Music-News / Fiona Dodwell: "Morrissey UK tour a hit with fans despite continued label silence" (July 19, 2023)

Excerpt:

Brit music legend Morrissey has been touring live dates across the UK with his new band line-up. With long-time lead guitarist Jesse Tobias now playing alongside Carmen Vandenberg, Juan Galeano and Brendan Buckley, Morrissey has been performing a string of sold-out shows in Leeds, Portsmouth, Dublin and Liverpool. With the next show being at London's Troxy this coming Saturday – also now sold out – the former Smiths frontman has been delighting crowds by performing a string of both old hits and new, as yet unreleased, tracks.

Morrissey UK tour a hit with fans despite continued label silence

Brit music legend Morrissey has been touring live dates across the UK with his new band line-up. With long-time lead guitarist Jesse Tobias

www.music-news.com

New Dodwell piece, if anyone is interested.
Same as the others

 

[Surface]

Do artists release material themselves through an individual/small company who has the knowhow, experience and skills to handle all the various elements and fits the mindset? Also, is a 'Pledge' project a crowdfunding effort? It would be a big change. I don't know

There really isn't that much he can usefully do to promote his albums other than not say idiotic toxic stuff that frightens off vast chunks of his fanbase and the previously Morrissey-friendly radio stations.
But the financial situation is a mystery. I'm guessing the record company paid him quite a bit of cash and maybe he feels he spent that on recording the album, so he is reluctant (but presumably not unable) to pay it back and own the album again. Shame there's no-one round here with a music industry background who understands how these things work.

I’m not an expert but have had a drunken conversation with Steve Diggle from Buzzcocks on this subject . When they were signed to labels such as United Artists/EMI, they made 20% of each album sale. Nowadays they self record and sign a distribution deal to whoever makes them the best offer and after all costs make 50% off each sale, he also said that if you get to grips with social media, you don’t need all the stuff a record company (for a price) offer.

 

[SuedeMoz]

Miley Cyrus belatedly requested her backing track to be removed from I Am Veronica, and as far as I remember, a Capitol rep stated that fulfilling her wish, which they agreed to, could take quite some time as it was not straightforward. Maybe this is the biggie that's causing the delay?

We first heard that back in November of last year. It just seems that if that's all it is, it would be done by now and there would at least be a release date.

 

[Morrissey_Sucks]

Should say, “The old c*** can still sell out small venues in the UK and Ireland, despite himself”.

 

[DaveJCarr]

Miley Cyrus belatedly requested her backing track to be removed from I Am Veronica, and as far as I remember, a Capitol rep stated that fulfilling her wish, which they agreed to, could take quite some time as it was not straightforward. Maybe this is the biggie that's causing the delay?

You know – not that I think it's likely – but one thing that would be deliciously ironic (to me at least) is if Capitol releases "Bonfire" in like the last fiscal quarter of the year, without the Miley vocals and then Morrissey, claiming it is not the true and authentic presentation on the artistic vision, and discourages people from buying it because of his well-documented animus towards Capitol. We've seen similar songs and dances before over anthologies that were released without his consultation or permission, etc. etc.

The only reason I think that there is a slight possibility that the album might still come out (in some form) officially is that "Rebels is still there and all of its cemetery gates jubilation. Perhaps instead of taking notice of Capitol's considerable silence on the whole matter (relative to Morrissey's statements) there is some value in taking stock of their actions, which is to say that they released and still make available for purchase and streaming one of Morrissey's most jaunty radio friendly summertime tracks in quite some time – a perfect single, I would dare say.

If they were really burying the entire album with no intention of ever releasing it, why maintain Rebels streaming and purchase presence? Surely they would take it down otherwise. There is a sliver of meager hope in me that the album will be released within Morrissey's lifetime and that all of this is somehow a miscommunication, the result of what seems like that great management and not great expectation management on the part of our man.

(Based on what we've heard so far for the reasons I've already articulated, I don't think I will enjoy the album very much aside from a track or two, but I certainly would much rather it be released.)

 

[Mike Rourke]

Were sales of Dog really poor, or just poor compared to sales of his previous albums, but on line with sales of many other artists who do keep on releasing albums?

Plus, how could they not afford to release it? How much money would it cost them? The album was already fully recorded. And they probably had paid Morrissey an advance that they should want to try to recoup on.

They were pretty awful compared with his previous albums - High School sold 25,000 in week 1 and hung around in the top 100 for a few weeks. Dog sold 6,000 in week 1 and vanished from the top 100 after one week.
But they are indeed no worse than the current sales of quite a few middling indie type acts who continue to put out new albums. Groups/singers like James, Billy Bragg, The Flaming Lips, The Divine Comedy. I doubt any of those sell much more than 10,000, possibly less.
My guess is that the problem for Morrissey is that he's used to being offered deals for an artist who can reliably sell 40,000 and sometimes well over 100,000, and feels that's what record companies should still be offering him. But they're only offering him deals for an act who may not sell much more than 5,000 as they've seen what's happened with his last album.
I don't know how they could afford not to release it with it having already been recorded and produced, unless there was a requirement to produce CDs and vinyl which would obviously involve quite a cost upfront. If it was download only, as some albums are these days, you'd assume costs of releasing it would be minimal.

 

[Anonymous]

Same sh*t, different day from good ol Fi. I’ve started to think Fiona is more than a little bit thick.
I can’t wait for the day Morrissey gives her the boot

 

[Johnnie Ray]

I think too much is made of the whole 'difficult to work with' thing.
All a record company needs is for radio stations to play one or two singles off his new album, then sales of 30,000+ are pretty much guaranteed.
Morrissey doing interviews etc makes hardly any difference at all. When did anyone here last buy an album because they heard, saw or read an interview?
Unfortunately, Morrissey's clumsy political actions and statements from 2017 to 2019 rendered him super toxic to the extent that radio stations that had supported him for decades stopped doing so, despite the surprisingly good quality of the Dog on a Chain songs.
When 'Rebels Without Applause' was (kind of) released as a single, perhaps the record company were testing the water to see if radio stations would start playing his stuff again. When they clearly didn't, Capitol might have calculated that they simply couldn't afford to release it, if it was only going to sell in tiny numbers again, like Dog on a Chain.

And 30k is not "in tiny numbers?" Holy crap, how many did Dog on chain sell??

 

[Crisstti]

They were pretty awful compared with his previous albums - High School sold 25,000 in week 1 and hung around in the top 100 for a few weeks. Dog sold 6,000 in week 1 and vanished from the top 100 after one week.
But they are indeed no worse than the current sales of quite a few middling indie type acts who continue to put out new albums. Groups/singers like James, Billy Bragg, The Flaming Lips, The Divine Comedy. I doubt any of those sell much more than 10,000, possibly less.
My guess is that the problem for Morrissey is that he's used to being offered deals for an artist who can reliably sell 40,000 and sometimes well over 100,000, and feels that's what record companies should still be offering him. But they're only offering him deals for an act who may not sell much more than 5,000 as they've seen what's happened with his last album.

Could be. But whatever deal Capitol had offered him must have seemed acceptable to him...
Also, I don't know if worldwide sales numbers can be seen anywhere, but Moz I'm thinking must sell more than these other acts when this is taken into account, he's known worldwise while I don't think those other acts are.

I don't know how they could afford not to release it with it having already been recorded and produced, unless there was a requirement to produce CDs and vinyl which would obviously involve quite a cost upfront. If it was download only, as some albums are these days, you'd assume costs of releasing it would be minimal.

Doubt Morrissey would agree to a download only album. So that would mean an upfront cost for Capitol. On the other hand, they know he will sell at least a certain amount, so they would have a pretty sure return on their money there, and since they must have paid him an advance, it would seem like a good move to release it even considering the costs...

 

[Surface]

Could be. But whatever deal Capitol had offered him must have seemed acceptable to him...
Also, I don't know if worldwide sales numbers can be seen anywhere, but Moz I'm thinking must sell more than these other acts when this is taken into account, he's known worldwise while I don't think those other acts are.

Doubt Morrissey would agree to a download only album. So that would mean an upfront cost for Capitol. On the other hand, they know he will sell at least a certain amount, so they would have a pretty sure return on their money there, and since they must have paid him an advance, it would seem like a good move to release it even considering the costs...

Regarding worldwide sales, Dog didn’t even make the charts in the US.

 

[Eldritch]

"One fan even started a petition demanding the release of Bonfire Of Teenagers, which garnered a huge amount of interest."

771 signatures after five and a half months. I just checked.

 

[Les Tameside]

Musically, Without Music is head and shoulders above Bonfire. I expect it will be released first, and I’d anticipate Bonfire will follow quickly in its wake—with Capitol looking to take advantage of the publicity for the Without Music release, and so saving themselves a bit of money.

To be honest, to date I don’t own any physical record which involves The Red Hot Chilli Peppers. And I’m not particularly looking forward to the day when I can no longer boast that.

 

[Crisstti]

"One fan even started a petition demanding the release of Bonfire Of Teenagers, which garnered a huge amount of interest."

771 signatures after five and a half months. I just checked.

TBF it is a very poorly worded petition (sorry if the fan who made it is here!)

 

[Eldritch]

TBF it is a very poorly worded petition (sorry if the fan who made it is here!)

Oh yes. And few people even care about petitions like this, no matter how much they want to hear or buy the album. Capitol definitely doesn't give a. But writing that 771 signers equals "huge amount of interest" is just one example of Fiona not only being a terrible writer but also a bad journalist.

 

[BookishBoy]

Oh yes. And few people even care about petitions like this, no matter how much they want to hear or buy the album. Capitol definitely doesn't give a. But writing that 771 signers equals "huge amount of interest" is just one example of Fiona not only being a terrible writer but also a bad journalist.

Journalists Who...Lie?!?

 

[Anonymous]

Does anyone know how long Miley Cyrus' current deal with Columbia lasts? If Capitol mostly signed due to her presence (and given she's had a #1 single for ten weeks at the top of the chart this year, she has a lot more probability of shifting units than Morrissey), they may decide it's best to wait another years or so until her current deal expires, so they can put it out without having to pay a huge fee to Columbia?

 

[Eldritch]

Does anyone know how long Miley Cyrus' current deal with Columbia lasts? If Capitol mostly signed due to her presence (and given she's had a #1 single for ten weeks at the top of the chart this year, she has a lot more probability of shifting units than Morrissey), they may decide it's best to wait another years or so until her current deal expires, so they can put it out without having to pay a huge fee to Columbia?

Let's not overestimate Cyrus's role in this. 25 years ago some fanatics might have bought an album only because their idol features on background vocals on one track, but nobody does that in 2023. Not even Morrissey fans buy Morrissey albums anymore, because buying albums in general is a thing of the past. A Miley fan might give the track a passing listen on Spotify, but that's it.

And since we're talking about artists some are hoping that will Morrissey's career a boost, A$AP Rocky is not doing that brilliantly either:

A$AP Rocky is accused of 'supporting Putin's invasion' over necklace

Rapper A$AP Rocky has been accused of promoting terrorism after sharing an image showing himself wearing a pendant shaped like a Z and made from tanks.

www.dailymail.co.uk

 

[Crisstti]

Does anyone know how long Miley Cyrus' current deal with Columbia lasts? If Capitol mostly signed due to her presence (and given she's had a #1 single for ten weeks at the top of the chart this year, she has a lot more probability of shifting units than Morrissey), they may decide it's best to wait another years or so until her current deal expires, so they can put it out without having to pay a huge fee to Columbia?

Per Morrissey, Miley asked to be removed from the song due to some conflict that happened with some member of Moz’s team, iirc? So fees would have nothing to do with it.

But agree with Eldritch, Miley’s presence wouldn’t really make a huge difference in sales/plays… though I guess Veronica would have gotten quite a few Spotify listens.

 

[Crisstti]

Oh yes. And few people even care about petitions like this, no matter how much they want to hear or buy the album. Capitol definitely doesn't give a. But writing that 771 signers equals "huge amount of interest" is just one example of Fiona not only being a terrible writer but also a bad journalist.

The poor quality of the petition makes it a bit embarrassing to share it, for example. It limits its popularity.

 

[T Vex]

Let's not overestimate Cyrus's role in this. 25 years ago some fanatics might have bought an album only because their idol features on background vocals on one track, but nobody does that in 2023. Not even Morrissey fans buy Morrissey albums anymore, because buying albums in general is a thing of the past. A Miley fan might give the track a passing listen on Spotify, but that's it.

And since we're talking about artists some are hoping that will Morrissey's career a boost, A$AP Rocky is not doing that brilliantly either:

A$AP Rocky is accused of 'supporting Putin's invasion' over necklace

Rapper A$AP Rocky has been accused of promoting terrorism after sharing an image showing himself wearing a pendant shaped like a Z and made from tanks.

www.dailymail.co.uk

Let’s hope the Mozzer won’t wear his out in public. That anti-Zelenskyy comment was disappointing enough.

 

[Mozzer1980]

Let's not overestimate Cyrus's role in this. 25 years ago some fanatics might have bought an album only because their idol features on background vocals on one track, but nobody does that in 2023. Not even Morrissey fans buy Morrissey albums anymore, because buying albums in general is a thing of the past. A Miley fan might give the track a passing listen on Spotify, but that's it.

And since we're talking about artists some are hoping that will Morrissey's career a boost, A$AP Rocky is not doing that brilliantly either:

A$AP Rocky is accused of 'supporting Putin's invasion' over necklace

Rapper A$AP Rocky has been accused of promoting terrorism after sharing an image showing himself wearing a pendant shaped like a Z and made from tanks.

www.dailymail.co.uk

“KATSAP Rocky"