I bought a dvd with this concert last april. It wasn't legal...
I have some inside information about the box with rare The Smiths material that was going to be released. I interviewed Johnny Marr for the Swedish guitar magazine Fuzz in July and September and he said that nothing was happening with that box. Morrissey wasn't very interested in participating and Marr didn't want to work on it himself.
My interview will be published the 5th of February next year but the info about the box won't be in that interview. I have a lot of material and hopefully I can sell it to another magazine or newspaper.

Compare and contrast: Led Zeppelin and The Smiths. Led Zeppelin were, from start to finish, guided, protected and nourished by a genius record label Atlantic under Ahmet Ertegun. ‘Assertive’ management (Peter Grant!) and, like The Smiths, kissed nobody’s arse at The NME to get their music across.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ahmet_Erteg%C3%BCn
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Peter_Grant_(music_ma nager)

Morrissey repeatedly and justifiably complains about the lack of funding, support and respect shown to both himself and Johnny Marr by The Smith’s record labels, regarding ‘legacy’ issues. Covers chosen without consultation, etc. If you Google ‘The Smiths - Official’ you get some thoughtful, well-intentioned fan sites built with love and dedication. For free, in peoples’ spare time.Top of the list being :

www.askmeaskmeaskme.com/

Do a search for ‘Led Zeppelin - Official’ and you come across this site:

http://www.ledzeppelin.com/

It’s an incredible ‘shrine’ to one of the most influential bands of all time. Who split up after the death of their drummer, went on to have solo careers, and now appear to be ready to re-form? Having resolved some fairly serious inter-personal conflicts between group members.Every snippet of footage and data from their 70’s hey-days has been tracked down, purchased from rights holders and made available to their audience in incredible artefacts like ‘How The West Was Won’, a simply remarkable DVD collage:

http://discography.ledzeppelin.com/index.php

Why isn’t there a similar official ‘shrine’ to The Smiths? I think I know why. The one mistake they made was not to get uber-professional management /legal advice, etc to guide them. They tried to do too much, exhausted themselves after five years, and split up. Then the ‘legal/contractual’ issues came back to haunt them with a dreadful High Court case.What a final chapter for one of the greatest bands of all time!
Jimmy Page, especially, has dedicated years of his life to ‘legacy issues’ but why should Morrissey and Marr do so in the face of desultory record company interest/indifference? Where’s the budget to get a team together to build an 'Official Smiths Legacy Site'? Why is a vast income stream being ignored by various rights holders and all this wonderful archive footage just grainy You Tube clips? In my view: The Smiths could have achieved the same level of success as Led Zeppelin and U2. It’s tragic, after 20 years, to still be tracking down rarities like ‘The Smiths Rockpalast 1984 Gig’, which I think I once saw on British T.V? Some of Morrissey’s between song ‘banter’ and quips were hilarious, if I recall it correctly.

Led Zeppelin probably still sell as many records each year as they did in their ‘heyday paydays’. I’m not sure, I’ll go and have a look around to check. Each new generation ‘gets it’ about Led Zeppelin and fawning cronies like the NME suddenly smother them with coverage because IPC demand it.
After their recent ‘one-off’(?) re-union their records sales have increased by 500%!
http://www.nme.com/news/led-zeppelin/33132

If I were Morrissey or Johnny Marr, I’d find it hard to remain calm and not be embittered by this situation. Led Zeppelin are ensuring their legacy lasts for at least 100 years. It’s heartbreaking to consider the possibility that when Morrissey and Marr shuffle off ‘this mortal coil’ as we all must do: ‘Time’s tide will smother’…The Smiths.
A vast tragedy is unfolding before our eyes. No silly ‘Led Zep iz crap’ comments purleeez! I’ve deadly serious about this. And very, very upset.

Kind regards
AndrewGMooney
[Text copyrighted: AndrewGMooney 11.09.1960- Authorised usage: Morrissey-Solo.com. All other rights reserved]

in 1984!
But I lived there, in Hamburg...

oh, regrets...