posted by davidt on Monday September 08 2003, @09:00AM
Lazy Sunbather writes:

Browsing through the latest biography of Siouxsie and The Banshees at an HMV store, I came across an interesting piece about Mozzy on page 216 concerning the collaboration between him and Siouxsie on the song 'Interlude' and the obligatory video back in '94.


Siouxsie was never impressed with Mozzy's vocals or his music, but found his humour charming and took up his offer to record a duet in good faith. The vocals completed she took off to his house (somewhere in Primrose Hill at the time) with a director to discuss ideas for the video.

In the kitchen - Mozzy with record company representative, presumbably Murray Chalmers, Siouxsie and aforementioned video director. Mozz wanted to use old footage of Ruth Ellis (the last woman to be hanged in England) or maybe even clips from the film 'Dance With A Stranger', but couldn't get clearance. Siouxsie found both the song and the idea for the video intrigueing and obviously respects Mozzy as a creative artistE of sorts!

Then S&M discussed alternative ideas for the video shoot. Moz puts his foot in it by suggesting to Sioux that they film a British Bulldog asking her a rhetorical question: "I mean what's wrong with being pro-Britain?" Siouxsie, more sensitive to public opionion than Moz will ever be, was not going to be wrong footed on this occasion proffered the question 'What's right with it?' A rather heated slanging match ensued, which is not recorded in the book.

Having already flirted with fascistic iconography during the punk era by daubing swastikas all over the place, Siouxsie - the good catholic girl that she is, made amends by writing the hyper ballad 'Israel' with the Banshees - was not going to compromise her new liberal credibility by dancing in a union jack bikini with a bulldog in her arms, and Morrissey moping about in St. George's flag outside the Houses of Parliament.

'Well what's your suggestion?' asks Morrissey in school marmish tones.

'Personally, I think we should dress up as pink bunny rabbits!'

His royal highness was not amused. Sensing that his creative pretentions were being deflated by the highly formidable Siouxsie, Mozzy and Murray stood up and left the kitchen. Murray returned ten minutes later to state that Morrissey had an important engagement and could not resume the brain storming session with the house guests on this day! Siouxsie took her queue and left with the director.

Siouxsie then realised that she had made a mistake working with Moz. A straight talking no-nonsense woman, she found herself working with somebody who is a master of in-direct communication and is easily offended when his ideas are not taken seriously.

A confrontation about artistic differences would never take place, and Siouxsie was frozen out from that point onwards like so many in the life of unforgiving Morrissey.

Interestingly enough she doesn't put the knife in further by criticising him, like she most certainly could have, just lets the story speak for itself!
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  • A circa - '94 Souxsie dancing around in a union jack bikini? Damn, I'd of actually paid to see that!
    haze <[email protected]> -- Monday September 08 2003, @09:16AM (#73242)
    (User #1115 Info)
    myspace.com/deathwrites
    • Miss Natural by mr. superinvisible (Score:1) Thursday September 11 2003, @01:46AM
  • Pubs (Score:2, Interesting)

    I think Siouxsie, during her punk days, used to go into pubs with Steve Severin on a chain/lead like a dog. She'd be dressed as a peep hole bra Nazi in leather... She'd ask the barman for a bowl of water for her 'dog.'

    Quite daring for the 70s... or now actually...

    What i mean by all this is that Siouxsie has a pretty good grasp of the theatrical herself and it would have been interesting to see how much further she and Moz could have taken the collaboration...

    But... Moz may be a genius but he is not much of a team player...
    carnal artist -- Monday September 08 2003, @09:37AM (#73249)
    (User #7076 Info)
  • ...to please both parties,I would have suggested Jewish bulldogs dancing languorously with fluffy pink nazi bunnies....(It's a love song, after all)

    Or maybe a nationalist singer and a sad shiksa dancing languorously together ...And then I would have shown them being both tenderly thrown in the Thames...

    No stunts, obviously. Geniuses don't need any.
    lady Fairfax -- Monday September 08 2003, @10:34AM (#73263)
    (User #9009 Info)
    Voyage to the Bottom of Morrissey
  • That's nearly as bad as being called Mozzy!
    English Martyr -- Monday September 08 2003, @10:57AM (#73265)
    (User #655 Info | http://website.lineone.net/~smilingontim/timstwin.htm)
  • Before Blur became Gods of the Britpap scene with the much lauded "Parklife" album they released the vastly superior "Modern Life Is Rubbish", a record that stands alongside the Kinks "Village Green Preservation Society" as one of the great "English" pop records...like the Kinks record Blurs album charted a particular part of English history, what Albarn called the "coca-colanisation" of Britain.

    Morrissey, has of course made reference to the same thing with his remarks about the decline of Britain coinciding with the arrival of McDonalds and his attempts to reclaim the Union Jack from the right.

    What is interesting is that at around the time of the "Modern Life Is Rubbish" release graffiti appeared around London..."British Image 1#" and "Modern Life is Rubbish", then Blur released press photographs of themselves dressed as hard-mods...skinheads with mop-tops if you will...Albarn leading a Great Dane around in his 12-holer DM's.

    Not a word from the self same music press who were pillorying Morrissey for his "racism"...it is the same with this business with Ms. Banshee...the bulldog is a symbol of a Britain from another era...it epitomises a certain spirit...well, it did until they, like the Union Jack, became synonomous with ill educated, white van driving morons who listened to Skrewdriver (let's not go back over all that again)!

    It seems that Morrissey's attempts at asserting his national pride (incidentally that song by DMR is just divine,no?)are always emt with deep suspicion by all and sundry...yet others whouse the same imagery and iconography are allowed tos ail on by without a word...Noel Gallagher, Geri Halliwell, Blur, Suede etc etc etc.

    What was the point of this post? Answers on a postcard to Blue Peter.
    SundownPlayboy -- Monday September 08 2003, @11:29AM (#73270)
    (User #8548 Info)
  • Maybe Moz and Murray took off to the next room to have a quickie and then Murray returned to say that Moz had an "impotent engagement".

    Kinky!
    Anonymous -- Monday September 08 2003, @10:36PM (#73345)
    • Re: Maybe! by Ramon (Score:1) Tuesday September 09 2003, @10:39AM
      • Re: Maybe! by Anonymous (Score:0) Tuesday September 09 2003, @08:22PM
  • I always thought it was all rather frosty. The song itself is a moribund dirge even though Moz proved himself to be a keen crooner. Siouxsie, on the other hand, creaks and crows like the old goth crone she always was and always will be, despite the Givenchy clothes.
    Ramon -- Tuesday September 09 2003, @10:41AM (#73406)
    (User #2577 Info)
    "I'm all over you...like a vulture, like impending death"
    • Re:S&M by Anonymous (Score:0) Tuesday September 09 2003, @08:24PM
  • Who the fuck is Mozzy? (You have to remember Robert Smith was in her band)enough said.
    tchatshm -- Tuesday September 09 2003, @03:11PM (#73431)
    (User #7211 Info)
    let`s go and trip a dwarf!
  • Nice melody, but (Score:0, Redundant)

    I can understand why Siouxie wasn't keen on Moz's lyrics for 'Interlude'. It's a beautiful song with a lovely melody, but his lyrics seem like they were written rather hurriedly; they don't resonate with hidden meaniong, as they usually do.
    JiltedJim -- Wednesday September 10 2003, @03:35AM (#73479)
    (User #7728 Info)
  • whence the theme song, 'Interlude' sung by Mozzer and S.

    This is from the Internet Movie Database:

    "The story of a young woman, Helen Banning (June Allyson), who travels to Munich in search of life experience and romance. While working for America House, she meets a famous symphony conductor, Tonio Fischer (Rossano Brazzi), and begins a relationship with him. She soon finds out there is much more to this man than his music, including a wife Reni Fisher(Marianne Koch), but there's definitely more to the story, which she soon discovers. While dealing with the experiences life has thrown in her way, she is also being courted by Morley Dwyer a doctor from back home (Keith Andes), who is currently practicing medicine in a Munich hospital. Who will she choose?

    Throughout the 50's, Universal-International was home to most of director Douglas Sirk's striking views of life, love and heartache among the American classes. His work with Rock Hudson, Dorothy Malone, Barbara Stanwyck and others in superior films like Written on The Wind, The Tarnished Angels and There's Always Tomorrow is not matched here.

    June Allyson on occasion was able to break free from her standard persona with the fortuitous help of the right co-star, director, script turn or moment in time. Here the noble suffering and Rossano Brazzi do not provide the right formula. The stars try (probably too hard) and the trappings are predictably pretty, but the whole affair is rather unfortunately empty."

    - Finn
    Anonymous -- Wednesday September 10 2003, @07:43PM (#73602)
  • Just to note that it's been out in the UK for a few months and is an entertaining read for anyone interested in punk/early-mid 80s "alternative pop" as it was called then. Just about anyone who was anyone turns up at some point. And she doesn't slag him off too much, though she was obviously pissed off with the way it all soured. "He obviously doesn't like confrontation and I like talking directly. Later, I got a message: Morrissey won't work with Siouxsie. She's too aggressive." When he suggested the bulldog in the video, she countered that they should use a chihahua. Morrissey didn't find that amusing.
    Anonymous -- Thursday September 11 2003, @04:21AM (#73614)
  • i really do... it sounds like a beth middler and david bowie collaboration.
    leedoggpimp <[email protected]> -- Friday September 12 2003, @11:20PM (#73821)
    (User #2789 Info | http://www.morrisseymusic.com/)
    True friends stab you in the front.
  • it comes from a radio itw made in roma in nov'94 to promote the release of the banshees'lp 'the rapture'.

    journalist: what's the record I've got in my hands?
    siouxsie: could it be... fatty?
    severin (banshees'bassist): you're the one for me, fatty.
    sx: she's the one with who he wanted to make the song but he didn't find her.

    J: what's the basic reason you recorded with morrissey?
    sx: I did it 'cse I wanted to know what it was like to record with someone else. morrisey contacted me a few years ago in a view to make a duet. I said no 'cse I was too buzy at that time. & then, the good time arrived about a year ago.

    j: what was it like to record with morrisey?
    sx: the musical side was fine but we'd had a few disagreements later. he's not the most straightforward person to work with. so, it won't happen again with morrissey.

    j: siouxsie, let me ask you. are you a difficult person to work with?
    sx: I think you should ask morrissey that question.
    severin: hey, I can't say anything while she's in the room.
    ( sounds of slaps in the background & giggles).
    she's a bowl of roses..
    Anonymous -- Saturday September 13 2003, @08:58AM (#73856)
  • Fascinating. When will you die?
    Anonymous -- Monday September 08 2003, @10:02AM (#73257)
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