Beethoven was deaf

[Frankly Vulgar]

i totally love its name for some reason. The CD it self is good but not the end of the world. Ive heard better live versions from him.

[kingfisher]

Listening to it does make you realise the set list from the last 2 tours has been quite poor to say the least.

Your Arsenal was just made for playing live wasn't it!? If only Mick Ronson hadn't died who knows what direction Moz would be in now.

I do find it sad that Boz's bottles are a highlight of this tour.

[konstantinl]

Perhaps a back handed compliment to some people, but 'Beethoven Was Deaf' is one of my all time favourite live LP's.

Who cares if the singing or the sound is a little bit off, it's live! It's supposed to be played loud to the point of distortion anyway!

My only problem with it is it is just a tad 'Your Arsenal' centred. Not that I don't like 'Your Arsenal' it's just I'd have liked to have heard 'Playboys' or 'Picadilly' at the expense of some of the weaker tracks from 'Your Arsenal'.

The 1-2 punch of 'Glamorous Glue' and 'We Hate It...' is superb.

[Lilac 1]

great album , I agree its best played loud, sounds might fine pumping out my car speakers on the way to work each morning. I love all the official live stuff but agree there seems to be even better stuff out there avaiable in bootleg world.

[Chartres]

i totally love its name for some reason. The CD it self is good but not the end of the world. Ive heard better live versions from him.

Yeah, it's one of my favourite titles, especially cause I'm tottaly tone-deaf.

It really got some gems like "Suedehead" and "He Knows I'd Love To See Him", it's really esential. Way better and more personal than "Live At Earl's Court" who isn't anything special at all. It is as good as "Rank" really, maybe even better.

[nightandday]

Yeah, it's one of my favourite titles, especially cause I'm tottaly tone-deaf.

It really got some gems like "Suedehead" and "He Knows I'd Love To See Him", it's really esential. Way better and more personal than "Live At Earl's Court" who isn't anything special at all. It is as good as "Rank" really, maybe even better.

The problem I have with Live At Earl's Court is that many of the songs don't sound that well. "Friday Mourning", for instance, sounds 10 times better on the studio version. On the other hand, the selection of songs from The Smiths and different phases of his career is very good - much better than on this tour (sadly, I only got the chance to see him for the first time this year - not that I'm complaining, it was still great!) and the lyrics changes on some of the songs are interesting (e.g. November Spawned A Monster, Bigmouth Strikes Again).

[Chartres]

The problem I have with Live At Earl's Court is that many of the songs don't sound that well. "Friday Mourning", for instance, sounds 10 times better on the studio version. On the other hand, the selection of songs from The Smiths and different phases of his career is very good - much better than on this tour (sadly, I only got the chance to see him for the first time this year - not that I'm complaining, it was still great!) and the lyrics changes on some of the songs are interesting (e.g. November Spawned A Monster, Bigmouth Strikes Again).

I really agree with the sound thing but I hate the covers lack of personality and that there's barely any comments between the songs, would prefere to be able to hear the whole concert nonstop.

[nightandday]

I really agree with the sound thing but I hate the covers lack of personality and that there's barely any comments between the songs, would prefere to be able to hear the whole concert nonstop.

the cover of Live At Earl's Court is just awful. it looks as if someone tried hard to find the worst Morrissey photo there is. it's even worse than the Maladjusted cover.

Now, Beethoven Was Deaf cover... that one is really good

[whoiseuan]

definitely agree on the bad photo on Live at Earl's Court. not only does he look bad on it, he looks just like the old crooner some have written him off as. I know some people on here don't mind morrissey's crooner image but i won't have any of it. regardless of age, his attitude and personality just cannot be boxed into that style.

[JeanneDarc]

Morrissey has a great photo face. I don't see why they took that picture as a front. Almost as if Sanctury wanted to get him a piece of his own in some sarcastic way.

[Chartres]

the cover of Live At Earl's Court is just awful. it looks as if someone tried hard to find the worst Morrissey photo there is. it's even worse than the Maladjusted cover.

Now, Beethoven Was Deaf cover... that one is really good

Yeah, it looks like that kind of pose that old fat Britney would use for a cover. I really agree with you that it's even worse than "Maladjusted".

"Beethoven Was Deaf", that's a fantastic cover, I belive that it's actually mine favourite of his solo covers.

[Johan de Witt]

I haven't listened to it in 10 years, at least.
I don't see the point of live cd's, really.
I have bootlegs from each tour, and each one of them is much better than Beethoven.
I don't like the way they fucked up the order and included songs that weren't even played (I was there). Also Bob Clearmontain's mixing is just not right, somehow. It's too cleaned up and too 'rockist' for my taste.

And the song selection isn't too exciting either.

The cover and title are nice, though.

[junkpile]

How much do you love it?

I've had it for about 8 years and just re-discovered it. I'm so in love again!

i recently bought it. it's amazing. great quality even though it's from 1992.
the live versions sound almost better than the originals (f.e. Suedehead, seasick, november)

[Disappointed]

I love it dearly...love it to death...it's a constant companion of mine.

I absolutely adore "National Front Disco" (OK, I realized that that may have sounded wrong... I adore the SONG. Just the SONG); "Seasick, Yet Still Docked" (simply beautiful...so heartfelt, it's brought tears to my eyes); "Jack The Ripper" (again, I don't like Jack the person--just the song ); and "Such A Little Thing Makes Such A Big Difference". And I like the version of "We Hate It When Our Friends Become Successful" much more than I like the studio version.

And his stage patter is just priceless--it makes me smile, every time.

[Abrahan]

i love how you can almost create a live version of your arsenal with beethoven was deaf.

[faroffplaces]

I've got no issue with the Earl's Court cover; I always saw that as the visual theme of the Quarry tour - it was at once an example and a send-up of the canonized, past-his-prime crooner thing. He had the Elvis stuff (the red name in lights, the tour starting in Vegas) as well as assorted parodies of his various periods - crotch flowers, New Romantics pirate shirt, and I believe gold lame' made more than one appearance...

It's been somewhat continued on the Tormentors tour, where he'll begin a show in a Sinatra tux and end it by offering the crowd a shirt stained with the sweat of his noble labors (the ones in his pants). Homage with a touch of self-awareness, frank megalomania and filthy mockery.

Anyway, I think the use of that over-the-top "Come to mummy!" photo on the cover of Earl's Court was similarly half-ironic - though all bets are off if it was Sanctuary's choice and not his.

I also find it to be the weakest of the live albums, though I still do give it a listen sometimes, and also wish the banter had been included. I'll always remember my first listen of Earl's Court - it was the first time I'd ever heard Morrissey's speaking voice. Tripping right down from the higher registers straight to a stentorian "Thank you!" - a voice designed, technically speaking, for barking orders at a team of bargemen, or trembling army recruits. Nature has made it a cruel task for him to attain an even moderate, balancing effeminacy; fortunately, he's well up to the task and his efforts over the years have been nothing less than heroic.

(Caution: this may not be my exact, literal train of thought at the time.)




Abrahan - where'd you get that avatar photo? I love the St. Sebastian thing!

[Midnight]

Anyway, I think the use of that over-the-top "Come to mummy!" photo on the cover of Earl's Court was similarly half-ironic - though all bets are off if it was Sanctuary's choice and not his.

He didn't even know that it had been released as an LP, so my bet is Sanctuary couldn't be arsed discussing it with him and just chose whatever photograph of the gig they happened to come across. That's a cynical view to take I know... maybe he did have some input into it, but it seems as though he would have chosen something more flattering in that case.

[faroffplaces]

He didn't even know that it had been released as an LP, so my bet is Sanctuary couldn't be arsed discussing it with him and just chose whatever photograph of the gig they happened to come across. That's a cynical view to take I know... maybe he did have some input into it, but it seems as though he would have chosen something more flattering in that case.

Hmm... Morrissey has an art-direction credit on Ringleader, which implies that Sanctuary gives him rein, but there's no credit on Earl's Court to indicate either way.

My impression of Earl's Court was that it was a somewhat rushed little release, and my guess is that you're right (though "those without whom" on the liner notes does seem like a Moz construction..).

[Chartres]

Hmm... Morrissey has an art-direction credit on Ringleader, which implies that Sanctuary gives him rein, but there's no credit on Earl's Court to indicate either way.

My impression of Earl's Court was that it was a somewhat rushed little release, and my guess is that you're right (though "those without whom" on the liner notes does seem like a Moz construction..).

The cover fo "Who Put The 'M' In Manchester" is much better at catching the visual style of the Quarry-tour, in my opinion. Not the best cover he has made, "I Have Forgiven Jesus" really has the best cover from the Quarry-sessions.

[faroffplaces]

The cover fo "Who Put The 'M' In Manchester" is much better at catching the visual style of the Quarry-tour, in my opinion. Not the best cover he has made, "I Have Forgiven Jesus" really has the best cover from the Quarry-sessions.

Aww yeah, I love the M in Manchester cover. It's got bombast!