths at their peak.
Helpful?  (Log in to vote) | 0 votes (0 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
Rating:  
80/100
From 10/23/2023 20:48 | #299607
The album kicks off with the title track, "The Queen Is Dead," which immediately sets a rebellious and satirical tone. It is followed by tracks like "Frankly, Mr. Shankly," a witty and sarcastic take on the music industry, and "There Is a Light That Never Goes Out," a poignant and melancholic song that has become one of The Smiths' most beloved and enduring tracks.
Helpful?  (Log in to vote) | 0 votes (0 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
Rating:  
80/100
From 10/23/2023 20:44 | #299606
The album kicks off with the title track, "The Queen Is Dead," which immediately sets a rebellious and satirical tone. It is followed by tracks like "Frankly, Mr. Shankly," a witty and sarcastic take on the music industry, and "There Is a Light That Never Goes Out," a poignant and melancholic song that has become one of The Smiths' most beloved and enduring tracks..
Helpful?  (Log in to vote) | 0 votes (0 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
Rating:  
60/100
From 05/25/2023 11:49 | #297212
A pesar de que el contenido lírico es sublime, la voz de Morrissey no me generó Ningún sentimiento.
Helpful?  (Log in to vote) | -1 votes (0 helpful | 1 unhelpful)
Rating:  
100/100
From 05/17/2023 22:38 | #297051
Beautiful from front to back. A seamless collection of jangle-pop/alt-rock classics whose evocations run the gamut: coy and playful, fiery and bitter, downright tragic. Marr's breezy guitar passages are masterfully produced, almost chiming like bells at some points. Morrissey is at the height of his power and plays only to his strengths. Rourke and Joyce are absolutely locked in. Unapologetically English, but never to a fault. A perfect album.
Helpful?  (Log in to vote) | +1 votes (1 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
Rating:  
95/100
From 05/06/2023 23:42 | #296706
This is the master duo of Marr and Morrissey at their very best. Both give us an absolutely stellar performance that combine to create one of the greatest albums ever made. They both seem to come into the peak of their powers at the same time which creates a cohesive masterpiece both musically and lyrically. The instrumental work on here is phenomenal with Marr creating some of the best hooks of all time. Pretty much every song is infectious and posses the power to get stuck in your head for months and I am never annoyed about this as the music is that good. You then pair that with some incredible choruses from Morrissey and you turn the irresistibleness up even higher. There is a lot more to his words than just these choruses however as Morrissey once again demonstrates his intelligence and maturity as a songwriter which results in his best ever lyrical record. His words as well as Marr's music demand your attention and are begging to be explored which sucks you in as a listener and you can't help but fall in love with this release. Overall, this is the best record The Smiths ever created and also one of the greatest records ever created and I don't think there is much of an argument against this opinion.
Helpful?  (Log in to vote) | +2 votes (2 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
Rating:  
100/100
From 01/21/2023 23:23 | #293147
This is the greatest 80s album and one of the best ever made. I love it so much that I don't really know what to write. Everything from lyrical content to instrumentation is absolutely magnificent here. The opening track is setting the tone of the record which is dark, because the end of 20th century and we gave up on old institutions and now there is emptiness that we don't know how to feel. I love how Morrisey here mixes post-modern perspective with 17-th/18-th century aesthetics on tracks like Cemetary Gates or Bigmouth Strikes Again. He delivers so passionate vocals over gentle instrumentals on I Know It's Over, Never Had No One Ever or one of their most beautiful and powerful songs - There Is A Light That Never Goes Out - it's sad, but yet giving listener hope of changing situation no matter how miserable it is. The way that is album is produced make even seemingly stupid tracks (Vicar In Tutu, Some Girls Are Bigger Than Others) sound more emotional. I like how Frankly, Mr. Shankly is being quite funny song, but at the same time it captures feeling of uncertainty about a future in times that are changing fast. This makes this album still relevant after almost 40 years.
Helpful?  (Log in to vote) | +4 votes (4 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
Rating:  
90/100
From 10/15/2022 22:29 | #290513
Great album!!
Helpful?  (Log in to vote) | 0 votes (0 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
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Best Albums of 1986
1. The Queen Is Dead by The Smiths
2. Master Of Puppets by Metallica
3. Graceland by Paul Simon
4. So by Peter Gabriel
5. Skylarking by XTC
6. The Colour Of Spring by Talk Talk
7. Reign In Blood by Slayer
8. Lifes Rich Pageant by R.E.M.
9. Licensed To Ill by Beastie Boys
10. Black Celebration by Depeche Mode
11. Evol by Sonic Youth
12. Slippery When Wet by Bon Jovi
13. Peace Sells... But Who's Buying? by Megadeth
14. Parade by Prince And The Revolution
15. Somewhere In Time by Iron Maiden
16. Raising Hell by Run-D.M.C.
17. Invisible Touch by Genesis
18. Atomizer by Big Black
19. True Blue by Madonna
20. Infected by The The