Sanctuary Records Week @ Music SpectrumMorrissey's Who Put the 'M' in Manchester? and Live at Earls Court

SANCTUARY RECORDS WEEK CD GIVEAWAYS! Win a prize package of CDs from Sanctuary Records. Details below.


The hard part about reviewing a live CD or DVD is putting aside the “I should’ve been there” thought. That’s certainly the case with Morrissey new live releases. Circumstances conspired to keep from being a part of the adoring crowds at any of Morrissey’s Midwest shows in 2004. Now, though, for all of those who missed that opportunity, there are two ways to experience Morrissey in live, recorded passion. Who Put the ‘M’ in Manchester? is a DVD of Morrissey’s homecoming/birthday concert from May 22, 2004. The CD, Live at Earls Court, is from the London show on December 18, 2004.

So much of this need to be there is the need to have the shared experience with others who find the same connection with Morrissey. Like Hulmerist, the 1990 video, Who Put the ‘M’ begins with shots of the crowd arriving, many clearly devoted to the Smiths/Morrissey in their T-shirts, hairstyles, and even tattoos. The opening interview with a man who traveled from the United States to Manchester for the show, along with the interviews at the close of the concert, put a face on the Morrissey fans. For anyone who found their heart strangely warmed by Morrissey, hearing others say similar things serves to confirm that there is truly something strong, deep, and undeniable about this music.

By far, the strongest songs are those written by/for the current lineup of Morrissey’s band. “Irish Heart, English Blood,” “First of the Gang to Die,” “I Have Forgiven Jesus,” rage with great emotion, burn with double guitar, groove on a tight rhythm section, and showcase what this band can offer—more than being karoke for Morrissey, as one reviewer said. Boz Boorer (guitars, etc.), Alain Whyte (guitars) [replaced by Jesse Tobias for the second half of the tour including Earls Court], Gary Day (bass), Deano Butterworth (drums), and Mikey V. Farrell (keyboards, etc.), have exceptional talent to flesh out Morrissey’s lyrics and add to it musically.

This is no small feat, since the world won’t listen if the band tries too hard to sound like the Smiths or doesn’t sound enough like the Smiths. I often have said that there has been no greater pairing than Morrissey’s lyrics and Johnny Marr’s guitar. That said, I still want to hear Morrissey singing—old and new songs—and that’s going to take someone else to electrify the melody behind those sad, passionate lines.


Having not seen Morrissey reaching back as much into the Smiths catalog as of late, it is with tremendous anticipation that I unwrapped the cellophane from Who Put the ‘M’ and Earls Court. While noting that “the past is a strange place,” Morrissey & Co. excel on many of the Smiths songs—Who Put the ‘M’: “The Headmaster Ritual,” “Rubber Ring,” “A Rush And A Push And The Land Is Ours,” and “There is a Light That Never Goes Out”; Earls Court: “Bigmouth Strikes Again,” “There is a Light That Never Goes Out,” Morrissey & Co. are able to deliver these songs with a few new accoutrements, while still letting Morrissey’s voice bring the punch.

These songs have a much more acoustic lead song. While not necessarily acoustic guitar, they have a more strumming pattern than other Smiths songs which rely so much on Johnny Marr’s particular electric sound. Earls Court sadly starts with “How Soon is Now?”, a song which is founded upon Marr’s incessant, haunting vamp, a sound which Boorer and Tobias are not able to truly present with the same awe-struck wash. “Shoplifters of the World” (on both discs, the set closer on Who Put the ‘M’) rides that fine line, because there’s certainly a need for Marr’s pounding charge, but the chorus has more of the acoustic feel that Boorer/Whyte/Tobias excel at creating.

Both concert recordings find Morrissey in excellent voice, hitting his strange range of deep notes and falsetto. Beyond the singles off of You Are the Quarry, Earls Court includes “I Like You,” a deeper album cut, and both discs include “Don’t Make Fun of Daddy’s Voice” (bonus cut on the deluxe edition of Quarry). These are exceptionally strong rhythmically with punch and vibe from Morrissey.

Again, Morrissey’s band shines with some tremendous instrumentation. A scary version of “Jack the Ripper” (Who Put the ‘M’) builds to wailing guitars, a mini-film on the DVD with the black & white sequences and the best editing of the concert film. “I’m Not Sorry” features Whyte on pedal steel guitar, plus there’s flute and congas here. Boorer provides a teasing Spanish guitar intro for “I Know It’s Gonna Happen Someday.” “November Spawned a Monster” features a gut-wrenching clarinet from Boorer, and Farrell lends some inspired trumpet on “Let Me Kiss You.”

Morrissey actually shows himself to be quite deferential in both concerts. Oh, it’s a bit cheeky for Morrissey to tell nearly 20,000 gathered fans that he hopes they don’t forget him, and yet, you get the sense that there is some truth in Morrissey’s continued self-effacing humor, shying from the spotlight, and very public lack of self-esteem. On Who Put the ‘M’, Morrissey says, “You are kindness in itself,” leading the crowd to join in the old Morrissey chant/song. Morrissey seems truly in awe about the crowd’s welcome home, saying, “Oh, Manchester, nothing to answer for. You’ve made a happy man very old.”

That transparency only propels the faithful to try even harder to get on stage to hug or shake hands with Morrissey. Unlike Hulmerist’s orchestrated stage appreciations, Morrissey himself says, “You’ll never make it on this stage.” As security guards drag people away in the moat in front of the stage, the fans desperately try to touch Morrissey’s outstretched hand. There is no provision to make those kind of connections from the old days, no provision to give a hug to the depressive singer, no provision to simply show the singer how much he has changed lives.

When Morrissey says “Thank you, friends,” it’s like when Jesus called His disciples friends—the effect is unbelievable. To think that Morrissey would consider us his friends flips every expectation on its head. As Morrissey sings “Rubber Ring,” you hope that he’ll see the crowd as an answer to the lyrics, “When you’re dancing and laughing and finally living, hear my voice in your head and think of me kindly.” We certainly do, Morrissey.

SongDevotion
On Earls Court, Morrissey says, “I know it isn’t mutual, but I have forgiven Jesus,” leading into one of the strongest songs off of 2004’s You Are the Quarry. A devotion based on this song is now available at my companion site, SongDevotions.

Thanks to Morrissey and Attack/Sanctuary Records Group for the review copy.


Sanctuary Records Week CD Giveaways!
From April 22-27, there will be chances to win Prize Packs courtesy of Sanctuary Records Group and Music Spectrum.

Today’s Prize Pack:
Ocean Colour Scene’s A Hyperactive Workout for the Flying Squad, Soledad Brothers’ Voice of Treason, and an autographed Buddahead poster
Only 1 pack available. Pack will include a Music Spectrum bumper sticker.

Jo from London won by being the first to email me with the name of the singer to whom I compared Buddahead). (Answer: Morrissey). Thank you to everyone who entered today's contest!

Thank you to the Sanctuary Records Group, Rough Trade, Gigante Media, and Special Ops Media for the review copies and giveaway CDs for Sanctuary Records Week.