bedsitter23

Those who know me personally know that I am a near-obsessive fan of the singer Morrissey.

In recent years, his words and actions have tarnished his reputation to all but his most dedicated fans. Were he born at a different time, he would have likely been like his antecedent Larkin likely found out only after discovery of letters after his death.

I admit to having a hard time boycotting work by artists who should be censured. My favorite artists of all my time were horrible at some point in their lives (Lou Reed, Richard Thompson, John Lennon), though we brush it off as 'being the times'.

It is rather easy to dismiss Morrissey of course. His recent work is absolutely inessential, and you can justify listening to the Smiths, as Johnny Marr appears to be an above-and-beyond great human being.

One wonders why after periods of great absence (1997-2004, 2009-2014), Morrissey picks now when his talent appears to be on the wane to be suddenly prolific.

For me, there's a clear drop in quality when Morrissey start working with producer Joe Chiccarelli (an incredibly diverse resume of Zappa, White Stripes, Alannis Morrisette, Cafe Tacvba, and The Strokes to name a few). It may also stem to this also being the point where Alain Whyte was no longer writing or contributing to the band. Whyte had been responsible for most of the beloved songs from the Mozzer from the time of Your Arsenal on.

Similarly, Boz Boorer is here but has become a diminishing presence and this is the first album without a Boorer credit in over 25 years.

Which isn't to blame the current band members- guitarist Jesse Tobias (stints playing with the Red Hot Chilli Peppers, Alannis Morrissette), keyboardist/multi-instrumentalist Gustavo Manzur and bassist Mando Lopes (who played with punk legends Fear in the 90s and Title TK-era Breeders) or Chicarelli. Chicarelli always makes the Mozzers voice robust.

His lyrics betray everything else. He sounds like he is using a rhyming dictionary and on "The Secret of Music" just listing off the names of instruments.

It is an album that is easy enough to dismiss with one listen, and I only suspect the diehards like myself will find anything more in it.

The album's lead single was a song called "Bobby Don't You Think They Know" which is the best way to capture the mess that the album is.

Presumably, Bobby's secret is sexual, though it is unstated, and Moz is joined by Thelma Houston (Yes, that Thelma Houston, best known for "Don't Leave Me This Way") as they build to an almost six minute later crescendo.

It will be ridiculous to many listeners. It is to Houston's credit that it builds up into something worthwhile. The combination of two voices is really a great thing. One wishes that they could have collaborated much earlier when the material to work with was better. Manzur's music is also to be credited. Somehow pulling from Gospel and the Stranglers, he actually pulls it off.

The album is front-loaded with the strongest songs. Tobias writes an anthemic tune in Jim Jim Falls and Mozzer is in fine form. It would have made a good single back before people dissected his lyrics in these current times. Of course, Luke Haines got to something like If you're going to Kill yourself...get on with it" first, but it is within the Mozzer's wheelhouse.

Manzur takes over with "Love is on its Way Out"- the lyrics could be from a Moz Generator. It's not a bad song by any means, but I doubt he used 40 words in writing it. It ends up being more of a fragment than anything- though once again, Manzur's music is nice.

"Bobby" is the third track and the title track is fourth. Like the much earlier Moz tune "Roy's Keen", it succeeds despite itself. The lyrics are close to comical. It helps to know Canada Goose is a clothing company that Moz got in a verbal spat with.

Tobias again provides a backing track that is quirky and builds. Moz's voice is in fine form, and if the lyrics don't make you laugh (unintentionally) then this is one of the better tracks on the album. As the song builds to its anthemic closing, one wonders why Moz chose "Louder than Blows" rather than the much better "Louder than Bombs".

"What Kind of People Live in these houses" is one of those problematic Morrissey tracks where you are wondering what exactly he is getting at. Tobias's backing track would probably be fine, but this one is largely forgettable. Here is a case where Moz has written too many lyrics, and would probably be better served with being economical.

Knockabout World is another minimal lyric song over a Tobias beat that evokes New Wavy synths meeting Orchestra; pop. It seems to have some promise, but is over before it goes anywhere. The ending "You're going to be okay with me" likely works fine in a live setting. As it stands, it still feels like a sketch.

"Darling I hug a pillow" has great trumpets, though Moz seems tapped. "Why can't you give me physical love" seems like a lyric written by an AI version of The Man. A tribute to the talented Danny Levin- American Music Club member circa 2008, has worked with everyone from GWAR to 21 Pilots and on Iggy's Post Pop Depression. It's a shame this one isn't quite up to snuff.

"Once I Saw the River Clean" is over an electronic Tobias beat so good that Morrissey could read a telephone book over it, and he just about does. It doens't mean anything but it is a nice song.

"The Truth About Ruth" starts off with a lot of potential to be a Marc Almond-style spanish guitar melodrama. The truth is that Ruth is John, and in Moz's mind, that is a horror. It's a sentiment that would have been a good plot for Morrissey's 60s idols, but seems a bit outdated, and Like some of Moz's earlier solo work, it's unclear whether he's fine with this fact.

I like the work Manzur puts in to make this so dramatic. It's a shame he couldn't have gotten this over to Steven Patrick some 20 years earlier, where it could be put to good use.

The Secret of Music is not good and too long at 8 minutes. It makes a play at the nightmarish, but there isn't anything there.

My Hurling Days is a typical Moz ballad to end things. It almost works. Tobias has the melody right and Chicarelli surrounds it with the correct drama, but again,it never lives up to its potential.

Critics have given this album all sorts of reviews from it's his best solo work in years to it's trash. I admit I wasn't enamored with it at first.

On the plus side, Mozzer's voice is as solid as it has ever been, and the music is certainly adventurous.

On the other hand, Moz is no longer a sympathetic fellow and it's hard to give him a fair shake. There hasn't been much in the last few albums to indicate that there is anything left in the cannon. Any chance of a late career resurgence like Cohen or Reed seems slight.


The world certainly doesn't need any more Morrissey albums, and this is for the hardcore fans only. As a hardcore fan, will I listen. Yeah, I will probably for a few weeks. It's better than California Son and likely as good or as better as Low in High School. The Moz was always destined for self-parody or worse if he continued. In the modern music industry, he will likely only see a flow of pennies from streaming and minimal album sales. I guess I can't quit the Moz.

Artists are bastards.

Some of my favorite artists have major flaws.

So what to make of Morrissey, indeed, my favorite of all artists, as he seemingly comes across as a racist these days.

It is easy to say either thing- “I’m done with him” or “it doesn’t matter one bit” but neither seems fair.

He has become a cranky old man like the poet Philip Larkin, and there is actually some romance in seeing the Moz as an old man cursing kids on his lawn, the Sun, and anything else that crosses his path. Unfortunately, in the current culture, it means everyone wants to put a mic in his face so they can run news stories.

Of course, these days, I can enjoy his music quite legally without putting much money in his coffers. Any moral quandary that I may have does seem lessened.

I have not always agreed with the critics since his career hits its apex with a steadily ascending success that resulted in a Billboard Hot 100 hit and had leveled off.

Looking back, you can see a solid enough singles career. Critics probably overstated his case but there are moments. I always credited him working with Tony Visconti as some of his best work, but that may have been overstating things. Indeed, the previous You Are The Quarry and the follow up Years is Refusal now stand up as rather worthwhile records- a few great songs with some filler. My at-the-time regaling of Ringleader of the Tormentors has cooled, but these three albums in a 6 year span probably deserves some praise.

This decade finds Moz lyrically bereft, but producer Joe Chiccarelli (a Zappa alumni, of all things) does seem to capture a strong vocal every time out.

Moz now comes with a covers record. As a fan, I have always felt Moz’s weakest moments are the covers. Work is a Four Letter Word, What’s the World, Skin Storm are songs I could go the rest of my life never hearing again.

On the other hand, improbably, a cover of The Pretenders’ “Back on the Chain Gang” actually worked. So maybe?

That Moz has a touch of Sinatra in him, I tend to group him with Marc Almond at times. Marc doesn’t gather the attention Moz does.

Almond is all over the place - from obscure spoken word records and collaborations with Coil and Michael Cashmore to albums produced by Chris Braide (Britney, Beyoncé, Sia, Christina Aguilera) and a collaboration with Jools Holland’s Big Band.

Would’ve Moz taken these chances? Bold in directive, a five year timeframe saw Almond move into trip hop, reunite (!) his famous band, and cover otherwise unheard Russian composers. I consider all those discs necessary purchases.

Oddly, both have come to a point in there career, where they are releasing covers albums. (Almond just had a Visconti detour as well- the Dancing Marquis which is fantastic and shows what Moz could have been able to do). While Almond’s recent cover work is hardly essential, he has always been indebted to Judy Garland, Johnnie Ray and Gene Pitney to name a few, and it shows. Meanwhile, Moz comes off a bit Fat Elvis.

It is easier to dismiss Moz’s attitude when the output isn’t very good.

Much has been made of the selections on Moz’s covers disc. Critics like to call it a mockery of left wing politics, but they are overthinking it. Yes, you could jump to that conclusion, but I think this is simply a collection of songs that Moz grew up with - Dylan, Joni, Ochs, Hardin, Buffy St Marie, Melanie. The titles are also a give away- he’s name checked “Loneliness Remembers What Happiness Forgets”, his love for Joni Mitchell is well documented and “Suffer the Children”, c'mon.

Things start off promising enough with a cover of Jobriath’s”Morning Starship”. It’s a faithful version which 1) shows how talented the original singer was and 2) would have worked well as a Morrissey b-side.

Quickly, we find out why this album doesn’t work. Critics had fun writing reviews about how he “subverted” Dylan, Ochs and the other liberal voices, but truth be told, Morrissey is ultimately soulless in his interpretations.

It is telling that the best moment is Gary Puckett’s “Lady Willpower”- a big production that features Moz as the type of Vegas lounge singer that SNL has parodied for decades (Bill Murray, Will Ferrell).

Almost as Moz had been one of the early British Elvises he idolized, and was an otherwise generic pop singer. Orbison should work, but “It’s Over” doesn’t quite warrant repeat listenings.

On”Loneliness...”, Moz mimics Dionne Warwick to the point, one instinctively goes to stop the track and look for hers.

Most will know “Wedding Bell Blues” from the 5th Dimension. If you’re digging for a story, the lyrics unchanged become about same sex love. Unfortunately, it’s not even camp. Something your parents listened to on the AM, it is the worst of possibilities- it’s just lame.

At best, these songs could be B-sides. Closer “Some say I got Devil” has some signs of life, but as the record ends, we are left asking what is the point and where is the Morrissey we loved. Morrissey s folk musings make Bobby Darrin's folk musings (he also covered Hardin and Buffy St Marie) look like Smiths era Morrissey.

Chicarelli once again seems to get the best vocal performance of Morrissey possible. There are, of course, many guest stars (Billie Joe Armstrong of Green Day, Petra Haden, members of Broken Social Scene, Young the Giant, and Grizzly Bear)

So, like the similarly Omni-monikered Glenn Danzig. A covers album sounds great (and something we looked forward to), but far removed from fronting a groundbreaking bands and closer to “Fox News special guest” territory. What we thought we might want, we no longer want. That Moz has entered Tom Jones territory is less fun that it sounds.

Well, you knew I would get to it.

As a huge Morrissey fan, obviously I am excited for a new disc.  21st Century Moz, of course, is a different proposition.  As Moz moves into senior statesmanhood, he joins the ranks of icons like Bowie, Iggy, Lou Reed, even Dylan.  In most aspects, his best work is behind him, but you never know when you are going to get delivered a New York or a Time Out of Mind.

21st Century Moz is a bit divisive.  Critics and fans alike are all over the board on his three albums to date.  For me, I find this last decade and a half to be largely disappointing.  I find the Mickey Finn-helmed albums to sound largely "overproduced".  I find Ringleader of the Tormentors (the Tony Visconti album) to be quite rewarding.

In any case, I don't know that I have ever been disappointed in a Morrissey album.  People hate KillUncle but I always found a lot of charm in it, and rockabilly-style bootlegs of that era are excellent.  Southpaw Grammar may have been the wrong move commercially, but I always enjoyed those songs.  Maladjusted is largely considered below-par and it is (released during the height of Britpop when Moz should have been riding a wave of popularity), but has enough to still recommend it.

So it is with World Peace is None of Your Business, an album that should be riding the coattails of the great press given to Morrissey's autobiography published last year.  It is, ultimately, the first Moz album that has really disappointed me.  There was the drop off in quality with Maladjusted and You Are The Quarry, but they still had songs that propped them up.

Once again, reviews on Moz in 2014 are all over the board, and for many people, this might be the Moz album that they want.  For me, it is not.  Once again, more Adult Contemporary than Adult Alternative; and, yes.... I need to talk about it.

World Peace pairs Moz up with producer Joe Chiccarelli.  Joe has an interesting resume.  He got his start with Frank Zappa as an engineer circa Sheik Yerbouti and Joes Garage.  In the 80s, his best known production work was with Oingo Boingo.  He helped discover Tori Amos, and has spent recent years as a producer in demand pretty much all across the spectrum, working with the Strokes, Jason Mraz, the Shins, My Morning Jacket, the White Stripes, Alanis Morrissette, Juanes, and the Ranconteurs.

It's Morrissey, though at fault.  While he says time and time again in his autobiography, how others made him make those critical and commercial mistakes, one would hope he is now making the music he wants to make.  Maybe he is, and there is a lot of musical experimentalism (of the kind you would hope for) but it's the lyrics that are his weakest to date.  So here goes...

"World Peace is None of Your Business"-  Moz opens things with an ambitious idea a la The Queen is Dead or Maladjusted.  This song does not reach the career best of the former or the more reasonable expectations of the latter.  Its not that it's a particularly bad song, but it's not the great opening salvo I was hoping for.  It feels to me like much of his 21st century work, wanting to be full of energy, but not particularly energetic.  The song finishes with the refrain "Each time you vote, you support the process".  So..... What would you suggest, Stephen?  Monarchy?  Moz has a chance to write some biting lyrics about the 1%.  Remember "Margaret on the Guillotine?"  Sadly, this feels tootless, and worse, forgettable.

"Neal Cassidy Drops Dead"  The problem with WPiNoYB is that all those things people make fun of Morrisseyfor are here in spades.  Moz has made some oblique references to being a fan of the beats, but really embraces it here.  Which means this has what may be his worse lyrics to date  "Everyone has babies, babies full of rabies, rabies full of scabies".

Ho!  the worst rap since Blondie's "Mars/cars/bars/guitars" Rapture.  People hate "Ghetto Defendant" (I think) and all that represents in the career decline that is The Clash's Combat Rock.  That said, I always kind of stood up for the song.  Sure, if it's not outright silly, it's at least reasonaby strange.Its biggest benefit is that it has the Allen Ginsberg.  Time only makes the song better, I think, as those involved have started to pass away, the songs stands up as tribue to the genre and the talents of Joe and Allen.

In any case, goes on the wrong side of camp.  The music itself has promise and in a better situation might have been salvagable.

"I'm Not A Man"-  Oddly, this song might be Moz a his most Sonic Youth-ish.  There's a 90-second long build up of quietness and ends after nearly eight minutes with some of the loudest sounds in the Mozzer's catalogue.  It's the inbetwen though, where this is a dud,

This song is another example of what is wrong with this album.  Moz has made a career out of criticizing gender roles, but he has always done it by way of subtle swipes.  There's no subtelty here and the lyrics sound like a Moz caricature  "I'm not a man.  I'd never kill or eat an animal".  More clunker lyrics here include "Wise ass, smartass, workaholic, thick-skinned, two fisted hombre, ole" 

Moz's sentiment is spot on, and the music again gives some promise, but the lyrics are not up to the task of pulling it off.

"Istanbul"  - Clearly, the strongest song on the album.  One can't help feel if the album had a couple of strong songs like "First of the Gang to Die", the album would be brought up a level or two.  This song isn't enough to do that, but it does make things a shade better.  Again, it's the music that saves the day.  The song grooves on a beat that would have fit well on Suede's Headmusic.  In another universe and under other circumstances, this would be a chart hit, but I really can't see that.

"Earth is the Loneliest Planet of All"-   I love the Spanish guitar that opens it up (and it makes one wish Morrissey had chosen to work more with Vini Reilly.  Reilly says Moz was too interested in making Viva Hate again, while Reilly wanted to move Moz away from typical pop).  Once again, it's not that this is a bad song, but it could be so much better.  "Earth" as well as "Not a Man" remind me  bit of Marc Almond's recent singles, except I feel that Marc really nailed similar songs in a way that they felt worthy of his catalogue.  Surounded by better songs, "Earth" would be fine, but it's ultimately another forgettable moment.

"Staircase at the University"  This one seems to be one of the better received new songs.  I understand why.  It would have been a fine B-side for Strangeways (actuall better than the oens the Smiths ended up recording).  It's got a reasonably good premise- the college student who needs As for her father's approval- and like much of Strangeways, ends in death.  The key of course is here it sounds like a Strangeways b-side and not like a song that would have made the cut.  If this were a "lost' song that ended up on the cutting room floor, it would probably feel better than what it is- something chosen as best of new material.

"The Bullfighter Dies"  Well, it's a better song than "Meat is Murder".  At barely over two minutes, it's hard to say if this song would have been better served as a four minute single or if it is better for all involved that it's as short as it is.  Like so much of this album, Moz's lyrics are his downfall, like a comedian who explains his jokes.  Again, in better days, this would have been a B-side.

"Kiss Me a Lot"  Get it?  It's Besame Mucho!  Another song that opens up with a promising Spanish flavored tune and then some laughably bad lyrics ("Your mammy's backyard"?  Really?)  Moz wuld have always taken a song like this and filled it with clever lyrical twists.  This one's pretty blunt.  For what it is, it stands up to repeat listenings, but a shell of what it might have been.

"Smiler with a Knife"  In which Moz slows things down to add an element of horror.  It's the not first time that he's went down this road, and people laughed when he did it with "Ambitious Outsiders" (which I actually thinks is a song that works well).  I like the concept here, but it gets to a point where what was a shocking 'notice the music" moment begins to get repetitive, and ultimately, this songs wears out is welcome quickly.  A missed opportunity.

"Kick the Bride Down the Aisle"- So...the same guy who rallied against the Men's Libbers early on in the same album gives us this seemingly misogynistic ditty.  Once again, the band seems up to task putting together another song in the Strangeways vein.  Telling people marriage doesn't make the world work has been Moz's modus operandi for thirty years now. There's potential here, but once again, Moz finds a way to kill it.  The biggest offender here is the line "Look at that cow", but the twist is that Moz isn't talking about the bride, but an actual bovine.  Hey Oh!

"Mountjoy"  - You know how "Late Night Maudlin Street" is this terribly rambling song that you only really probably need to listen to once.  "Mountjoy" is like that.  But "Maudlin Street" has a certain charm to it.  It paints a mental picture (both musically and lyrically)  that closes out a side of an album, and drops some phrases that are instantly quotable.  "Mountjoy" is sort of like that, but without any of the redeeming moments.

"Oboe Concerto"  This isn't an Oboe Concerto, but a song about one, which is probably the wrong move, but this whole album is about making artistic decisions that end up being the wrong ones.  This is supposed to be a big-time closer like "Disappointed" and "Southpaw".  I think people hate "Southpaw".  They certainly did at the time.  I loved it, and still do.  It's a sweeping almost prog-rock moment that builds up eight minutes buoyed along by crashing drums and charging guitars.  I wish this song would do that.  It opens up with that promise, and it clearly has that intent (there's samples and a steady beat).  It even has a decent premise ("All the best ones are dead").  At around the two minute mark, you realize that this song isn't going to accomplish what you hoped it had set out to do.  At four minutes, you feel like you have listened to something equivilant to the near, ten minutes of "Southpaw"; which in case you noticed, isn't a compliment.

So, there's the twelve tracks that comprise the new Morrissey album.  I am likely being a bit harsher than necessary.  It's hard not to think of an album like Indie Cindy, in that it's hard to totally disregard the whole thing; and there's times when you want to have new material in your playback device of your choice; but it is a disappointment.  It certainly suffers in comparison to what has been, and in terms of what could have been (which either means recent albums or similar albums.  It doesn't help that Marc Almond has recent new material that is not dissimilar- lyrics about growing old artistically over music that alternately wants to rock out like classic T Rex or theatrically motivate in terms of extreme emotions- and it sounds fresh)

Well, you knew I would get to it.

Uncut Magazine's Book of the Year. Acclaimed as much as it's unexpected, but is it any good?

The book starts with the Moz musing about the early years. It's "Barbarism Begins at Home" in print- abusive teachers, passing acquaintances, British culture and a walk through 50s England.

The opening 50 pages or so of the book are the most acclaimed, though for me (I don't know these towns and movies), it was a bit too obscure to really feel much towards it.

It does very much set up everything you need to know about this book.

Morrissey took some heat for using the Penguin Classics imprint, but his goal here is clear. This is not the bio of a lead singer. Moz is not trying to emulate Ian Hunter or Dave Davies. Moz doesn't even want to be Dave Marsh or Greil Marcus or Nick Hornsby. He wants to be Thomas Hardy.

Morrissey's autobio is extremely self-important, but it would have to be, wouldn't it?

Insights about the Smiths are few in comparison to say Rogan's Severed Alliance.  Sure, Moz does give his side - He never wanted Roddy Frame to replace Johnny Marr as long reported, he never used the phrase "Lawnmower Parts" to describe his rhythm section, and he thinks his music videos are as cheesy as you think they are.

You don't get traditonal fare like "What were the Smiths inspired by and listening to while recording Strangeways." (Though Moz does work in excerpts from his heroes like Auden, Housman, and Belloc). 

Moz is more of a character in his autobiography than anything.  A character is very funny, very fragile, and feels extremely wronged against,  The Moz of this book (like his interviews) is Ignatius J Reilly, Holden Caulfield, and The Bell Jar's Esther Greenwood.  Young and rebellious.
Wry and very funny.  Damaged and precious.

This book reads like a first draft.  There are no chapters (except an occasional picture to interrupt the action) and barely paragraphs.  It is part of the book's charm, though, as it probably is a first draft, and one guesses it wouldn't exist in any other form.

Morrissey  desperately wishes he was Oscar Wilde and it is apparent that he wishes his life would have a dramatic trial like Wilde.  Thus the Smiths trial is clearly the peak of excitement for the book.  You only hear Moz's side and it sounds like he had the most personal wrong ever, though surely there is something more.  True enough, his arguments do seem valid (If Rourke & Joyce shared the profits, then why not share the losses; if being a Smith is so terrible, why are they so eager to reunite, and why did they work with Morrissey post-split-up; why did they get 25% each when the Smtihs were a five piece for a period of time with Craig Gannon;  How come in a similar lawsuit, Gary Kemp won over the members of Spandau Ballet?)

True enough, this may make this a tough sell for anyone but diehards, but this is what a diehard is going to expect, and it's pretty clever.

The book ends with a travelogue of places visited, and along the way some truly unique stories (encountering a ghost in Scotland; being kidnapped in Mexico.)

Moz is always correct and never at fault, throughout; which certainly can't be the truth, but his points are often valid.  Why didn't the Smiths break America since songs like "How Soon is Now" were well loved?  How come his albums didn't perform better on the charts since he was selling out arenas as a solo performer?  How was a duet between the biggest male and female alt-rock stars of the early 90s (Interlude)- not a hit.  To a certain extent, Sire, Warner Bros, and Rough Trade must bear some blame.  Moz tells a story where WB Music was interviewing him with no reason given, but according to Morrissey, they were secretly grilling to find out who they were going to put their money behind (Alanis Morrissette, we are told, won the best pitch). 

Celeb cameos do make the book.  Neighbor Dave Wakeling asking Moz over for a dip in the pool.  A lost Grammy to Tom Waits in which Waits tells Moz if he really wants it, he can have it.  Siouxise gets slighted as being the most abrasive person on the planet.  The New York Dolls are ungrateful that Moz broght them back together for a new adoring public.  Personal heroes like Bowie and Bryan Ferry are that they are two-faced carnivores.  We already know about Billy Duffy, but we find out teenage Moz was pen pals with fellow teenage Mancunian Ian Curtis (which seems appropriate).

There's love of course, but it's handled pretty vaguely and Moz has since covered it before.  "I became we" is as close to an admission as we get, and we may never get much more admission that Jake Walters was more than a dinner companion.

Morrissey fans will read over and over.  Best book of the year is a tough credit to give.  For those who hate the Mozzer, all of the things that they find annoying are well on display here.  Even this Moz-maniac found parts tedious,  but it is what it is, and it is when you give it some thought, kind of what you expect it would be.      

One of the more anticipated albums of the year is Johnny Marr's solo album The Messenger.

Marr has had an interesting career post-Smiths, one that you might expect from someone who loves making music, but not from someone treated so reverentially. He worked on some of the great songs of the late 80s ("(Nothing) but Flowers" , "Sexuality", "Home and Dry". "Walking Down Madison") and appeared with a who's who of alt music-Talking Heads, Billy Bragg, Pet Shop Boys, Kirsty MacColl, The Pretenders, Bryan Ferry, Beth Orton, Oasis and Beck. Of course, there was a brief stint in The The and the closest thing he ever came to forming a supergroup was Electronic with Bernard Sumner.

In the last decade, he has chosen to play as a member of bands he dug like Modest Mouse and The Cribs. Something you wouldn't expect from someone of his stature. There was the Healers album in 2003 which kind of came and went, but now with Morrissey retiring (again) next year, the spotlight is on Marr.

The album comes out next week and is streaming in a couple of places like The Guardian website.

So how is it?

it's maybe better than expected. Reviews have been rough on Marr's vocals and lyrics, but I think they work fine. Against the rest of his catalogue and against the best music of the day, maybe it is lacking; but it is actually quite good, and taken out of that historical and cultural context, if this was a true debut, it would be considered quite promising.

So the obvious question. Is it better than the work of Messrs.Boorer, Whyte and Tobias; and would it be helped by a different singer (and I think you know who i mean).

Oddly, if you're only context for Morrissey and Marr was the last 25 years, it's next to impossible to imagine anyone suggesting a pairing between the two. Marr's jangly Messenger would sit out awkwardly next to Moz's recent work. This is upbeat pop that for the most part is closest to Electronic as anything.

Also, there's nothing ambitious enough here to imagine this as a soundtrack for a reunion (though it is certainly more radio-friendly than anything Moz has done in quite some time). The music is pure Britpop and would have been a perfect release for the late 90s.

In any case, even if it doesn't change the world, it's a nice little album, and one that serves Marr well.

The single:



My favorite song at first listen: