Dougal
Junior Member
Was surprised to find a copy of Visconti’s autobiography on sale in Foyles in London today- naturally I sat & copied out Moz related bits & put back on shelf- even with £4 off, £14.99 is a bit steep. Flicked through & is full of insights & anecdote, very simply expressed & quite fascinating. M’s beautifully composed intro is stylistically ‘superior’. But that’s what we’d expect, eh? Have picked out salient points. Here’s a quick quote from intro:
‘As a non musician/ skimmer-scholar, I’ve always known what I wanted without always knowing how to get it….(of Visconti) He is persuasive without ever making you need to disembarrass yourself; his role is complicity.’
Visconti takes a few pages to describe how he got involved with ROTT through a meeting with Merck Mercuriadis in Sept 2005- he played Visco two songs which he instantly loved but felt the mixes were ‘too murky.’
‘The beautiful thing was Morrissey’s voice; he seemed to have found a new, more powerful voice inside him.’
When MM suggested Visco as producer apparently Moz commented ‘Is he still alive?’. Visco hopes it was ‘jokingly’, not so sure..
Visco had previously recorded a cover of Marc Bolan’s ‘Jeepster’ with Boz in 1982 & comments- ‘Rockabilly was one of my first influences so it was a fun project’
Visco on ROTT recording:
‘Every song of Morrissey’s was a gem in my opinion. Morrissey wanted me to hear the songs before we were to meet that night for pizza. When we met I told him that I loved the songs. He looked piercingly into my eyes & asked, ‘But do you REALLY love them?’. I assured him that I did.’
‘My 45 days with Morrissey & his band have increased my admiration for his music & lyrics more than ever, especially after being part of what is now one of my favourite albums. I am a new, true-to-you Morrissey fan.’
On Morrissey, the human being:
‘Whilst I enjoyed his company both in the studio & socially, I am none the wiser to explain his uniqueness. He is not exactly aloof; but he seems to delight in giving oblique answers to direct questions, due in large part to his love of language. And it is fun, almost a past time trying to figure him out. Moz, like Bowie, is a rare breed in pop- a true gentleman’.
‘One thing I learnt from working with Morrissey is that not stating the obvious is simply more fun..I will borrow a leaf from Morrissey to admit ‘I am in love’.’
Final lines of the book:
‘Three thoughts. I first heard them while sitting behind a console in a studio- probably at some ungodly hour. They sum up my life.
‘Life’s a gas’ Marc Bolan
‘Life is a pigsty’ Morrissey
‘We could be heroes’ David Bowie
‘As a non musician/ skimmer-scholar, I’ve always known what I wanted without always knowing how to get it….(of Visconti) He is persuasive without ever making you need to disembarrass yourself; his role is complicity.’
Visconti takes a few pages to describe how he got involved with ROTT through a meeting with Merck Mercuriadis in Sept 2005- he played Visco two songs which he instantly loved but felt the mixes were ‘too murky.’
‘The beautiful thing was Morrissey’s voice; he seemed to have found a new, more powerful voice inside him.’
When MM suggested Visco as producer apparently Moz commented ‘Is he still alive?’. Visco hopes it was ‘jokingly’, not so sure..
Visco had previously recorded a cover of Marc Bolan’s ‘Jeepster’ with Boz in 1982 & comments- ‘Rockabilly was one of my first influences so it was a fun project’
Visco on ROTT recording:
‘Every song of Morrissey’s was a gem in my opinion. Morrissey wanted me to hear the songs before we were to meet that night for pizza. When we met I told him that I loved the songs. He looked piercingly into my eyes & asked, ‘But do you REALLY love them?’. I assured him that I did.’
‘My 45 days with Morrissey & his band have increased my admiration for his music & lyrics more than ever, especially after being part of what is now one of my favourite albums. I am a new, true-to-you Morrissey fan.’
On Morrissey, the human being:
‘Whilst I enjoyed his company both in the studio & socially, I am none the wiser to explain his uniqueness. He is not exactly aloof; but he seems to delight in giving oblique answers to direct questions, due in large part to his love of language. And it is fun, almost a past time trying to figure him out. Moz, like Bowie, is a rare breed in pop- a true gentleman’.
‘One thing I learnt from working with Morrissey is that not stating the obvious is simply more fun..I will borrow a leaf from Morrissey to admit ‘I am in love’.’
Final lines of the book:
‘Three thoughts. I first heard them while sitting behind a console in a studio- probably at some ungodly hour. They sum up my life.
‘Life’s a gas’ Marc Bolan
‘Life is a pigsty’ Morrissey
‘We could be heroes’ David Bowie
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