Interview 1

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[Interviews James Murphy and TIm Goldsworthy are the cofounders of the New York record label DFA. Their bass heavy disco-rock sound has attracted such bands as The Rapture and The Juan Maclean to their young, yet increasingly acclaimed label. Late last year, James and Tim made a pilgrimage to the Elizabethen manor house-turned-recording studio in the Oxfordshire countryside where the master was working on a new album.]

JAMES: What made you want to make music rather than listen to it?
Morrissey: Well, I was always obsessed with pop music. Not rock or progressive or any other kind of music, and I never knew people who performed. So it was confusing, because I although I loved music, I couldn't really see myself playing it.

JAMES: Did you have any role models?
Morrissey: Not really, I was simple obsessed with the singing voice, and fascinated by singers who stood alone with their microphone and THEIR stage, just belting it out. When you open your mouth and sing on stage, it's so intense - to dress up, to look into people's eyes and say words that hopefully help. But most successful singers in pop music can't sing.

JAMES: There are technically good people - the Christina Aguileras - but they oversing.
Morrissey: They make a meal of every note - they chew it to pieces. That's not singing.

JAMES: The first time you sang in front of people did it feel strange?
Morrissey|: Well, the first time I ever sang, I was auditioning for two groups in Manchester, both of whom refused to accept me. I'm happy they didn't, because it wasn't meant to be. But the first time I sang in front of an audience, it felt absolutely right. Even though my voice isn't technically brilliant, I just feel so good when I sing live.

JAMES: Better than in the studio?
Morrissey: Yes. Because singing on stage is a once-in-a-lifetime moment. You can't say to the audience, "Oh, I'm sorry, let's try that again." Singing live, you're on the edge of the plank.

JAMES: Do you ever need to get away from music?
Morrissey: No, I listen to music all the time. In the car, in the bath - which is the best place to listen to music - before I go to bed. I never stop listening to random bits and pieces, very obscure collections.

JAMES: What have you been listening to lately?
Morrissey: Right now, I'm obsessed with Jobriath. He was a singer who released two glam-rock albums in '73 and'74, recorded in New York. At the time, the press either ridiculed him or didn't bother to write about him at all. He died in obscurity in the 80's. I've been through all of his archives, and I've just compiled a best-of, which is being released by Rhino Handmade.

JAMES: You're almost evangelical about his music.
Morrissey: Well, yes, I am. Fantastic pop music. One of those voices that's just being thrown at you.

JAMES: How did you discover him?
Morrissey|: In the early 70's there were four weekly music papers - the NME, Melody Maker, Disc, and Record - and I used to buy all of them every single week, without fail. Jobriath got dreadful reviews. Then I saw his first album cover - he's lying down with his legs morphed into a broken statue. It was the most fantastic picture, so I bought the album.

JAMES: You bought it because you liked the cover?
Morrissey: Well, covers are usually reasonably accurate. In those days, it was pretty standard that almost anything that irritated the establishment of awful writers would inevitably be rather good. You have to remember that rock writers were still obsessed with Jethro Tull and Led Zepplin. Then in the late 70's, Lester Bangs changed everything by writing about more obscure names in rock music.

JAMES: Did you go to a lot of shows as a kid?
Morrissey: I began going to concerts by myself at an early age. I loved and still love the Velvet Underground. I saw Lou Reed touring behind his first album when I was twelve.

JAMES: I have found a certain glamness in both your solo work and the records you did with The Smiths. Were you into glam music besides Jobriath?
Morrissey: So completely. I caught all of that - I saw T. Rex in '72, and Roxy Music twice that year. I had a ticket for a double bill with Roxy Music and the New York Dolls in '72, but the Dolls didn't show up.

James: T. Rex and Roxy Music were really anarchick, but their music is so beautiful.
Morrissey: My mum's two favorite bands are Johnny Mathis and Roxy Music. That speaks volumes about them. And I saw Bowie in '72, on het Starman tour.

James: '72 was a year for you!
Morrissey: It really was. I saw all the right things at the right time. But there aren't any pop stars now like Bowie was then. You have to remember his age - he was only 23. Marc Bolan, too - I don't think there is anybody like him.

JAMES: When I was young I don't think I completely got your lyrics. To what degree are your songs governed by irony?
Morrissey: Well, I think humor is a part of it, but all my life I've believed that I am a real person. When some people go on stage, they move away from how they are in their lives. But, really, there's no artifice with me! It's all true.

James: Maybe that's why you can write pop that also has depth and content.
Morrissey: Well, I want to use pop music to say something intelligently and memorably. That was very unusual when I started out. Musicians who considered themselves intellectual didn't expect to be popular, so they purposely made music that wouldn't get radio play.
 
Thanks, old brown shoe!

"Man, I'm in love with you..."
 
Re: Thanks, old brown shoe!

thanks for sharing the article with everyone. excellent work.

> "Man, I'm in love with you..."
 
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