A sort of "State of Morrissey-solo" for 2006

[The Antidote]

This was originally intended as a response to a thread about "I Knew I Was Next." I decided I've reached breaking point in being a "sensible lurker" around here--some people just need a good swift kick.

> Of course he does have a history of making silly choices for
> singles/b-sides/album tracks. But that was instantly my first thought when
> I heard the song. I had "I Knew I Was Next" in my head playing
> nonstop for days... isn't that what radio is all about? It'd certainly
> make for a better single than "The Youngest Was The Most Loved".
> A children's choir? Please... it was already done by Pink Floyd.

The opening sequence is just a reversal of the chords to You Have Killed Me. It sounds like a Bowie album track from the Pin Ups era, which was the nadir of the Ziggy Stardust years.

Frankly, the best aspects of the song are courtesy of Alain Whyte and Boz Boorer. In Alain's case, so are the best moments of the new album. If Jesse Tobias is Morrissey's new muse, then we are truly in for dire times ahead. What's more, I'm sick and tired of reading all these reviews that praise Dear God Please Help Me and Life is a Pigsty and then say how Morrissey has found fresh life with Jesse Tobias. Read the credits, you illiterate swine.

The Antidote

PS--The production on YATQ is synthetic and terrible. FACT. If you believe the opposite, turn in your copies of Your Arsenal, Vauxhall, Southpaw, and ROTT to those of us who know better IMMEDIATELY and leave the room...you should not be here. I can recall someone opining that I Am Hated For Loving was worse than anything on YATQ. If the line "I've been drug through fifteen miles of shit and I do not like it" is better somehow, I must have missed the memo.

PPS--If you discovered Morrissey after 2003, also leave. You are not wanted here b/c you do not quote-unquote get it. So you cut yourself / hate your parents / don't like school / [enter dysfunction here]...big deal. More than likely, Morrissey does not "speak to [you]." You just want to believe.

PPS--Stop asking for MP3s of B-sides that are readily available. You are not only short changing Morrissey but also the hard-working musicians who co-wrote the songs and get slagged by the majority of the half-wits on this site. Chances are, you have bitched about one of them yet you still ask for a hand-out. Your opinion, of course, is yours--but you need to earn the right to it by buying the songs like most of us did.

PPPS--Never suggest that he work with Radiohead again. It will not happen and it should not happen. If you feel he should, again you don't understand anything about Morrissey and should not be here. Leave immediately, especially if you are broken. And, if you are broken, if you think you have all the answers and can produce a better Morrissey album than Tony Visconti, do so. Otherwise, shut up. Post-haste.

PPPPS--Same for those of you who pine for a Smiths reunion. It would be the indie equivalent of a Vegas act. Johnny and Morrissey have NOTHING in common anymore--too much water has passed under the bridge. And neither will stoop to filling Joyce and Rourke's coffers. Why would you? In the name of cheap nostalgia? You're asking Morrissey to compromise himself to be your dancing bear. Again, leave now. This is Morrissey-solo, not Smiths-again.

PPPPPS--Finally, for those of you who slag David Tseng yet continue to slander and freeload on his site, more than any of the above get the f*** out. Go to true-to-you and get updates from Julia days after the fact. And live without the kindnesses of people like Mr. Reynolds. Again, if you can do a better, "uncensored" Morrissey site, do it. You will not be missed here.

 

[bernard]

BEST POST IN YEARS.

> This was originally intended as a response to a thread about "I Knew
> I Was Next." I decided I've reached breaking point in being a
> "sensible lurker" around here--some people just need a good
> swift kick.

> The opening sequence is just a reversal of the chords to You Have Killed
> Me. It sounds like a Bowie album track from the Pin Ups era, which was the
> nadir of the Ziggy Stardust years.

> Frankly, the best aspects of the song are courtesy of Alain Whyte and Boz
> Boorer. In Alain's case, so are the best moments of the new album. If
> Jesse Tobias is Morrissey's new muse, then we are truly in for dire times
> ahead. What's more, I'm sick and tired of reading all these reviews that
> praise Dear God Please Help Me and Life is a Pigsty and then say how
> Morrissey has found fresh life with Jesse Tobias. Read the credits, you
> illiterate swine.

> The Antidote

> PS--The production on YATQ is synthetic and terrible. FACT. If you believe
> the opposite, turn in your copies of Your Arsenal, Vauxhall, Southpaw, and
> ROTT to those of us who know better IMMEDIATELY and leave the room...you
> should not be here. I can recall someone opining that I Am Hated For
> Loving was worse than anything on YATQ. If the line "I've been drug
> through fifteen miles of shit and I do not like it" is better
> somehow, I must have missed the memo.

> PPS--If you discovered Morrissey after 2003, also leave. You are not
> wanted here b/c you do not quote-unquote get it. So you cut yourself /
> hate your parents / don't like school / [enter dysfunction here]...big
> deal. More than likely, Morrissey does not "speak to [you]." You
> just want to believe.

> PPS--Stop asking for MP3s of B-sides that are readily available. You are
> not only short changing Morrissey but also the hard-working musicians who
> co-wrote the songs and get slagged by the majority of the half-wits on
> this site. Chances are, you have bitched about one of them yet you still
> ask for a hand-out. Your opinion, of course, is yours--but you need to
> earn the right to it by buying the songs like most of us did.

> PPPS--Never suggest that he work with Radiohead again. It will not happen
> and it should not happen. If you feel he should, again you don't
> understand anything about Morrissey and should not be here. Leave
> immediately, especially if you are broken. And, if you are broken, if you
> think you have all the answers and can produce a better Morrissey album
> than Tony Visconti, do so. Otherwise, shut up. Post-haste.

> PPPPS--Same for those of you who pine for a Smiths reunion. It would be
> the indie equivalent of a Vegas act. Johnny and Morrissey have NOTHING in
> common anymore--too much water has passed under the bridge. And neither
> will stoop to filling Joyce and Rourke's coffers. Why would you? In the
> name of cheap nostalgia? You're asking Morrissey to compromise himself to
> be your dancing bear. Again, leave now. This is Morrissey-solo, not
> Smiths-again.

> PPPPPS--Finally, for those of you who slag David Tseng yet continue to
> slander and freeload on his site, more than any of the above get the f***
> out. Go to true-to-you and get updates from Julia days after the fact. And
> live without the kindnesses of people like Mr. Reynolds. Again, if you can
> do a better, "uncensored" Morrissey site, do it. You will not be
> missed here.

 

[Danny]

> This was originally intended as a response to a thread about "I Knew
> I Was Next." I decided I've reached breaking point in being a
> "sensible lurker" around here--some people just need a good
> swift kick.

> The opening sequence is just a reversal of the chords to You Have Killed
> Me. It sounds like a Bowie album track from the Pin Ups era, which was the
> nadir of the Ziggy Stardust years.

> Frankly, the best aspects of the song are courtesy of Alain Whyte and Boz
> Boorer. In Alain's case, so are the best moments of the new album. If
> Jesse Tobias is Morrissey's new muse, then we are truly in for dire times
> ahead. What's more, I'm sick and tired of reading all these reviews that
> praise Dear God Please Help Me and Life is a Pigsty and then say how
> Morrissey has found fresh life with Jesse Tobias. Read the credits, you
> illiterate swine.

> The Antidote

> PS--The production on YATQ is synthetic and terrible. FACT. If you believe
> the opposite, turn in your copies of Your Arsenal, Vauxhall, Southpaw, and
> ROTT to those of us who know better IMMEDIATELY and leave the room...you
> should not be here. I can recall someone opining that I Am Hated For
> Loving was worse than anything on YATQ. If the line "I've been drug
> through fifteen miles of shit and I do not like it" is better
> somehow, I must have missed the memo.

> PPS--If you discovered Morrissey after 2003, also leave. You are not
> wanted here b/c you do not quote-unquote get it. So you cut yourself /
> hate your parents / don't like school / [enter dysfunction here]...big
> deal. More than likely, Morrissey does not "speak to [you]." You
> just want to believe.

> PPS--Stop asking for MP3s of B-sides that are readily available. You are
> not only short changing Morrissey but also the hard-working musicians who
> co-wrote the songs and get slagged by the majority of the half-wits on
> this site. Chances are, you have bitched about one of them yet you still
> ask for a hand-out. Your opinion, of course, is yours--but you need to
> earn the right to it by buying the songs like most of us did.

> PPPS--Never suggest that he work with Radiohead again. It will not happen
> and it should not happen. If you feel he should, again you don't
> understand anything about Morrissey and should not be here. Leave
> immediately, especially if you are broken. And, if you are broken, if you
> think you have all the answers and can produce a better Morrissey album
> than Tony Visconti, do so. Otherwise, shut up. Post-haste.

> PPPPS--Same for those of you who pine for a Smiths reunion. It would be
> the indie equivalent of a Vegas act. Johnny and Morrissey have NOTHING in
> common anymore--too much water has passed under the bridge. And neither
> will stoop to filling Joyce and Rourke's coffers. Why would you? In the
> name of cheap nostalgia? You're asking Morrissey to compromise himself to
> be your dancing bear. Again, leave now. This is Morrissey-solo, not
> Smiths-again.

> PPPPPS--Finally, for those of you who slag David Tseng yet continue to
> slander and freeload on his site, more than any of the above get the f***
> out. Go to true-to-you and get updates from Julia days after the fact. And
> live without the kindnesses of people like Mr. Reynolds. Again, if you can
> do a better, "uncensored" Morrissey site, do it. You will not be
> missed here.

You shouldn't lurk. Post more. The only thing I disagree with is slagging off new fans. Without new fans Morrissey would be seen as irrelevant. They keep him alive whether you like it or not. There's nothing more exciting than reading about teenagers enthusing about Moz. It proves he's a timeless artist. Don't be such a snob.

 

[Butterworths Revenge]

best. post. ever.

 

[puddle.]

i agree....slagging off new fans makes you look like a 'pathetic' ass

> You shouldn't lurk. Post more. The only thing I disagree with is slagging
> off new fans. Without new fans Morrissey would be seen as irrelevant. They
> keep him alive whether you like it or not. There's nothing more exciting
> than reading about teenagers enthusing about Moz. It proves he's a
> timeless artist. Don't be such a snob.

and i've been a fan since 92...i was 13 at the time. morrissey speaks to anyone regardless of age. you just make no sense. what about his music do new fans not get? i mean, obviously new fans may not know everything about the guy himself, but as far as lyrics, you take from them what you can...doesn't matter who you are.

 

[Scott E.]

I love the post from Antitode... spot on, and someone had to say it! I've been lurking as well for many years, but have only recently been posting. I suppose I'm so pleased with the new album that I could not help but get involved somewhat...

Having said that, I agree with Danny about new fans. It is possible there is some 14 year old who just discovered the joy of self-mutilation and is finding the same solace in our boy that I did far too many years ago. In fact, I slightly envy newer fans as they have some 23 years worth of back catalogue to explore. But, to that point, for those that really believe "Quarry..." was the pinnacle, don't bother with anything before it, and apparently after it. While I do like aspects of that album, it really is not indicative of anything prior... and the most recent offering is really quite a return to form in my opinion.

And as for the readily available B-sides... no one should post them for free. Like Antitode and many others that frequent this site, I had to buy my own before this wretched blessing called the internet existed, and I always will.

Finally, as for David Tseng, and this site... I've thanked him for years and have e-mailed him a couple of times for that purpose. I still recall buying the first copy of his fanzine "Sing Your Life" back in 1991. At that time, the only source for any information was through his zine and a handful of others. I was so pleased when the original SYL site came online. Though I've nevr met the guy, I've considered him a friend now for these past 15 years. So many people on this site take for granted what this guy has created a for us. I would be devistated if he actually ever pulled the plug. This has been my life line to the World of Moz.

Anyway, now I'm rambling. But thanks to Antitode for the post, and to Danny for defending the new kids...

 

[suzanne]

> PPPS--Never suggest that he work with Radiohead again. It will not happen
> and it should not happen. If you feel he should, again you don't
> understand anything about Morrissey and should not be here. Leave
> immediately, especially if you are broken. And, if you are broken, if you
> think you have all the answers and can produce a better Morrissey album
> than Tony Visconti, do so. Otherwise, shut up. Post-haste.

f*** yeah!

it's so irritating to come on here and read Broken's "here is my perfect track listing for 'The Queen is Dead'" crap because the dude probably can't even make a decent cheeseburger at his job at Burger King let alone create a classic album. i don't really say much about it because it's like a shiny object to distract him from posting other garbage about who in the band has herpes this week, but while we're on the subject, i feel free to say "nobody gives a crap!"

As for making an album with Radiohead/Bernard Butler/Frank Black...hell no! I can't comment on Radiohead because I guess they have their fans, even though Radiohead have seem to fallen off the radar over the last couple of years, but let's ask ourselves what Frank Black has done these days besides reunite with his old bandmates and become a living Pixies tribute because he failed to generate a darn thing that anyone cared about in the past 10+ years he's been on his own. yeah, that gets a thinking person's appetite whet for what a collaboration with Morrissey would result in.

> PPPPS--Same for those of you who pine for a Smiths reunion. It would be
> the indie equivalent of a Vegas act. Johnny and Morrissey have NOTHING in
> common anymore--too much water has passed under the bridge. And neither
> will stoop to filling Joyce and Rourke's coffers. Why would you? In the
> name of cheap nostalgia? You're asking Morrissey to compromise himself to
> be your dancing bear. Again, leave now. This is Morrissey-solo, not
> Smiths-again.

If people are so enthusiastic, Johnny Marr should have his own fans. Instead, Marr releases a Healer's album and nobody cares. Once again, it's the Frank Black syndrome where everyone lives in the year 1987 and not 2006. He rightly deserves to be back in the minor leagues, and i don't think he's motivated like Morrissey is motivated to keep pushing it. Despite having to fork out money to Mike, I think he is relatively comfortable thanks to the royalties the old songs produce which affords him all the free time in the world to fart around in his studio and collaborate with his buddies and occasionally inflict the results upon the world because the Smiths gave him the god-given right to do so. Nobody is going to tell him 'no', so he really can just wake up one morning and think that he's going to make a 3rd rate Oasis album knock-off and people out there will make it happen.

> PPPPPS--Finally, for those of you who slag David Tseng yet continue to
> slander and freeload on his site, more than any of the above get the f***
> out. Go to true-to-you and get updates from Julia days after the fact. And
> live without the kindnesses of people like Mr. Reynolds. Again, if you can
> do a better, "uncensored" Morrissey site, do it. You will not be
> missed here.

Those people would be the first to cry should this website ever go away. they might gloat for about 3 minutes and then realize that they've completely lost their audience to gloat to. That's when the panic starts and they realize that Julia isn't going to start a section on her website where you can discuss which band member has mental problems.

and i'm sure that morrissey and his record company people trawl through here looking for fan response. imagine if all that goes away tomorrow. how sad would that be? it might save them the trouble of sending cease & desist letters, but what else have they lost in the process?

they'd all be looney tunes to think that Julia is going to put a discussion board on her website considering how much trouble it got David in, and i don't think anybody else with a website wants to deal with the hassle of the Freeyourselfs and Ians and brokens who will suddenly be homeless and have no enemy webmaster to inflict their annoyance upon.

 

[puddle.]

> But, to that point, for those that really believe
> "Quarry..." was the pinnacle, don't bother with anything before
> it, and apparently after it. While I do like aspects of that album, it
> really is not indicative of anything prior... and the most recent offering
> is really quite a return to form in my opinion.

I agree 100% with this statement.

however
where can i buy past b-sides? singles from years back are not easily available. i would really like to know.

 

[dazzak]

Yeah, I agree with everything you say in your own autocratic way, except the younger fans thing. Frankly, the Morrissey fanbase needs youth to battle the ageing wannabe sector. We all have to discover him sometime.

 

[OnthePromenade]

"PPS--If you discovered Morrissey after 2003, also leave. You are not wanted here b/c you do not quote-unquote get it. So you cut yourself / hate your parents / don't like school / [enter dysfunction here]...big deal. More than likely, Morrissey does not "speak to [you]." You just want to believe."

f*** you, you tool. Just because I'm not thirty-five doesn't mean Morrissey's music isn't relevant and special for me. God, I hate snobs like you who evidently know nothing about music.

 

[deathfornoreason]

> PPS--If you discovered Morrissey after 2003, also leave. You are not
> wanted here b/c you do not quote-unquote get it. So you cut yourself /
> hate your parents / don't like school / [enter dysfunction here]...big
> deal. More than likely, Morrissey does not "speak to [you]." You
> just want to believe.

I agree with everything you've said, apart from this bit. I'm 17, and became a fan in 2003, not because I "cut yourself /
> hate your parents / don't like school / [enter dysfunction here]", but because Morrissey was the first real lyricist I discovered that I could relate to. Everything about him appealed to me - his sense of Britishness, his tongue-in-cheek self deprecation, his toying with his sexuality.... the man is everything I wish to be. I am not depressed, I love my parents and college is going fine - but if ever I do become depressed, I know that there will always be a Moz or Smiths song to comfort me.

 

[freeyourself®]

> PPPPPS--Finally, for those of you who slag David Tseng yet continue to
> slander and freeload on his site, more than any of the above get the f***
> out. Go to true-to-you and get updates from Julia days after the fact. And
> live without the kindnesses of people like Mr. Reynolds. Again, if you can
> do a better, "uncensored" Morrissey site, do it. You will not be
> missed here.

Damn!! I thought I'd gotten away unscathed until the last paragraph!

 

[vicarinatutugal]

i almost wet my self at that fys

 

[Danny]

> f*** yeah!

> it's so irritating to come on here and read Broken's "here is my
> perfect track listing for 'The Queen is Dead'" crap because the dude
> probably can't even make a decent cheeseburger at his job at Burger King
> let alone create a classic album. i don't really say much about it because
> it's like a shiny object to distract him from posting other garbage about
> who in the band has herpes this week, but while we're on the subject, i
> feel free to say "nobody gives a crap!"

> As for making an album with Radiohead/Bernard Butler/Frank Black...hell
> no! I can't comment on Radiohead because I guess they have their fans,
> even though Radiohead have seem to fallen off the radar over the last
> couple of years, but let's ask ourselves what Frank Black has done these
> days besides reunite with his old bandmates and become a living Pixies
> tribute because he failed to generate a darn thing that anyone cared about
> in the past 10+ years he's been on his own. yeah, that gets a thinking
> person's appetite whet for what a collaboration with Morrissey would
> result in.

People that think Morrissey should team up with Radiohead or Frank Black are more concerned with pleasing the critics than what the actual music sounds like. They'd prefer to read a good review in Uncut than listen to a new album and make up their own mind.

> If people are so enthusiastic, Johnny Marr should have his own fans.
> Instead, Marr releases a Healer's album and nobody cares. Once again, it's
> the Frank Black syndrome where everyone lives in the year 1987 and not
> 2006. He rightly deserves to be back in the minor leagues, and i don't
> think he's motivated like Morrissey is motivated to keep pushing it.
> Despite having to fork out money to Mike, I think he is relatively
> comfortable thanks to the royalties the old songs produce which affords
> him all the free time in the world to fart around in his studio and
> collaborate with his buddies and occasionally inflict the results upon the
> world because the Smiths gave him the god-given right to do so. Nobody is
> going to tell him 'no', so he really can just wake up one morning and
> think that he's going to make a 3rd rate Oasis album knock-off and people
> out there will make it happen.

Johnny Marr left the Smiths because he couldn't take the pressure and wanted to spend idle time living it up like a rock star with his druggy mates like Bernard Sumner. It shows in his post-Smiths output. No commitment. Why do people not question why he never even made it as a producer?

> Those people would be the first to cry should this website ever go away.
> they might gloat for about 3 minutes and then realize that they've
> completely lost their audience to gloat to. That's when the panic starts
> and they realize that Julia isn't going to start a section on her website
> where you can discuss which band member has mental problems.

> and i'm sure that morrissey and his record company people trawl through
> here looking for fan response. imagine if all that goes away tomorrow. how
> sad would that be? it might save them the trouble of sending cease &
> desist letters, but what else have they lost in the process?

> they'd all be looney tunes to think that Julia is going to put a
> discussion board on her website considering how much trouble it got David
> in, and i don't think anybody else with a website wants to deal with the
> hassle of the Freeyourselfs and Ians and brokens who will suddenly be
> homeless and have no enemy webmaster to inflict their annoyance upon.

Morrissey is making a big mistake using Julia's site as his official site. It's an embarrassment. She obviously doesn't have the skills or intellect to set up a simple website.

 

[vicarinatutugal]

> I agree 100% with this statement.

> however
> where can i buy past b-sides? singles from years back are not easily
> available. i would really like to know.

a genuine answer is to get the box sets of his single cds
and the my early burglary years thats what i did. Also ebay has been a real life line for me and not everything is crazy expensive.

 

[Scott E.]

I almost posted that message without adding "readily available" B-sides... because I know that some singles are very hard to come by. The release of the box sets made the earliest singles more "readily available" for some, but is quite an expensive proposition if you only need one or two songs!

Anyway, I suppose that comment does come across as me taking quite a bit foregranted. What I was really referring to are the people that post on here looking for the B-sides to the new single, which almost all of us can buy for reasonable prices at this moment if we were so inclined.

I am sorry for the way it came across. I completely appreciate your perspective.

Scott

 

[deathfornoreason]

> a genuine answer is to get the box sets of his single cds
> and the my early burglary years thats what i did. Also ebay has been a
> real life line for me and not everything is crazy expensive.

Ebay was a great resource for me - that's where I found all the Southpaw/Maldjusted singles (they're were at about £5 each, but are worth it).

I also recommend the 2 singles boxsets.

 

[freeyourself®]

> they'd all be looney tunes to think that Julia is going to put a
> discussion board on her website considering how much trouble it got David
> in, and i don't think anybody else with a website wants to deal with the
> hassle of the Freeyourselfs and Ians and brokens who will suddenly be
> homeless and have no enemy webmaster to inflict their annoyance upon.

While I think it's incredibly rude of you to mention my name in the same breath as 'broken', or to drag me into this at all for that matter, so I'll take a minute to correct you.
I would be ecstatic to see this website shut down, and only marginally less pleased if Tseng himself decided to pull the plug.
I would have been long gone by now were it not for Tsengs pathetic attempts to ban me, or the scummy mans campaign to drive me off the site.
As soon as Tseng stops treating me differently from everyone else, and the scum stop trolling me, I'm out of here for good, but I'll leave when I decide, not until.
Some other site would soon fill the (shit) hole left by this place and provide the same service to Morrissey's admirers as this one, perhaps even without the Morrissey hate posts, the homophobia, the negligent webmaster and the disgusting troll posts.
Where would YOU be then without somewhere to post your frequent Moz hate posts and your execrable journal entries?

 

[WOX von Wubbins]

what's your problem?

How was anything I said so worthy of your ire that you felt the need to quote me of all people before you railed against various aspects of this board? I never claimed YATQ to be superior to any classic Moz album, just production wise I found it more consistant. I LOVE every Moz CD. You're the one that should "get-out" if you can't stand reading honest commentary on the audio quality of his work. It's only my hope that his next album be the best it possibly can be, and that's not going to happen if people just close their ears, shut their mouths and act like blind little mice flocking behind their hero. If you want to take issues with things I've said, let's do it right here, right now.

 

[noone]

They came for the bungee jumpers but I wasn't a bungee jumper.........

If we don't put up with other people and their strange and unfathomable ways why on earth should they but up with ours?