Morrissey fans discover political message scratched on to copies of a limited edition 7-inch featuring two previously unreleased tracks

This article is more than 3 years old

This article is more than 3 years old

Donald Trump as US president? It seems that joke isn’t funny any more, at least not to the Smiths. Fans who purchased the group’s limited edition 7-inch at this year’s Record Store Day discovered a particularly pointed message etched on the vinyl: “Trump Will Kill America.”

Featuring two previously unreleased tracks, the 7-inch was an exclusive UK release. A-side is a demo mix of The Boy With the Thorn in his Side and B-side is an early Drone Studios version of Rubber Ring.

Soon after shops opened and fans had inspected their purchases a little closer, images of the deliberately vandalised release began to emerge.



Thrillhouse (@Kevin_Knoetig) So the smiths record from record day has "trump will kill America" on it.... pic.twitter.com/jp8jl2WRwr

Ro (@oelkanimor) 'Trump will kill America' etched on the vinyl. #TheSmiths being The Smiths. #recordstoreday2017 #RSD17 pic.twitter.com/U0ig1yAsWQ

Sarah✌🏼 (@sarahbuddery) Hard to see but the Smiths vinyl is hand-etched with "Trump will kill America". Word. ✊🏼 pic.twitter.com/oO1dBq2E1O

According to reports, the design of the single’s artwork is credited to “Esteban”, which is Spanish for Steven – suggesting it was created by Steven Patrick Morrissey himself.

This year’s Record Store Day took place on 22 April. After shops across the UK opened their doors to crate diggers, it was reported that some of the 500 exclusive releases had appeared on eBay – with vinyl music by David Bowie, the Cure and Prince being listed for inflated prices.

