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Tue, Feb 15 2000
"Fading Fame Aside, Morrissey Still Has His Faithful Followers", Chicago Tribune (Feb. 13)

First with the link is Chris Reimer:

FADING FAME ASIDE, MORRISSEY STILL HAS HIS FAITHFUL FOLLOWERS

By Greg Kot
Tribune rock critic
February 13, 2000

During the course of a two-hour interview backstage at a Chicago concert venue nearly a decade ago, Morrissey distilled his life to a handful of words: "I was petrified of anonymity."

Anonymous he may be to most of the world, but Morrissey is still the only pop star that matters to his still-thriving cult, which filled the Chicago Theatre to capacity Thursday. They arrived to embrace their beloved misanthrope, to hand him gladiolas and devour his sweat-soaked T-shirts, which he tossed away every few songs like dirty dish rags.

Flouncing and flopping whereas most pop heroes strut, accentuating his misfit status even as he primped his modified Heartbreak Hotel pompadour, Morrissey both celebrated his star status and impaled himself on it.

Now without a record deal, he bathed in momentary moments of self-pity: "Nice of you to remember when millions and millions forget." He even managed a dig at Johnny Marr, his running mate in the Smiths, suggesting that old wounds still have not healed. But for the first time on an American tour he liberally sprinkled his set with songs from that period.

One of those, "Meat is Murder," produced the most impassioned performance of the night; only Morrissey would save his deepest emotions for a song about slaughtering farm animals. His longtime four-piece backing band merged droning textures with baritone spaghetti-western guitars and neo-rockabilly riffs, providing a canvas for the singer to etch his considerable personality.

A crooner who suggests Anthony Newley as much as T Rex's Marc Bolan, Morrissey broke up his languid melodic lines with growls, purrs and outrageous phrasing. "Can you squeeze me into an empty page in your diary," he pleaded, managing to sound both desperate and condescending during "Hairdresser on Fire." He is eternally longing for "the one who never picks you," wading through daily disappointment with almost comical self-loathing.

Yet, though he is often typecast as incorrigibly miserable, there is something of a knowing smirk in the way Morrissey goes about his business, an in-joke shared by his audience, from the defiant declaration of "Alma Matters" to the shared faith of "Speedway". As he retook the stage for the encore to knock off the Smiths' "Last Night I Dreamt That Somebody Loved Me," he offered his twisted take on "Sunset Boulevard": a fading star hanging on instead of quietly disappearing. "This story is old --I know -- but it goes on." For Morrissey and his fans, there can be no other way.

Comments / Notes (16)



"Elusive Morrissey still packs 'em in" - Hamilton preview

Link to article at canoe anonymously sent:

Elusive Morrissey still packs 'em in

By KIERAN GRANT -- Toronto Sun

There are two events that invariably stand out for Morrissey's legion of Southern Ontario fans.

One is the British pop icon's performance with his now-legendary former band The Smiths at the Kingswood Music Theatre in 1986. The Smiths' last show in these parts, it ended when dozens of enthusiastic punters invaded the stage and practically tore it apart. (I was out on the lawns, aged 13, surrounded by a crowd of 14,000 which, unbeknownst to me, contained my future wife and countless future friends.)

The other, less-triumphant memory would have to be Morrissey's 1997 debacle at Massey Hall, where after a loud 'n' pasty set of solo numbers and a pair of Smiths classics, he was dragged off stage by a pair of security guards who, during his encore, apparently mistook him for a fan. The same crowd that minutes earlier had been showering "Moz" in gladioli, chrysanthemums and hugs -- a tradition at his post-Smiths shows -- followed with a round of booing.

To the guy's credit, he does make a unique impression.

Stephen Patrick Morrissey, now 40, will have a legacy to live up to when he plays Hamilton Place tomorrow night. Not that the self-styled Oscar Wilde of pop and spokesman for sexually repressed bookworms has much to worry about.

For one thing, the Mozzer has already got supporters' tongues wagging with his decision to side-step Toronto.

He doesn't do interviews. He hasn't released an album since 1997's disappointing Maladjusted, and so far, he's without a label for his next record, which is said to be a Mexican-themed affair.

Of course, all this pales next to past controversies.

Clean-cut and impossibly eloquent, he made celibacy and vegetarianism sexy in the '80s. He later drew fire for his clumsy commentaries on immigration -- the claims were somewhat justified given the "ironic" ambiguity of tunes like Bengali In Platforms and National Front Disco.

In 1997, former Smiths drummer Mike Joyce successfully sued him for #1 million of unpaid royalties. Joyce now plans to write a book on The Smiths, though, according to what Joyce told Select magazine, "It won't be a vitriolic rant."

TERRITORIAL REACH

Still, tomorrow's concert is nearly sold out, suggesting that Moz has maintained quite the territorial reach, or at least that he's worth a wintry drive to the Hammer.

"It was his idea to play outside Toronto in another market," says Steve Herman, president of concert promoters Core Audience. "He has lots of fans in the Niagara Region, and there was talk of a show in London. I think he just wanted to play a different place for a change."

Comments / Notes (12)



Brazilian dates; Santiago, Chile now on sale

From Marco:

Hi, just to let you know that Angela (from morrisseytour.com) e-mailed me with news about the new dates for South America Tour.

The dates are now as follows:

3/23 Monterrey, Venue TBA
3/24 Guadalajara, Aud B Juarez
3/25 Mexico City, Aud Nacional
3/28 Santiago, Estatdo Chile
3/30 Argentina, Luna Park
4/01 Curitiba, Forum
4/03 Sao Paulo, Olympia
4/04 Sao Paulo, Olympia
4/05 Rio, Metropolitan

4/08 San Salvador, Gimnasio Nacional

From Alejandro:

The tickets for the Morrissey concert in Chile are now on sale in a music store called "Feria del Disco". They started selling the tickets today at noon (February 14, Valentine's day). I was there at first time in the morning, and the person in charge told me that I was the first person to buy a ticket!!!

From Charles Byron:

This was published on today’s newspaper La Nación (www.lanacion.com). I’ve just called the venue and they told me that maybe the tickets would be on sale next week.

"MORRISSEY: The English singer Morrissey will be performing in Buenos Aires for the first time on March 30th at the Luna Park Stadium. The artist led in the 80s, with guitarist Johnny Marr, The Smiths and then followed a solo career. His first album as a solo artist was "Viva Hate", released in 1988 and re-released 10 years later in 1998 with some bonus tracks"

Comments / Notes (2)



Support for next four shows

From Nick:

According to the Jam music site - the opening act for Hamilton is Hawksley Workman. You can read a bit about him here. I've heard some of his tunes and he's pretty good. He worked on John Southworth's last album, 'Sedona Arizona' (which I really enjoyed) and he recently released a solo disc. Those opening act horror stories from the American dates had me spooked but I think Hawksley will be just fine in Hamilton.

From Leigh:

The ad in this week's Pittsburgh Post-Gazette says that New Invisible Joy will be opening for Morrissey here, they are local...*sigh*

From I'll Never Learn:

According to WFNX in Boston, the support for Morrissey at Avalon will be The Sheila Divine.

Comments / Notes (4)



Boston afterparty at Upstairs Lounge (Feb. 19) still on

From Derek:

Hello everyone. Firstly, please accept my apology for the misinformation given regarding the Morrissey Post Concert Party at The Upstairs Lounge on Saturday, 19 February. It starts at 9P and ends at 2A. Our manager did decide against having the band, though. I'm not sure why, really. But, as the DJ for that night and every Saturday, let me assure you it is STILL very much on. We will be giving away some goodies and the crowd is always very likeable.

E-mail me if you need any further information or grab me outside the Avalon prior to Saturday's show. I'll be handing out info there. Sorry for any inconvenience and much thanks to Josh in Long Island for bringing this to my attention.

Comments / Notes (49)



* return to Morrissey-solo