Morrissey A-Z: "My Love, I'd Do Anything for You"

Starting a song, let alone a whole album, with these lyrics:

Teach your kids
To recognize and despise all the propaganda
Filtered down
By the dead echelons mainstream media


is just really, really cringe.

I mean, I get the point: news is biased, etc - but...ugh.
Cringe? Most truthful thing you'll hear on a modern pop record. I think it's one of Moz best openers
 
I really like it. Not super subtle but the lyrics don’t bother me either. I used to think the opening sounds were an elephant and perhaps this song was one about animals in captivity but no. I like the glammy showtune quality of the song and it made a good opener. There are also some good lines in the song but I think people pay to much attention to the opening lines. Born to mourn and to yawn obviously liked the song.


Teach your kids
To recognize and despise all the propaganda
Filtered down
By the dead echelons mainstream media
Hey, hey, hey, hey, you know me well
My love, I'd do anything for you
Society's hell
You need me just like I need you
Weren't we all
Born to mourn and to yawn at the occupations
That control
Every day of our lives we can't live as we wish
Live as we wish, live as we wish
You know me well
My love, I'd do anything for you
Society's hell
You need me just like I need you
Oh, oh, you know me well
My love, I'd do anything for you
Society's hell
You need me just like I need you
We all go
Our own ways separately in the same direction
And here am I
Every night of my life always missing someone
I'd like to be
Rotted out just before I become aware of the pain
The more I wish
In my heart for someone less likely they come
I always thought it was “blotted out”
 
I have no time for this one, and I skip it whenever I listen to (parts of) LIHS.
It's tasteless on every level: the lyrics, the production and the heavy sound.
 
I was very impressed, when I was lucky enough to be at the ARTE LIVE concert in Berlin in October 2017 and Morrissey presented this piece as a premiere. It came across as incredibly powerful with the synthesizer trombones and also sounded a bit like massive glam and 70s James Bond. Unfortunately, the later version on the record didn't impress me much, which I have to attribute once again to Joe Chiccarelli, who didn't focus the sound and the overall dynamics properly. Still: One of the better pieces on an otherwise dodgy affair called LIHS.

I do agree with you on the production: the recorded versions of this one and "All the young people..." didn't capture the dynamic and energy of the music at all.
 
Made me think of the first time I heard Glamorous Glue, different of course, but still an exciting stomp of a number.


It’s a Morrissey protest song, or his version of a protest song, and he probably doesn’t even have an acoustic guitar.

I think part of his lyrical change in direction, being more blunt less cryptic/‘poetic’ is a kind of raging
against the dying of the light more or less. Anyway, something to consider.
Great track & a great ballsy opener to a great album.
I like the power, boldness & energy of this track, & find it quite invigorating. I find it also welcome that Moz takes us in yet another musical direction, ably assisted in production for the 2nd time by Joe Chiccarelli. I know LIHS isn't everyone's cup of tea, but I do play it fairly often. There's probably only 2 tracks on the album that I do think are dubious, but in saying that, they seem to work on the album somehow.
So yes, a great 'pounder' of a track, & good to get away from the recent dreamy numbers for a few days.
Cringe? Most truthful thing you'll hear on a modern pop record. I think it's one of Moz best openers

Strong powerful opener, a bit like I Will See You in Far-Off Places on Ringleader.
Not too subtle, but works as an opener.

8,1
 
Made me think of the first time I heard Glamorous Glue, different of course, but still an exciting stomp of a number.


It’s a Morrissey protest song, or his version of a protest song, and he probably doesn’t even have an acoustic guitar.

I think part of his lyrical change in direction, being more blunt less cryptic/poetic, is a kind of raging
against the dying of the light more or less. Anyway, something to consider.
I like that it's a protest song that's really just a rally to think for yourself and t0 teach the next generation to be hip to the programming of the media. Doesn't even have to take a political side, which is refreshing, just logic and reason. As much as I like it as an opener I'd put Jim Jim Falls as another one of my favorite openers too
 
I like that it's a protest song that's really just a rally to think for yourself and t0 teach the next generation to be hip to the programming of the media. Doesn't even have to take a political side, which is refreshing, just logic and reason. As much as I like it as an opener I'd put Jim Jim Falls as another one of my favorite openers too

Well, it’s complicated. I think every new generation will more or less naturally do the opposite of the previous generation for better or for worse, youth is change. But does it ever really change?

I understand the obvious importance of thinking for oneself,
but is it really possible? I mean there are so many things influencing
an individual mostly unconsciously, and it’s the motivations that we’re not even aware of that are dictating
our behavior and actions. It’s a discipline of self awareness that is definitely not being taught in school or at home, and should be.

I think JJFalls is a great opener! It’s a refreshing change of direction coming from Morrissey, even though some say it’s a bit retro with
IANADOAC’s use of electronics, but still an interesting move on Morrissey’s part.
 
Well, it’s complicated. I think every new generation will more or less naturally do the opposite of the previous generation for better or for worse, youth is change. But does it ever really change?

I understand the obvious importance of thinking for oneself,
but is it really possible? I mean there are so many things influencing
an individual mostly unconsciously, and it’s the motivations that we’re not even aware of that are dictating
our behavior and actions. It’s a discipline of self awareness that is definitely not being taught in school or at home, and should be.

I think JJFalls is a great opener! It’s a refreshing change of direction coming from Morrissey, even though some say it’s a bit retro with
IANADOAC’s use of electronics, but still an interesting move on Morrissey’s part.
Good question and I can't say I have an answer if things ever really change but in relation to the song I do think there can be and has at times been a weakening of the stranglehold mainstream media holds on society. Vietnam and Iraq I think were 2 catalysts for a push against the mainstream narrative yet somehow the media ends up corralling people back into their programming. In America after the disillusionment of the Bush era/ endless war that was sold to us by media somehow the Obama era got people back on board with mainstream media. With conflicting narratives of the Covid thing, I think it's bringing back some of that desire for independent research and journalism. Basically I think the rally cry of "My Love.." is noble and could have a healing effect of sorts but idk, nonetheless, I dig the message
 
Rrrrrring 📞
"hello, Morrissey, is that you?"
"oh my only one.."
"Morrissey? Are you Ok?"
"My love, I'd do anything for you"
"Oh really? Reform the Smiths!"
"- - -" (hung up signal)
 
If I were to be making a case for Morrissey being completely creatively bankrupt in 2017, a song like this could surely serve as exhibit A. Mando Lopez, a nobody session musician surely pleased with the free-for-all ruleset for Morrissey's contributors, seems quite comfortable never moving past the one chord he wrote for this "song" and then expects the rest of us to deal with it for a seemingly-endless 5 minutes.

Lyrically, it's the bottom of the barrel and the fact that anyone could find these hackneyed, sophomoric phrases "insightful" is just deeply troubling. As I often say when it comes to Morrissey's later material, even subjectivity has its limits. Joe Chiccarelli can pile as many guitars and horns and synth whooshes onto this glam-aspirational slab of shit as he wants, but it doesn't disguise what an ugly and embarrassing way this is to start a record. Sometimes I can't believe how many bad songs someone I love so much has written.
 
Starting a song, let alone a whole album, with these lyrics:

Teach your kids
To recognize and despise all the propaganda
Filtered down
By the dead echelons mainstream media


is just really, really cringe.

I mean, I get the point: news is biased, etc - but...ugh.
I'm surprised Andrew Neil's new GB News Channel hasn't licensed this as their theme song. :sick:

I love this song musically - it has a great glitzy swagger, and the band and production is doing all it can to sell it. I also think Moz deserves credit for the vocal melody line, which is generally pretty cool. The lyrics are awful though, with this being one of a number of songs from around this period where the weakest link in a Morrissey song is Morrissey himself, who seems to be letting the team down with his shoddy lyrics. Things have improved on 'Dog on a Chain', but this was a bleak period for me as a fan.
 
good song,totally forgot about this today,not like me.
8 for.10 you.
 
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