It was slated at the time as it was clear step down in quality from the Smiths and Bona Drag era stuff. Arguably, it started a new era of patchy Morrissey albums which never really ended but, to my ears, it's nowhere near being his worst album. It's got 4 great songs for starters which is 4 more than Southpaw and 2 more than Ringleader. Sing Your Life and Driving Your Girlfriend are absolute gems, and a few others aren't far behind.