NME: "Does Rock 'N' Roll Kill Braincells?!" - Billy Bragg (October 21, 2021); Smiths / Morrissey mentions

In Does Rock ‘N’ Roll Kill Braincells?!, we quiz an artist on their own career to see how much they can remember – and find out if the booze, loud music and/or tour sweeties has knocked the knowledge out of them.


Talking about Boris Johnson...

“He wanted to include Kirsty’s cover of it. Here’s the thing: I listened to his Desert Island Discs and, as he was playing The Smiths, I was thinking: ‘He’s going to play ‘A New England’ – he’s going to play one of my songs and kill my reputation! This is going to be awful! But he didn’t – phew! (Laughs) You put out these songs and never know who’s going to hook onto them. I bumped into [austerity architect] George Osborne when he was Shadow Chancellor of the Exchequer and he exclaimed: ‘Billy Bragg!’ at me, before singing: ‘I was 21 years when I wrote this song/I’m 22 now…’ You can’t choose your fans!”

In 1987, NME readers voted you the second Most Wonderful Human Being. Who beat you?​

“I wonder how those readers feel now about making Morrissey the Most Wonderful Human Being.”
CORRECT.
“I got used to coming second to Morrissey and The Smiths. That was par for the course in those days. That was cool. Their standard was so high that getting anywhere near them was good.”
You wrote a statement in 2019 condemning Morrissey for spreading far-right ideas. Can you separate the man from his art?
“As someone who writes political songs, there are plenty of people out there who are Tories who like my love songs, so clearly you can do that. I struggle. I’m OK listening to The Smiths, but I don’t think I’m going to be able to listen to his solo albums anymore – although I wasn’t much of a fan of those anyway.”

Billy Bragg: "Boris Johnson sang The Clash songs to me at Glastonbury to wind me up"

The Bard of Barking takes on music's toughest quiz - on his own life!

www.nme.com

 

[vegan cro spirit .777]

LIBERALS HAVE GONE MAD —- WHY JUST THE OTHER DAY BONO TOLD ME TO EAT SHIT

 

[joe frady]

Who's being disingenuous now? You've given a supposed situation there, with no examples, and then said this particular chap did nothing. I mean, he does nothing about thousands of issues. So do I.

Pack it in, you straw-grasping creep

Did your mam raise you to be quite so uncouth..?

.

 

[Verso]

What a delicate little flower this guy is.
"Oh my heavens. What shall I ever do if someone I disagree with likes my music? Why it's almost as if I have no control over that."
Creep.

I completely agree!

 

[Mayfly]

View attachment 77332

Yes and no. Didn’t he retract these words later by basically accepting that you can’t control who will listen to your music once it’s out there?
I would think that it is a positive thing to reach a wide variety of people. What is the point of just wanting to preach to those already converted?

 

[marred]

View attachment 77332

I completely agree!

Yes I do remember that and thought it was lame as hell on both Morrissey and Marr's part. You mistook me for someone who agrees with everything Morrissey says.

 

[Deleted member 29417]

Along with every single other person alive at the time. The vicious bastard.

How many of them released a single against homophobia & gave their opinion about Finsbury in the same year?

 

[No 27]

​

 

[Verso]

How many of them released a single against homophobia & gave their opinion about Finsbury in the same year?

Please stop trolling, enough is enough.

 

[Anominous]

How many of them released a single against homophobia & gave their opinion about Finsbury in the same year?

Given that we're talking about basically everyone, the answer is going to be greater than zero.

 

[Deleted member 29417]

Please stop trolling, enough is enough.

Yep - Verso trolling again.

It's a question, that will have a verifiable answer.

 

[Verso]

Yes I do remember that and thought it was lame as hell on both Morrissey and Marr's part. You mistook me for someone who agrees with everything Morrissey says.

Ah, that's right. You're the guy who has to retreat to his safe space every time Morrissey sings "Ganglord."

 

[No 27]

Yep - Verso trolling again.

It's a question, that will have a verifiable answer.

Yaaaay! Time for press cuttings! Get them out for the lads, Karen!

 

[Deleted member 29417]

Given that we're talking about basically everyone, the answer is going to be greater than zero.

It's not everyone - it's people who released a single against homophobia in 1992 who also commented on Morrissey's Finsbury Park gig.

 

[No 27]

How many of them released a single against homophobia & gave their opinion about Finsbury in the same year?

You're really bothered about this Billy Bragg thing, aren't you? It's brilliant.

Have you considered that maybe Billy Bragg just thought Steven was capable of speaking up for himself and mounting his own defence? Some people respect Steven and his capabilities, Karen.

 

[Anominous]

It's not everyone - it's people who released a single against homophobia in 1992 who also commented on Morrissey's Finsbury Park gig.

And who read and noticed a mildly questionable line in a review in Select and thought "I really must rush to the defence of Morrissey, even though the fact is that he tried to ingratiate himself with a bunch of racist middle aged skinheads and fell flat on his arse because you can wave a union jack as much as you like but they can still tell you are a queer, especially if you wear gold lamé."

 

[Deleted member 29417]

You're really bothered about this Billy Bragg thing, aren't you? It's brilliant.

Have you considered that maybe Billy Bragg just thought Steven was capable of speaking up for himself and mounting his own defence? Some people respect Steven and his capabilities, Karen.

It wouldn't be a defense of the pop star you obsessively hate - it would be an acknowledgement of the homophobia in the music industry, the press & society at large. A cause he was apparently concerned about at the time.

 

[Deleted member 29417]

And who read and noticed a mildly questionable line in a review in Select and thought "I really must rush to the defence of Morrissey, even though the fact is that he tried to ingratiate himself with a bunch of racist middle aged skinheads and fell flat on his arse because you can wave a union jack as much as you like but they can still tell you are a queer, especially if you wear gold lamé."

If he thought that he would be a homophobic idiot.

 

[marred]

Wron

Ah, that's right. You're the guy who has to retreat to his safe space every time Morrissey sings "Ganglord."

Wrong again, but that is a recurring theme with you. At least your consistent.

 

[Verso]

I'm starting to think Karen doesn't actually know what the word "homophobic" means.

 

[No 27]

It wouldn't be a defense of the pop star you obsessively hate - it would be an acknowledgement of the homophobia in the music industry, the press & society at large. A cause he was apparently concerned about at the time.

Thing is, you aren't actually concerned about Billy Bragg acknowledging "homophobia in the music industry, the press and society at large", are you? You're just having a tantrum only about him because he didn't rush to Steven's aid when people said all the mean things about him. Only you do that, Karen. And that's because you're special: the Chosen One.