The Singer

If you’re a Morrissey fan and you can watch it in your region you may want to go youtube and search for Zane Lowe Morrissey Interview which ran on MTV last month. An aspect of the interview has been on my mind since I watched it. He was asked about his band writing music and why he doesn’t. Here are some of the quotes:

“I don’t want to be a musician. I was only ever interested in the singing voice. I think something extraordinary happens to people when they sing.”

He talks about at an early age being obsessed with any singer who stood there without an instrument and just their voice and explains that not all great singers have great voices. His top two great singers – Frank Sinatra and Elvis Presley and what makes them great is that they are timeless.

“There’s a very strong sexual component in singing and most people don’t talk about it of course but there is something very sexual about the singing voice and it draws you in and it doesn’t mean you necessarily want to be physical with the person but the person’s pulling at your very being.”

I’ve always been a fan of the multi-tasker because I think there are a lot of singers that can’t pull off what Morrissey is describing, but when it’s done right, it’s amazing. If you want to see it done wrong, well, American Idol provides lots of examples each week. --J

Morrissey - Years of Refusal

Morrissey has a strange pull on people. His fans seem to either want to worship him or rub up against him or maybe both. K and I witnessed the man in person a few years back documented here and here and I found him incredibly charming. Morrissey in many ways represents England to me and that night, unbeknown to those I was there with, I had been offered a position in the UK and I was struggling with the decision. While I stood there watching him moved by the music, I was also grappling with a personal issue.

Here I am two years later, walking in the countryside in England listening to the man's new record on my iPod. I am certainly coming at this record from a different place. I can't say I adore the record from front to back but there are some wonderful Morrissey moments here. My favorite is "All You Need is Me". It's got a driving beat and the classic sardonic lyrics. My favorite Morrissey song is "The More You Ignore Me The Closer I Get" off Vauxhall and I. That lyric "Beware I bear more grudges than lonely high court judges" sung in such a gentle voice makes me laugh every time. There are moments like that on this record. If you are a fan in the least, you won't be disappointed. And P.S. great album cover! --J

Morrissey at the Pageant

Together in Misery - This was written on a sign held up in front of the stage Tuesday night. I found it kind of funny since the person holding it up was probably experiencing a state of euphoria reserved for very special occasions. During work on Tuesday K, RB, and I were discussing Morrissey concerts. RB described the shows of her past which included lots of boys crying. On we chuckled over that. It was a bright spot in a dull day. When Morrissey came out on stage in a pristine black suit singing an unhappy birthday to himself after we had just listened to a recording of a woman reading depressing words like cancer, apartheid, etc., the crowd erupted. As K would say, he cuts quite a figure on stage, a distinguished gentleman. My favorite moments were Panic, Irish Blood, English Heart, How Soon is Now, and Please Please Please Let Me Get What I Want. There were two songs I was hoping he would perform that he didn't, Shoplifters of the World Unite and The More You Ignore Me The Closer I Get. The show made me really wish back in the day I could have seen a Smiths show. This is the origin of emo, yes? Hearing How Soon is Now gave me chills. Here is this wall of sound with a beautiful voice lofting on top of it, singing the most raw lyrics. It was a moment my God and to see it live was moving.

After all my laughing at the emotions of others earlier in the day, it was me who had tears streaming down my cheeks to the sounds of Please Please Please Let Me Get What I Want. Why? I don't quite know, but it was a beautiful moment. --J

This is What 48 Looks Like

I didn't wake up this morning thinking I was going to see Morrissey at the Pageant tonight, his bday, but that's exactly what I ended up doing. There is something so sexy about a crooner backed up by electric guitars, I told J as we waited in one of our family cars to exit the metro link parking lot behind the venue. I love it about HIM, The Killers, and of course, the man who in my opinion has set the precedence, Moz himself.

When Morrissey came onstage one of the first things he said was "this is what 48 looks like."

He may have gotten the most audience reaction when he sang Smiths songs, but there is something so magnetic about this man who at 48 still gets screams when he takes off his shirt, which he did a few times during the set. His stage presence is undeniable and his voice is still chocolatey and easy. He seemed to truly appreciate his fans tonight as he stated his pleasure at being back in "the Lou."

Speaking of the set, it included Panic, Everyday is Like Sunday, You Have Killed Me, How Soon is Now, and the song that made me embrace J as we sang along, Please Please Please Let Me Get What I Want.

As I stated, it was his bday tonight and there was a line of fans up front who wore bday hats. At some point there was a collective rendition of Happy Bday sung to the man who has made a lifelong career out of translating self-loathing into an aphrodisiac.

The audience was not what I expected. I expected more pompadours, more weepy boys, and crazy fans throwing themselves at the stage. Instead, it seemed that those fans had all grown up and were more conservative than they were in their halcyon days. It was a sold-out crowd and I was more than happy to be a part of it. Definitely an Unbelievable. -K