Seymour Stein
Relevance
Morrissey mentions Seymour a few times in Autobiography:
Johnny and I signed to Rough Trade as ‘the Smiths’, witnessed by Andy and Mike, with Mike signing the document as a reliable witness. (Years later, in a distant courtroom, he will say that he did not have sight of such a document, and the most honorable judge will believe him – even though his signature is there on the contract for the world and the most honorable judge to see – should their eyes ever open.) £3,000 is handed over by the label, followed by a further £3,000 on July 29th 1983 – the lives of Morrissey and Marr fully purchased, our skinny white bodies lowered into the Rough Trade cauldron. From this windfall, I pay a lavish domestic telephone bill of £80, and the rest is put into a bank account named Smithdom that will fill our tank up and down and across the M1. Geoff shuttles the band to New York (in row 62, cattle class), where Seymour Stein awaits with a deal to sign the Smiths (ostensibly) to Sire Records. The deal, though, is not quite what it seems (are they ever?), and Seymour is in fact signing Rough Trade for licensing access to the Smiths. As thick as two short planks, Johnny and I sign – once again witnessed by Andy and Mike. We have no idea what we’re signing, in an act of legendary mental deficiency.
And
At a chaotically sold-out Universal Amphitheater in Los Angeles I announce: ‘I would like to thank those who made all of this possible ... the Smiths’ – it is petulant, of course, but it’s the only way to get the point across. Seymour Stein smiles: ‘We have no idea how you’re selling so many tickets!’ to which smiles and shrugs are meant to follow. What he is really saying is that Sire have done nothing at all to pitch the Smiths in the US.
Upon his death in April 2023, Morrissey stated:
"I am heartbroken today … Seymour was always so funny, and so enthusiastic. Throughout the 90s he was always on the front row … he bought me some incredible gifts, and we had so many hilarious squabbles on the good and the bad in American music history. His enthusiasm no longer exists in the music industry - does anyone even leave their office anymore? Seymour would follow M tours around the country. He was, like the best of them, irreplaceable, and I am sick to death of death."
Morrissey.
Stein said of Morrissey in his 2018 book: "Siren Song":
"As for the Smiths’ larger-than-life singer, Morrissey, he was like a character off a Shakespearean stage—witty, profound, theatrical, yet looking squarely at reality. He was a true original whose lyrics were so well written, an English teacher, a vicar, and a psychotherapist could have spent all night fighting over the meanings. The drummer and bass player at the back, Mike Joyce and Andy Rourke, fit in perfectly, but it was clearly the songwriters, Morrissey and Marr, who were the magical force. In fact, that’s what I said when I shook hands on a North American deal with Geoff Travis after the gig. "The whole band were great, but Morrissey and Johnny Marr would stand out anywhere."
Stein pictured with The Queen Is Dead via Postpunk FB:
Mentioned In
Wikipedia Information
 |
Seymour Steinbigle (April 18, 1942 – April 2, 2023), known professionally as Seymour Stein, was an American entrepreneur and music executive. He co-founded Sire Records and was vice president of Warner Bros. Records. With Sire, Stein signed bands that became central to the new wave era of the 1970s and 1980s, including Talking Heads and The Pretenders; he signed Madonna as well. He was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2005.
Related Forum Threads
- Seymour Stein book "Siren Song" includes The Smiths - Morrissey-solo (Jun 22, 2018)
- Seymour Stein RIP - Morrissey-solo (Apr 03, 2023)
- [Morrissey Central] "SEYMOUR STEIN, RIP" (April 3, 2023) - Morrissey-solo (Apr 03, 2023)