Morrissey Central: Blue Rondo A La Turk

BLUE RONDO A LA TURK - Morrissey Central
July 8, 2019

full


"I liked them because they seemed two jumps ahead of everyone else. The mere sight of them suggested big league, but they didn't quite get that far. They were one of the very few groups that the Smiths supported, but there was a scepticism about them being just 'club models' … who asked and got. This was said also about very early Roxy Music … who appeared to be quite affluent before they'd even had a hit. With Blue Rondo, again, you suspected that they were given all of their fantastic suits for free whilst the rest of us had to dream of being able to buy SOMETHING that didn't look TOO abysmal. The main electric spark was their dancing which was very virile and athletic … and even though they came from the Blitz/Billy's scene they seemed like supermale prizefighters or nightclub heavies … deep-chested vocals, narrow-hipped, and very much a man's, man's, man's, man's world. I don't think a sudden tussle would trouble them in the least. But their songs were not about the curves of seductive women - or even about women … as if women might even lack some essential excitement. It's a safe bet that they couldn't stand the Smiths … me singing about not even a glimmer of adventure sex. But that was 1982 or, for me, 1947. Their companion Robert Elms described me as "Ena Sharples". I was actually flattered because Violet Carson, I thought, was extremely funny. You know how comedians or comic actors think that if they show lots of teeth people will think they're saying something hilarious … when of course they aren't? Well, Violet Carson kept her teeth well hidden. Maybe she had none? How did I get from Blue Rondo a la Turk to Violet Carson?
Oh. Well, Blue Rondo were a London band … which was obvious to us because they actually had shoes. I don't think their songs were as good as ours, but our shoes weren't as good as theirs, so, there we are.
They quickly went away and didn't return. I don't know if it's even possible to find their music anymore, but it certainly wouldn't hurt the ear. I think some of Blue Rondo were from the West Indies whereas of course all of the Smiths were born at the Manchester Scabies & Gripe Maternity Hospital."

Morrissey 7 July 2019, talking to himself (for … what choice?)

* sorry, I have no idea who took the above photograph.


Amusing musings from Moz about the first Smiths-support act.


Note posted by an anonymous person:

Actually, it was the other way around. The Smiths supported them. It was their first live show ever on 4 October 1982 at the Ritz.
 
Last edited by a moderator:
You could always leave and let actual fans of the music discuss things without your nonsense conspiracy theories, overbearing racism and rampant homophobia?
I joined to interject some balance.

And because I was sick of seeing Moz slagged off by those who did not understand a word he said, in speaking or song.

It's a ship of fools.

But yes, I will leave. That day will come.
 
He's so much more interesting than Billy Bragg. I would love to sit and chat with Morrissey about music.
Listen kid.. he would have you in knots in seconds... what would you have in common with him or with what could you open his eyes to. I’m quite intrigued????
 
Im not sure I agree with you here. Billy doesn't want Morrissey to work for me! Although I wouldn't be mad at Morrissey if he were to wait on me and hand and foot for 24 hours. I love a submissive man (sometimes) #AlphaAndOmega
I thought you were lesbian?? Have we been on the vino and fancy a bit of Cumberland sausage( vegan of course) I’ll come and work for you, you sound quite mad and fun at the same time
 
I joined to interject some balance.

And because I was sick of seeing Moz slagged off by those who did not understand a word he said, in speaking or song.

It's a ship of fools.

But yes, I will leave. That day will come.

Now I get your loyalty to Moz lots of us had it,lots still do

But he's really f***ed up.
You keep saying his audience will be bigger when gigs, but his gigs aren't really selling . His music sales are fallingbig time, his team are shitting themselves

Now he could have made near 100 Mil with Marr in 2008
He could prob still get that number or near it.
I'm happy he isn't about the money but what the f*** has achieved since 2008?
In fact the very people that have been around him are the ones f***ing him over.
They know if Johnny was on board he wouldn't let them take the piss and just think of the music that could have been.

Moz is gonna pay big time. I feel for him he did this too himself.
Most think the reason he won't get back with Marr is spite.

Well look where it got him.
 
This band is fascinating... but I'm honestly wondering what Morrissey would have to say about The Housemartins and Curiosity Killed the Cat. Any thoughts? For the record, I can't imagine The Smiths opening for Sisters of Mercy.
 
What can Morrissey do? If he talks about other things he's accused of changing the subject, if he carries on he's accused of pursuing the same tired narrative.
@Uncleskinny claims to be rational and devoted to proof but his reaction to this post just shows that he will draw a conclusion first and then arrange the "evidence" to fit.
These types of posts are what Morrissey should be doing. It is part of his history from his unique viewpoint and it relates to the reasons that most people visit this site in the first place.
But the site seems to have no moderation anymore. We have people going through skinny's twitter to prove "a Jewish connection." It's ironic that this is exactly what he needs to feel that his ongoing, years long, tantrum is somehow valid and meaningful.
 
Not incapable, but unwilling. Why compromise his art?
Not sorry for, For the things I've done
That isn't some adherence to principle. It seems to be self destructive to me. On the eve of every project there is some interview that is not about the project but about some divisive political stance that he doesn't even articulate very well. He would never make it as a politician. Going back to Years Of Refusal and his NME interview this is how he does things. That was actually a pretty good record. He sabotaged it.
I don't think you're ever going to see any fault in him and that's fine but he is just shooting himself in the foot over and over. And the new fans that don't even know his music and are appalled by things like gay rights and "the Jews" aren't really a great trade for the longtime supporters that no longer buy his music and listen, if at all, begrudgingly.
 
Now I get your loyalty to Moz lots of us had it,lots still do

But he's really f***ed up.
You keep saying his audience will be bigger when gigs, but his gigs aren't really selling . His music sales are fallingbig time, his team are shitting themselves

Now he could have made near 100 Mil with Marr in 2008
He could prob still get that number or near it.
I'm happy he isn't about the money but what the f*** has achieved since 2008?
In fact the very people that have been around him are the ones f***ing him over.
They know if Johnny was on board he wouldn't let them take the piss and just think of the music that could have been.

Moz is gonna pay big time. I feel for him he did this too himself.
Most think the reason he won't get back with Marr is spite.

Well look where it got him.
The truth can get you into sticky situations. It always has and it always will, especially nowadays when the media's interpretation of the truth is the only one anyone is allowed to utter without demonization as punishment. But the fact Moz, as an exalted famous person, is putting what he sees as the truth over his career is admirable.

Johnny Marr calls himself a socialist but is in reality a careerist. I don't say this scathingly either: it's the option 99.9% of people take when they hit the big time. And in doing so they lose a sense of what life and reality is for the mass of ordinary people out there. The Billy Bragg-style politics that Marr espouses are just not relevant in 2019 Britain.

What is remarkable about Moz is that in many ways he is still that poetic young working class man walking around the old tower blocks in Hulme on a drizzly Tuesday afternoon dreaming of what he'll put to paper when he gets home.

For someone who stays in hotels and travels in planes around the globe he still evidently has a solid grasp of what everyday life is like in England. His intuition is razor sharp.
 
Last edited:
And now we just say you're a racist. Over and over again. Fascinating.
Orwell warned us about labels that are applied for no other reason than to demonize somebody for telling the truth. So the fact you use them so liberally (pardon the pun) makes you a true non-thinker and anti-intellectual.

Pat yourself on the head. The elite love slaves like you.
 
Not. A. Chance. He has alienated Marr. The Smiths will never ever reform. Given that the real reason he wished Joyce '...the very worst for the rest of his life.' had less to do with the court case and more to do that he'd been jilted. The Smiths are over. He may be getting nostalgic, but he brought the petrol and matches to all the bridges he's burned.
You know this how?
You seem to imagine yourself as having some sort of connection with Marr.
 
My thoughts exactly! And let's not forget that both Joyce and Rourke have already given him these scraps by publicly saying he's not a racist. The only one missing is Marr, and I for one cannot understand why it is so hard for Marr to say these words. It must hurt him too. Is he afraid of the consequences?
Because he would have to step into a pile of shit to try to help Morrissey wipe off his shoes. No one has to explain someone else's point of view for them.
 
It's funny how some of the users on this site keep calling me and others "new fans" as if they can't accept that there are fans out there who understand Morrissey complicitly and have done for years.

I avoided this site for years as I felt very few users even remotely understood what The Smiths or Morrissey was about. I felt it wasn't a place for true fans - especially as Moz himself once wore a t-shirt saying: f*** MORRISSEY SOLO and banned its leader from his gigs (a ban that still stands as far as I know).

Even Morrissey hates this site!
 
Last edited:

Trending Threads

Back
Top Bottom