Hi Nick

You're right. And wrong!

I read quite a bit on this forum and am not surprised on the intolerance of negative posters on here. Morrissey has been a very important artist to me over the years and in a way I admire the incredible, worship-like devotion from some of his fans. I will never forget seeing that love for the first time at Aston Villa leisure centre in '95. The incredible devotion displayed was genuinely moving and it remains to this day my favourite ever gig, even if Morrissey has been surpassed a number of times as my most beloved artist. Problem is that inevitably that level of devotion does lead, in my opinion, to a lack of objectivity at times. The best examples of this are when fans are intolerant of negative posts (especially perennially negative posters - I have no idea if you 'always' are negative as I don't recall nor have looked for other posts by you (Who would?!)) and when they blindly defend Morrissey's behaviour or actions out of their devotion, when they probably would decry them if said/done by another. So my sympathies to you're abuse, though I would say you're perfectly capable of defending yourself. I have no problem with (intelligent) negative posting. Our freedon to express really is about our most treasured freedom...

Southpaw Grammar: You're wrong! I just do not understand why this album polarises people so completely. Some love it, others think it stinks. VERY few sit in the middle so far as I can tell. I think it's terrific, always have and increasingly do. Lyrically it's not so ambitious, but for me, Morrissey (and music in general) has always been less about what the artist says as how they say (sing) it. One of the main reasons that I love Morrissey is the RHYTHM of his singing, the way he intertwines his words into the meoldy and the rhythm of the other instruments over which they sit. This is in great evidence on SG. They're all great rock songs, thrusting and aggressive. The production is as good as any Morrissey record and on a par with V&I and Maladjusted (another grossly underated record IMHO..). The vocal is spot on and the guitar sounds are FANTASTIC - Boz and Alain smashing into us. Tho cover - I LOVE IT! The image is brilliant and the orange colouring really interesting. That coveted RCA logo gives it a timeless quality too. So it doesn't have the great man's face on it...SO WHAT! The new artework is dreary in comparison and unnecessary. REgarding the running order I would have to say that's a huge mistake. One of the best things about this short, taught little record is that it's running order is perfect. I like the idea of a new version with the B-sides, but either put them at the end or intersperse them carefully into the existing run. That record HAS to finish with Southpaw, it just does.

Right, that's enough. To summarise, you should be able to write what you like without the blindly obsessed getting their knickers in a twist and you should also revisit (the original) Southpaw Grammar. Play it at home, when you're busy doing stuff and play it VERY loud. It's bloody ACE.

Ben