The band in bathing suits (and Boz in drag)...

[King Leer]

For Tokyo Zepp it was "Assad is shit" t-shirt night but the final date at Ebisu hall was back to yellow swimming trunks with a nice M logo and boz in sequin gown.

I can understand some fans' derision at this to a degree, but when you're at the shows, the pre-show music, then the videos, the lighting effects -- the whole package (pun NOT intended) -- it somehow works.

And even if it's still not to your taste, it definitely doesn't come from a place of disrespect on Morrissey's part. Make no mistake, he loves this current band. Very emphatic about it.

[Anonymous]

I don't think he's doing it out of respect for the band at all. It just lacks a certain style that the old band had individually. Even this band used to have it. Glad you're enjoying the shows.

- marred.

[Skylarker]

On that subject, I personally am a fan who doesn't care to see the drag/speedo for several reasons, one of which is I don't see the point of it. Is he trying to make a statement about something or is he just bored? After many people have seen him for years, where everyone in the band was fully clothed, and dressed more conservatively, it does make people curious.

Are you telling me you don't remember when he used to make Johnny, Andy, and Mike dress in speedos?

Oh wait...that's right. He didn't need shock value back then. He had art.

[King Leer]

On the yellow trunks, on the leg just above the thigh. It must be visible in a recent tour photo or video.

Thanks for the compliment on the posts -- in my (and the site's) heyday I would've posted something much longer.

I agree on context. I'd prefer to see the band's look split between the clothes they'd like to wear and the matching t-shirts thing, with the speedos or bras etc. as one-off per tour/continent, or maybe just for the encore.

[Skylarker]

Thanks for the compliment on the posts -- in my (and the site's) heyday I would've posted something much longer.

Oh come on, man. Don't tempt me.

[King Leer]

Men in speedos is shock value?
After they all strolled out and the music began I didn't even notice, except when they'd each come to the front of the stage.
Boz playing the Shoplifter's solo with that poker-faced stare in his dress was memorable.

With the big backdrop of Oscar Wilde with a speech balloon saying "Who is Morrissey?" and the band in yellow trunks, it probably will be regarded as art but only when it's looked back on many years from now.

Speaking of Wilde, Morrissey replaced "Hector" with "Oscar" in the First of the Gang encore. Has he done that before?

Are you telling me you don't remember when he used to make Johnny, Andy, and Mike dress in speedos?

Oh wait...that's right. He didn't need shock value back then. He had art.

[cornelius blaze]

With the big backdrop of Oscar Wilde with a speech balloon saying "Who is Morrissey?" and the band in yellow trunks, it probably will be regarded as art but only when it's looked back on many years from now.

tumblr_m3jjysYYrp1ru7ftzo1_400.gif

errr.....No!

[Worm]

Make no mistake, he loves this current band. Very emphatic about it.

So do the little old ladies who dress their poodles like Jackie O. They just love them!

[Amy]

Make no mistake, he loves this current band. Very emphatic about it.

He's said the same thing about every incarnation of his solo band over the years. And then when someone inevitably leaves or is kicked out, he says the same again about the new line-up. Which makes sense, really - I mean what else is he going to say? "We are Morrissey. Oh sorry, I am Morrissey, and this bunch of bozos have been useless ever since Gary and Spencer left"? I don't think he 'loves' this band anymore than he did any of the previous incarnations of it.

[King Leer]

He did say (on MTV '91?) that he preferred the first incarnation of the Lads over The Smiths, I'll give you that, but I defy you to find an interview or live show transcript where he's ever said anything as emphatic as "next month marks the 30th year of my singing career and this is the best band I've ever had". That's what he said in Tokyo. I'm not saying Morrissey's right (I've been missing Alain for a long time myself) but it's not what you're describing.

He's said the same thing about every incarnation of his solo band over the years. And then when someone inevitably leaves or is kicked out, he says the same again about the new line-up. Which makes sense, really - I mean what else is he going to say? "We are Morrissey. Oh sorry, I am Morrissey, and this bunch of bozos have been useless ever since Gary and Spencer left"? I don't think he 'loves' this band anymore than he did any of the previous incarnations of it...and musically, he's missing Alain like a hole in the head.

[King Leer]

How he loves them more is another question, but first we must accept that he does. It's made a lot of fans vexed, even angry but...

So do the little old ladies who dress their poodles like Jackie O. They just love them!

[mozmic_dancer]

Thanks for the report Our Man in Japan.

Morrissey and the band from the pictures and video look like they were having a blast. He's sounds great.

There is no convincing some people that it's okay not to take yourself so seriously all the time.

Furthermore, there are those who will never get over the fact that Morrissey no longer plays with the Smiths.

[mcrickson]

Are you telling me you don't remember when he used to make Johnny, Andy, and Mike dress in speedos?

Now that would be silly.

[myboyracer]

Do they sell the yellow trunks anywhere? Is this an official Moz mechandise?

[Amy]

He did say (on MTV '91?) that he preferred the first incarnation of the Lads over The Smiths, I'll give you that, but I defy you to find an interview or live show transcript where he's ever said anything as emphatic as "next month marks the 30th year of my singing career and this is the best band I've ever had". That's what he said in Tokyo. I'm not saying Morrissey's right (I've been missing Alain for a long time myself) but it's not what you're describing.

Morrissey has always used hyperbole to make a point when he's praising someone, especially his collaborators. Have a look at this from '85:

http://foreverill.com/interviews/1985/dreamer.htm

"When I first heard Johnny play, that was in a sense almost irrelevant. The awakening had occurred days earlier with the meeting. I'd reached a stage back then where I was so utterly impressed and infatuated that even if he couldn't have played it didn't matter somehow because the seeds were there and from those seeds anything could sprout. Johnny had grasped the thread of all that was relevant and yet he was - and remains - a very happy-go-lucky, optimistic person who was interested in doing it now. Not tomorrow, but right now!
Now this was truly extraordinary because in a musical sense I'd only just met people who were total sluts, who'd rather sit around at home night after night talking about picking the guitar up instead of just grabbing it and saying 'What about this?'. Also he appeared at a time when I was deeper than the depths, if you like. And he provided me with this massive energy boost. I could feel Johnny's energy just seething inside of me."

This from a TTY Q&A in 2005:

"Whatever I said about the Smiths' abilities I meant. I very genuinely thought the music was Art, and I felt awed by it, and all of the groups of the day I saw as not-art. I thought Johnny was the greatest .... and also .... those masterful bass-lines ..."

& finally, he said this about Alain in the liner notes for the Southpaw Grammar reissue:

"Alain, for me, provides the best of moments : the climbing-falling solo of “Reader Meet Author” and the impish shadow backing vocals of “BFOTP”. Alain was best when he least tried and when he was certain that no-one was looking. You can tell a lot about a person from the sound of their voice, as you can tell everything about a person from the way they sing. There is enough of the cattle-prod of pain in Alain's voice to make the heart think, but will he see out his Morrissey days without a single line of press recognition?"


If he genuinely, 100% believes that his current set of hacks are better than Marr and better than Alain, then not only does he need his head looking at(!), but he's directly contradicting past statements about the quality of his band and his former collaborators.

Unless of course...Morrissey thinks this band are the "best" for a reason unrelated to their actual musical abilities, which is perfectly possible - if a little nonsensical in the context of his career aims.

[Skylarker]

Morrissey has always used hyperbole to make a point when he's praising someone, especially his collaborators. Have a look at this from '85:

http://foreverill.com/interviews/1985/dreamer.htm

"When I first heard Johnny play, that was in a sense almost irrelevant. The awakening had occurred days earlier with the meeting. I'd reached a stage back then where I was so utterly impressed and infatuated that even if he couldn't have played it didn't matter somehow because the seeds were there and from those seeds anything could sprout. Johnny had grasped the thread of all that was relevant and yet he was - and remains - a very happy-go-lucky, optimistic person who was interested in doing it now. Not tomorrow, but right now!
Now this was truly extraordinary because in a musical sense I'd only just met people who were total sluts, who'd rather sit around at home night after night talking about picking the guitar up instead of just grabbing it and saying 'What about this?'. Also he appeared at a time when I was deeper than the depths, if you like. And he provided me with this massive energy boost. I could feel Johnny's energy just seething inside of me."

This from a TTY Q&A in 2005:

"Whatever I said about the Smiths' abilities I meant. I very genuinely thought the music was Art, and I felt awed by it, and all of the groups of the day I saw as not-art. I thought Johnny was the greatest .... and also .... those masterful bass-lines ..."

& finally, he said this about Alain in the liner notes for the Southpaw Grammar reissue:

"Alain, for me, provides the best of moments : the climbing-falling solo of “Reader Meet Author” and the impish shadow backing vocals of “BFOTP”. Alain was best when he least tried and when he was certain that no-one was looking. You can tell a lot about a person from the sound of their voice, as you can tell everything about a person from the way they sing. There is enough of the cattle-prod of pain in Alain's voice to make the heart think, but will he see out his Morrissey days without a single line of press recognition?"


If he genuinely, 100% believes that his current set of hacks are better than Marr and better than Alain, then not only does he need his head looking at(!), but he's directly contradicting past statements about the quality of his band and his former collaborators.

Unless of course...Morrissey thinks this band are the "best" for a reason unrelated to their actual musical abilities, which is perfectly possible - if a little nonsensical in the context of his career aims.

Let me buy you a drink. That was a great post.

[Anonymous]

he's missing Alain like a hole in the head.

I think you got the quote backwards. Wanting something like you want a hole in your head means you don't want it. I assume you were saying he does need Alain?

[Amy]

I think you got the quote backwards. Wanting something like you want a hole in your head means you don't want it. I assume you were saying he does need Alain?

Yes, sorry I misunderstood. He really, desperately needs Alain (or someone of his calibre) if he wants any kind of record deal in the near future.

[King Leer]

But he hasn't used it a lot when talking about the lineup in general -- until now. That was your original point I was countering ("He's said the same thing about every incarnation of his solo band over the years") -- he definitely hasn't.

But those are some great quotes about individual collaborators, though.

Morrissey has always used hyperbole to make a point when he's praising someone, especially his collaborators. Have a look at this from '85:

http://foreverill.com/interviews/1985/dreamer.htm

"When I first heard Johnny play, that was in a sense almost irrelevant. The awakening had occurred days earlier with the meeting. I'd reached a stage back then where I was so utterly impressed and infatuated that even if he couldn't have played it didn't matter somehow because the seeds were there and from those seeds anything could sprout. Johnny had grasped the thread of all that was relevant and yet he was - and remains - a very happy-go-lucky, optimistic person who was interested in doing it now. Not tomorrow, but right now!
Now this was truly extraordinary because in a musical sense I'd only just met people who were total sluts, who'd rather sit around at home night after night talking about picking the guitar up instead of just grabbing it and saying 'What about this?'. Also he appeared at a time when I was deeper than the depths, if you like. And he provided me with this massive energy boost. I could feel Johnny's energy just seething inside of me."

This from a TTY Q&A in 2005:

"Whatever I said about the Smiths' abilities I meant. I very genuinely thought the music was Art, and I felt awed by it, and all of the groups of the day I saw as not-art. I thought Johnny was the greatest .... and also .... those masterful bass-lines ..."

& finally, he said this about Alain in the liner notes for the Southpaw Grammar reissue:

"Alain, for me, provides the best of moments : the climbing-falling solo of “Reader Meet Author” and the impish shadow backing vocals of “BFOTP”. Alain was best when he least tried and when he was certain that no-one was looking. You can tell a lot about a person from the sound of their voice, as you can tell everything about a person from the way they sing. There is enough of the cattle-prod of pain in Alain's voice to make the heart think, but will he see out his Morrissey days without a single line of press recognition?"


If he genuinely, 100% believes that his current set of hacks are better than Marr and better than Alain, then not only does he need his head looking at(!), but he's directly contradicting past statements about the quality of his band and his former collaborators.

Unless of course...Morrissey thinks this band are the "best" for a reason unrelated to their actual musical abilities, which is perfectly possible - if a little nonsensical in the context of his career aims.

[Amy]

But he hasn't used it a lot when talking about the lineup in general -- until now. That was your original point I was countering ("He's said the same thing about every incarnation of his solo band over the years") -- he definitely hasn't.

But those are some great quotes about individual collaborators, though.

I don't think his band got quite as much criticism in the "old days" as they are doing now. I mean, the hate for Jesse Tobias has been absolutely fierce and I don't think it's escaped Moz' attention. He knows the band get a lot of flack and he's probably trying to stick up for them in some way. I remember a radio interview from 1999/2000 where he said that he'd been offered record deals and turned them down because the label bosses wanted him to dump the band. That's pretty loyal. There was a story during the Oye Esteban tour, I think, where one of the audience shouted "Johnny Marr played it better!" and he replied, "No he didn't". As well as that silly "ET" comment he made about Johnny onstage in 2000, which prompted a lot of boos from the crowd. I don't think Morrissey has ever been particularly disloyal or unkind about his solo line-ups... until he started making them pose naked and dressing them up, of course