Morrissey Central "HAPPY ANNIVERSARY, DARLING" (November 7, 2023)

HAPPY ANNIVERSARY, DARLING

You Are The Quarry will be 20 years old in 2024.

The album sold over 1 million copies.
Sweden #1
England #1*
Ireland #3
Norway #5
Finland #8
Portugal #10
USA #11

As usual, the album was not well received by the UK press, where it was certified as Platinum.
You Are The Quarry was the only album of 2004 that managed four top ten hit singles.
Irish Blood, English Heart #3
First Of The Gang To Die #6
Let me Kiss You #8
I Have Forgiven Jesus #10

There is no commemorative issue planned for You Are the Quarry, which was licensed to BMG UK in 2017 for new release.
BMG did not re-issue You Are the Quarry and have no plans to.

HAPPY ANNIVERSARY, DARLING - MESSAGES FROM MORRISSEY - MORRISSEY CENTRAL - HAPPY ANNIVERSARY, DARLING

MESSAGES FROM MORRISSEY on MORRISSEY CENTRAL

www.morrisseycentral.com

* = edited by Central to #2 after initial posting.
FWD.

 

[ninetimesfined]

I don’t remember a particularly negative reaction from the UK press. There were loads of the usual ‘return to form’ and ‘where have you been for seven years’ stuff but I thought mainly positive on the whole

 

[Mike Rourke]

I don’t remember a particularly negative reaction from the UK press. There were loads of the usual ‘return to form’ and ‘where have you been for seven years’ stuff but I thought mainly positive on the whole

That's because there wasn't one! From memory, the only mainstream publication that gave fewer than 3 or 4 stars out of 5 was Q magazine which I think gave 2.

 

[sycophantic_slag]

Unfortunately, I live in the United States. I can assure you that, except for Los Angeles, the album was almost completely ignored. The album is a brilliant masterpiece. It was a joy to see him live, performing a benefit show in Chicago, to benefit music education in Chicago.

 

[ZOOM FROM GLOOM]

Unfortunately, I live in the United States. I can assure you that, except for Los Angeles, the album was almost completely ignored. The album is a brilliant masterpiece.

It was a joy to see him live, performing a benefit show in Chicago, to benefit music education in Chicago.

hmmm, I don’t remember hearing about that.

 

[Jamie]

Noise is the best revenge is the best Tobias penned track.
For me, it belongs to the Quarry period.
Boyaaaaah!

It is the type of dirge you'd expect from his pen, but, alas, the music came from the desks of Boorer and Day.

 

[Brum bandit]

His last great album (I’m not keep on the intro track… it’s listenable and I appreciate the premise of the lyrics, but overall… zzz). Ringleader was good, but after that it was obvious the ship was taking on water. Still a good track here and there over time, but he’s not reached the level of Quarry as a full length since, imo.

Not true Dog on A CHAIN, World Peace and Low in High school piss on that lp
That wasn’t even like a proper Moz lp it was like moz trying to be mainstream
It has also dated pretty badly. First of the gang to die is kinda dull , America is not the world was pretty ropey lyric wise
And the lp doesn’t have one stone cold classic not like a River Clean or Pigstye .
The lp and the press really was anti Moz in someways , he was playing the game .. which is un moz

 

[Brum bandit]

Over on Spotify, it's his 2nd most popular solo album (behind Viva Hate)View attachment 97465

That’s to do

 

[Brum bandit]

The record that made me a Moz fan aged 17 of that year. My first Moz gig followed for my 18th in December 04. I'm not sorry and Crashing Bores are two of my favourite Morrissey songs hands down. The press ate up 'Quarry, and even Moz haters liked the singles including my Sad, ha. He was everywhere when it came out, Jonathan Ross, Jools Holland, even the NME loved him again and had him back on the front cover. It was literally his golden era, so for him to repackage it as anything but is deluded nonsense. How the mighty have fallen.

The funny thing is by the time you saw him live and became a fan to lots of us Smiths 90s moz fans , he had already lost it in a big way
Looks were on the way out , he lyrics were now pretty shitty and his live shows weren’t as good
It’s tragic he didn’t look around and pick up his game
Instead he seemed to give up

 

[DagenhamDan]

I love The Never Played Symphonies. What a great song. One of the best from that period.

One of my all time favourite songs, its beautiful

 

[🐈🐈🐈]

My jaw DROPPED when I read this

 

[Mike Rourke]

It is the type of dirge you'd expect from his pen, but, alas, the music came from the desks of Boorer and Day.

Oh come on - Jesse's songs on Dog on a Chain were flipping brilliant.
Hurling Days is a jangle-pop beauty that would have fitted in on the masterpiece that is The Sundays' first album. And a few of his other songs on Dog on a Chain are almost as good.
His Ringleader and Refusal songs were pretty ropey, admittedly, but he really upped his game from World Peace onwards.

 

[dneuer]

Quarry was dull, Dog was far better

You're dead to me.

Seriously, I've listened to Dog less than ten times all the way through. I felt it was the first real effort he made to sound "current" stylistically and I couldn't stand the thought of it (and as you might imagine, for the same reasons, I've little hope for BoT. The snafu may have done him a favor because it just felt like it was going to sound dated really quickly. The promise of the Andrew Watt thing was a mistake from day one). Absolute respect for Thelma and she has an absolutely amazing voice, but it seemed forced. The records have seemed patchy to me, at best since Quarry. Again, some good to great tunes since then, but as complete, cohesive long players, not so much.

(not really dead to me... maybe just on life support )

 

[JRB]

HAPPY ANNIVERSARY, DARLING

View attachment 97462

You Are The Quarry will be 20 years old in 2024.

The album sold over 1 million copies.
Sweden #1
England #1*
Ireland #3
Norway #5
Finland #8
Portugal #10
USA #11

As usual, the album was not well received by the UK press, where it was certified as Platinum.
You Are The Quarry was the only album of 2004 that managed four top ten hit singles.
Irish Blood, English Heart #3
First Of The Gang To Die #6
Let me Kiss You #8
I Have Forgiven Jesus #10

There is no commemorative issue planned for You Are the Quarry, which was licensed to BMG UK in 2017 for new release.
BMG did not re-issue You Are the Quarry and have no plans to.

HAPPY ANNIVERSARY, DARLING - MESSAGES FROM MORRISSEY - MORRISSEY CENTRAL - HAPPY ANNIVERSARY, DARLING

MESSAGES FROM MORRISSEY on MORRISSEY CENTRAL

www.morrisseycentral.com

* = edited by Central to #2 after initial posting.
FWD.

I agree with those who reckon YATQ was overrated. The seven year hiatus and whole comeback vibe meant he got better press than the record deserved. I'm not convinced it is substantially stronger than Maladjusted that was rather unfairly viewed as a career low.
That said, First of the Gang is magnificent and up there with Suedehead and Everyday is Like Sunday as stand out singles from his solo career. Irish Blood was super pugnacious and a notable song even thugh I don't like it anywhere near as much as First of the Gang. Come Back to Camden a real highlight too. Other than that, most of the songs are ones where I like or admire certain elements, but none I'd go out of my way to listen to now. I'm Not Sorry and All the Lazy Dykes are skipped on the vast majority of time I dust off this DC. Just too plodding, as in the record in a number of places. My overiding issue with it is that I was never impressed by the hand of the producer on this album (God rest his soul). M obviously went with a producer who he thought was fashionable (having been associated with Blink 182 and Green Day) and would give him some street cred. I'd have preferred it has been Steve Lilywhite at the helm. I think some of the breeziness and higher tempo swagger of earlier Moz albums would have suited several of those songs much better. The drum machine and tinny-ness and thinness of the sound in places does several of the songs no favours.

 

[bhops]

You're dead to me.

Seriously, I've listened to Dog less than ten times all the way through. I felt it was the first real effort he made to sound "current" stylistically and I couldn't stand the thought of it (and as you might imagine, for the same reasons, I've little hope for BoT. The snafu may have done him a favor because it just felt like it was going to sound dated really quickly. The promise of the Andrew Watt thing was a mistake from day one). Absolute respect for Thelma and she has an absolutely amazing voice, but it seemed forced. The records have seemed patchy to me, at best since Quarry. Again, some good to great tunes since then, but as complete, cohesive long players, not so much.

(not really dead to me... maybe just on life support )

Life support or not Dog will forever live on to me as far superior album. Although I must admit that Quarry has some higher high points, Irish Blood and Camden being a couple of examples it is also a far more uneven effort. Dog really feels a lot more cohesive and as a body of work it runs really nicely to me.

 

[bhops]

I agree with those who reckon YATQ was overrated. The seven year hiatus and whole comeback vibe meant he got better press than the record deserved. I'm not convinced it is substantially stronger than Maladjusted that was rather unfairly viewed as a career low.
That said, First of the Gang is magnificent and up there with Suedehead and Everyday is Like Sunday as stand out singles from his solo career. Irish Blood was super pugnacious and a notable song even thugh I don't like it anywhere near as much as First of the Gang. Come Back to Camden a real highlight too. Other than that, most of the songs are ones where I like or admire certain elements, but none I'd go out of my way to listen to now. I'm Not Sorry and All the Lazy Dykes are skipped on the vast majority of time I dust off this DC. Just too plodding, as in the record in a number of places. My overiding issue with it is that I was never impressed by the hand of the producer on this album (God rest his soul). M obviously went with a producer who he thought was fashionable (having been associated with Blink 182 and Green Day) and would give him some street cred. I'd have preferred it has been Steve Lilywhite at the helm. I think some of the breeziness and higher tempo swagger of earlier Moz albums would have suited several of those songs much better. The drum machine and tinny-ness and thinness of the sound in places does several of the songs no favours.

Yes to pretty much all of this.

 

[marred]

Darn it, so wanted a re-release, I have it on CD, but would love it on vinyl, and the prices online for the vinyl are mad.

Yeah I should've bought two of them instead of just the one vinyl copy.

 

[dneuer]

Life support or not Dog will forever live on to me as far superior album. Although I must admit that Quarry has some higher high points, Irish Blood and Camden being a couple of examples it is also a far more uneven effort. Dog really feels a lot more cohesive and as a body of work it runs really nicely to me.

Pistols at dawn, it is then!

Really, though… I obviously don’t agree, but fair enough

 

[bhops]

Pistols at dawn, it is then!

Really, though… I obviously don’t agree, but fair enough

You bring a pistol I will bring a cannon

 

[marred]

Life support or not Dog will forever live on to me as far superior album. Although I must admit that Quarry has some higher high points, Irish Blood and Camden being a couple of examples it is also a far more uneven effort. Dog really feels a lot more cohesive and as a body of work it runs really nicely to me.

I have I Am Not A Dog On A Chain as a permanent fixture in the CD player of my black SAAB. No I did not buy that car because Morrissey had one as specified in Autobiography. I had it years before that book came out

I don't get why Quarry got so much love as an album but I suspect Morrissey returning with an actual album after seven years of silence had something to do with it. All Quarry had to be was a good album and it was going to be welcomed with open arms. It had very strong singles and the entire album was very commercial sounding and mainstream which served a genuine purpose, delivering new fans to the fold.

But once you come down from the high of his return we have a middle sounding album with crowd favourites that is not a bad album by any means whatsoever, but it ain't no Viva Hate, Vauxhall and I or even Years Of Refusal to say the least. I feel like Quarry gets so much fan fare because of the singles and the tours with those encores, but is anyone really soaking up the joys of listening to All The Lazy Dykes, America is Not The World and How Could Anybody Possibly Know How I Feel?

The weakest of Quarry B sides are superior to these songs.

 

[marred]

i bought both,the deluxe edition had the better cover out of the two,had a silvery look to it.

What sleeve are you talking about? The Korean one? I wish there was a vinyl copy of this. It's far better than the gun which I find a bit meh.

 

[Lucifer Sam]

Is anyone really soaking up the joys of listening to All The Lazy Dykes, America is Not The World and How Could Anybody Possibly Know How I Feel?

Yes.