Morrissey Central "NEW GUITARIST" (April 13, 2023)

NEW GUITARIST - MESSAGES FROM MORRISSEY - MORRISSEY CENTRAL - NEW GUITARIST

MESSAGES FROM MORRISSEY on MORRISSEY CENTRAL

www.morrisseycentral.com

Carmen Vandenberg (below) will play guitars with Jesse Tobias in the new
line-up for Morrissey's forthcoming July concerts in Israel, Ireland and Britain.

 

[SJT]

Big loss - no Alain, as replaceable as spare lawnmower parts?
oh well, on with the show, the Moz must continue!

 

[Juan Dulces]

You can never go home again.

Sadly, this is true in so many different ways.

 

[Juan Dulces]

Morrissey Central couldn't even put out a 'thank you and goodbye' acknowledgment for Boz Boorer after 30 years of service, yet they'll obsessively post about the tiniest Morrissey reference in the media, or if some vacuous celebrity is spotted wearing a Smiths T-Shirt. The band members really are as replaceable as lawn-mower parts, and always have been.

Yeah, and Boz is a seriously high-quality musician too (and contributed big time to basically all Morrissey success for those years) - who knows what happened there, but it sure was ugly how there was no notification about him leaving. Does this possibly mean there is a open-door for Boz to return?

Like others, I would love for Alain to remain in the group - even just for the vocals and songwriting alone. Alain has always been pro and classy.

 

[Crisstti]

Yeah, and Boz is a seriously high-quality musician too (and contributed big time to basically all Morrissey success for those years) - who knows what happened there, but it sure was ugly how there was no notification about him leaving. Does this possibly mean there is a open-door for Boz to return?

Like others, I would love for Alain to remain in the group - even just for the vocals and songwriting alone. Alain has always been pro and classy.

It kind of is my interpretation, especially since it doesn’t seem there was any falling out. Boz probably just doesn’t want to be touring constantly anymore. Hope so anyway.

Hopefully Alain will remain at least in that capacity as well.

 

[Juan Dulces]

It kind of is my interpretation, especially since it doesn’t seem there was any falling out. Box probably just doesn’t want to be touring constantly anymore. Hope so anyway.

Hopefully Alain will remain at least in that capacity as well.

Agreed wholeheartedly!

 

[goinghome]

Yeah, they just do. It's sad too because he is technically skilled and fairly original, has written a few standout tracks, and has brought a heavier guitar sound to the band in general. He replaced Alain originally, so that's most likely where the ire stems from. We're a loyal bunch (the fans).

Vandenberg is a real good player though. I've listened to many clips of her just in the last few days. --> I'd say the band needs better vocals than guitars though. We've already got Manzur on permanent classical/acoustic, Jesse on permanent electric it seems. We only needed someone like Alain who would add soft touches to Jesse's heaviness. Now we're bringing in a shredder?

It could be like others have alluded to - that Alain wanted to be in a more structured/organized band with a future, which now is in disarray. The new group recently recorded an LP - but there's speculation about it being released, etc. I can understand if Alain felt the entire situation wasn't 'on the level' (especially a level that he would've been accustomed to working w/Morrissey).

I like this thoughtful view. Alain's always been popular. He likes being on stage. He likes attention. He edges towards the limelight. I think this has caused problems before. Morrissey is a solo act. What he is presenting is a repertoire and persona largely created by himself. He relies on musical support but I think other types of interference cramp his style. If it's Morrissey's town, this town ain't big enough for the both of them.

But the world is. And the world is all the better for the both of them. And may Alain continue to prosper with his other projects, and hopefully, like Boz reappear in Morrissey-land from time to time. And it'll be exciting to see the new addition go through the paces. She has big boots to fill! Love 'em all!

 

[Anonymous]

And it'll be exciting to see the new addition go through the paces. She has big boots to fill! Love 'em all!

She ought to start writing some new instrumental tunes now, so she can present them to Moz. Who knows - might be a great complimentary songwriter with him for all we know.And it's about time the band started thinking about recording a third unreleased album.Let's get this trilogy in the bag!

 

[Mayfly]

Yeah, and Boz is a seriously high-quality musician too (and contributed big time to basically all Morrissey success for those years) - who knows what happened there, but it sure was ugly how there was no notification about him leaving. Does this possibly mean there is a open-door for Boz to return?

I have come around to think that Boz has been the bigger loss. When it comes to the quality of songwriting, he’s at par with Alain. But I think that Boz did a lot to hold the band together as a tight uni, both onstage and in the studio. He was a versatile musician. He always kept a low profile, something which Morrissey appreciates. He had enough side projects to be able to distance himself from the Morrissey soap opera when needed, yet his side projects were never overly ambitious ( unlike JM’s) so Morrissey didn’t take any offense. And his wife Lyn was extremely supportive of Boz’s involvement in Morrissey’s band.

Like others, I would love for Alain to remain in the group - even just for the vocals and songwriting alone. Alain has always been pro and classy.

It’s hard to disagree with that, and I won’t even try to.

 

[Crisstti]

He actually was still a M songwriter after his first departure in the 00s. Didn't play live with him and still credited in records.

Also, I bet he has better things to do than updating his socials.

I know it's over

Well, he has updated it now… does it seem a bit ambiguous to anyone?

 

[Detective Smith]

I like this thoughtful view. Alain's always been popular. He likes being on stage. He likes attention. He edges towards the limelight. I think this has caused problems before. Morrissey is a solo act. What he is presenting is a repertoire and persona largely created by himself. He relies on musical support but I think other types of interference cramp his style. If it's Morrissey's town, this town ain't big enough for the both of them.

But the world is. And the world is all the better for the both of them. And may Alain continue to prosper with his other projects, and hopefully, like Boz reappear in Morrissey-land from time to time. And it'll be exciting to see the new addition go through the paces. She has big boots to fill! Love 'em all!

I can't imagine Morrissey being that petty, as to drive Alain away just because he loves attention from the fans. No way.

 

[MozIsGod]

Jesse is technically skilled and fairly original, has written a few standout tracks, and has brought a heavier guitar sound to the band in general. He replaced Alain originally, so that's most likely where the ire stems from. We're a loyal bunch (the fans).

I didn't mind Jesse when he first came into the group. As you stated, he added a bit more vigor to the sound which was refreshing for the Quarry and Ringleader tours. And as a bonus, he played the Smiths numbers better than Alain did (in my opinion, anyways!).

However, over the years, I've found him to be a bit inconsistent (playing-wise) in the live setting. His playing often became sloppy, and with too much grating distortion on everything. He's also butchered Alain's solos in songs like You're The One For Me, Fatty and Reader Meet Author.

His songwriting has vastly improved during the past decade, so I do give him credit for that.

 

[marred]

Yeah, they just do. It's sad too because he is technically skilled and fairly original, has written a few standout tracks, and has brought a heavier guitar sound to the band in general. He replaced Alain originally, so that's most likely where the ire stems from. We're a loyal bunch (the fans).

Vandenberg is a real good player though. I've listened to many clips of her just in the last few days. --> I'd say the band needs better vocals than guitars though. We've already got Manzur on permanent classical/acoustic, Jesse on permanent electric it seems. We only needed someone like Alain who would add soft touches to Jesse's heaviness. Now we're bringing in a shredder?

It could be like others have alluded to - that Alain wanted to be in a more structured/organized band with a future, which now is in disarray. The new group recently recorded an LP - but there's speculation about it being released, etc. I can understand if Alain felt the entire situation wasn't 'on the level' (especially a level that he would've been accustomed to working w/Morrissey).

I totally agree with you re Alain's reasons for departure. Of course we're both still just speculating as is our want to do but it doesn't take a genius to know Morrissey's future as a recording and more importantly a releasing artist is a sinking ship at the moment.

If we're really being honest it's been shaky for many many years. It's a testament to Morrissey that he's been able to release as many albums as he has over the years. I just found out Metallica has only released eleven studio albums. That's poor compared to Morrissey especially when you add in his albums with the Smiths.

I picture Alain looking at the band and thinking well we have a lot of potential but there doesn't seem to be any direction moving forward.

 

[marred]

I didn't mind Jesse when he first came into the group. As you stated, he added a bit more vigor to the sound which was refreshing for the Quarry and Ringleader tours. And as a bonus, he played the Smiths numbers better than Alain did (in my opinion, anyways!).

However, over the years, I've found him to be a bit inconsistent (playing-wise) in the live setting. His playing often became sloppy, and with too much grating distortion on everything. He's also butchered Alain's solos in songs like You're The One For Me, Fatty and Reader Meet Author.

His songwriting has vastly improved during the past decade, so I do give him credit for that.

He butchers Smiths songs too.

 

[Ryan]

It's mind-blowing that he wrote Once I Saw The River Clean and Hurling Days - those are songs you'd expect to come from the likes of Alain. They are the only things I can praise him for. And You Have Killed Me.

 

[blah blah]

I agree with MARRED, Viva hate is a masterpiece. Best Morriseey work by far.

Also lets all agree, Morrissey is a dick. Always has been, which is somehow part of his charm. However as he ages it seems to be hurting him more than it helps.

 

[hand in glove]

Jesse is jealous of Alain as he should be (I believe there was a lot of tension between them in the beginning when Jesse joined the band). But since he’s the musical director now, he saw fit to get rid of Alain and bring that woman in, who’s probably much like Jesse. So all we’ll hear now is just a bunch of blaring guitars and Morrissey’s voice, which doesn’t make any sense at all.

He’s lost both the best writing partners he’s ever had, and several others along the way, as well. If this is supposed to raise interest in him and shove him closer to winning a Grammy, we’ll he’s kidding himself.

You know what - I don’t care. He won’t come around these parts again anyway and I don’t see a future in a release of these two albums, so what does it matter.

 

[Ryan]

Jesse is jealous of Alain as he should be (I believe there was a lot of tension between them in the beginning when Jesse joined the band). But since he’s the musical director now, he saw fit to get rid of Alain and bring that woman in, who’s probably much like Jesse. So all we’ll hear now is just a bunch of blaring guitars and Morrissey’s voice, which doesn’t make any sense at all.

He’s lost both the best writing partners he’s ever had, and several others along the way, as well. If this is supposed to raise interest in him and shove him closer to winning a Grammy, we’ll he’s kidding himself.

You know what - I don’t care. He won’t come around these parts again anyway and I don’t see a future in a release of these two albums, so what does it matter.

Exactly.

What a way to go out - the Rebels Without Applause single gets released for... no reason at all, and its parent album is abandoned. Then Alain comes back for a minute to record a few songs with, and then that album gets abandoned.

I look back at all the Morrissey covers Alain did on YouTube, then imagining him getting the call to re-join the band. He has all of these fond memories and can't wait to get back in the circle. He gets back into said circle and, well...

 

[Judy Figginag]

He butchers Smiths songs too

I don’t want to dig the guy out unnecessarily, but Jesse’s guitar work on Stop Me If You Think You’ve Heard This One Before, especially in the glorious closing outro, feels lumpy, laden and heavy-handed.

I’ve seen Johnny Marr play this a couple of times live and, whilst such a comparison might be unfair, the song rightly soars majestically and is always a thrill to hear in the right hands.

Vocally, Morrissey still carries that tune to perfection but when JT chops away at the outro, it sounds like he’s got cramp in his fingers and a couple of strings have snapped along the way.

Other than that, he’s fairly competent.

 

[Crisstti]

Jesse is jealous of Alain as he should be (I believe there was a lot of tension between them in the beginning when Jesse joined the band). But since he’s the musical director now, he saw fit to get rid of Alain and bring that woman in, who’s probably much like Jesse. So all we’ll hear now is just a bunch of blaring guitars and Morrissey’s voice, which doesn’t make any sense at all.

He’s lost both the best writing partners he’s ever had, and several others along the way, as well. If this is supposed to raise interest in him and shove him closer to winning a Grammy, we’ll he’s kidding himself.

You know what - I don’t care. He won’t come around these parts again anyway and I don’t see a future in a release of these two albums, so what does it matter.

But apparently Alain has quit.

 

[Juan Dulces]

He butchers Smiths songs too.

Boz and Jesse together played Smiths songs well. I do think Jesse has a tendency to overplay at times.

The guitar tandem in the Morrissey Band has always been important. When it was first created, both guitarists played both lead and rhythm roles pretty evenly. When Jesse came on, he played mostly lead while Boz was mostly rhythm. At least Boz could play rhythm though, like Alain can. That's not Jesse's forte.

Stop the press!!! Will Vandenburg bring twin leads??? Are she and Tobias the Dave Mustaine/Marty Friedman of our times???? Does Morrissey think that a musical shift to progressive metal is long overdue?????