Long live “The Queen Is Dead”... by Annie Zaleski - Salon

Link posted by Kenmare (original post):

Long live “The Queen Is Dead”: On the genius of this album — and Morrissey’s finest moments as lyrical provocateur — 30 years later - Salon
That the Smiths imploded so soon after a creative high point helped the record develop a mystique that endures
By ANNIE ZALESKI
WEDNESDAY, MAY 25, 2016 03:59 PM PDT

 

[evennow]

Morrissey's greatest gift and what he did not know at the time was his skillful and genius ability to touch the hearts, souls and minds of a world beyond troubled and disillusioned English youth. The lyrics on TQID were universal in their ability to speak to what many young people of the world were feeling: lonely, desperate for love, and unwanted.

He was a beacon of light. A true north. A touch stone. His lyrics were vast, deep and shallow sometimes independently and sometimes simultaneously. If he values nothing else from his time in The Smiths TQID is his masterpiece and his TTY post seems to confirm this.

 

[SuedeMoz]

Morrissey's greatest gift and what he did not know at the time was his skillful and genius ability to touch the hearts, souls and minds of a world beyond troubled and disillusioned English youth. The lyrics on TQID were universal in their ability to speak to what many young people of the world were feeling: lonely, desperate for love, and unwanted.

He was a beacon of light. A true north. A touch stone. His lyrics were vast, deep and shallow sometimes independently and sometimes simultaneously. If he values nothing else from his time in The Smiths TQID is his masterpiece and his TTY post seems to confirm this.

Beautifully said and I absolutely agree. I never quite thought about TQID that way. Didn't Morrissey say in the early Smiths days he was only trying to reach a Northern English audience? I think that is mostly gone with TQID (he was always able to reach a broader audience, just maybe now he started to embrace it).

 

[evennow]

Beautifully said and I absolutely agree. I never quite thought about TQID that way. Didn't Morrissey say in the early Smiths days he was only trying to reach a Northern English audience? I think that is mostly gone with TQID (he was always able to reach a broader audience, just maybe now he started to embrace it).

I think it's when you aren't "trying" to do something that great things can be created. I was thinking of the word "contrived" when I wrote my original post and I think the lack of any sight of this is what made my connection to the music and morrissey's lyrics so immediate and deep. Thirty seconds into there is a light and it was over for me and many, many years later here we all are.

 

[countthree]

Morrissey's greatest gift and what he did not know at the time was his skillful and genius ability to touch the hearts, souls and minds of a world beyond troubled and disillusioned English youth. The lyrics on TQID were universal in their ability to speak to what many young people of the world were feeling: lonely, desperate for love, and unwanted.

“Paint your town and you will paint the world” (L. Tolstoi)