Okay…so I recently downloaded a bunch of Smiths songs and I like them alot. I’m thinking about getting some of their CDs. Which one should I start with? And which one has “Shoplifters of the World Unite?”
“The Queen is Dead” is generally regarded as their best album. “Shoplifters” can be found on “Louder Than Bombs” which is the singles compilation… a very good album to start with too. Avoid “Rank” as it’s a sub-par live album.
Get The Queen is Dead, Hatful of Hollow and The Smiths. The others are hit and miss.
You can also find “Shoplifters…” on World Won’t Listen, which is another singles compilation. I think it may only be available as an import in the States, but there are some songs which are not on
sorry for the half post.
To conclude…some songs which are not on Louder than Bombs, and vice versa.
I would pick The Queen is Dead. The aforementioned Hatful of Hollows, Louder than Bombs and The World Won’t Listen are great, but there is something to be said about albums over singles collections. In the case of The Queen is Dead, it’s just a great album, even if not all songs are “hits”, whereas the singles albums don’t have quite the same cohesiveness.
It matters not - you’ll soon have them all. 
Bombs is great, and probably a good starter album. It also contains my favorite song by the Smiths (or anyone else for that matter), Asleep.
You really can’t go wrong on any of the albums though. Great stuff.
Next start picking up the Morrissey CDs, and you’ll be all caught up.
Louder Than Bombs was what sold me on it.
I’d say Hatful of Hollow, only because that’s what converted me from someone who vaguely knew about them to actually listening to one album all the way through and realising they were something special.
“Louder than Bombs” is a great starting point…but “The Queen is Dead” is easily their single best work. As far as Morrissey solo discs, I’d seek out either “Vauxhall and I” or “Bona Drag”
Well, I’d recommend the two volumes of their greatest hits collection, but I don’t know if you wanted “proper” albums or not.
You can skip Morrissey’s solo output completely IMHO.