Producer Steve Lillywhite shares career nuggets at Canadian Music Wk (Moz mention)

Producer Steve Lillywhite Shares Career Nuggets on The Rolling Stones, U2, David Byrne & More at Canadian Music Week - Billboard.com
By Karen Bliss.

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"On Morrissey:
Still don't really know him. He's the only artist I know that wears a Morrissey T-shirt, He literally comes down for breakfast with a Morrissey T-shirt. He's a very gentle vegetarian and that's probably the most untidy hair I've ever seen him have [shows photo]. I mean he would always be perfectly quiffed and just a lovely man who was very shy... I always remember the story, I was in the studio, he would just let me and the band do all the music, he wouldn't come in. I would work on the song with the band and then Morrissey would come in and listen. Anyway he would say, "Steve, The Who, Sheppard's Bush, 1965," and then just walk out. Okay. I sort of got the idea of what he meant. He was a man of very few words and actually most of the words he uses he steals. There's no question he's a poet who loves his Oscar Wilde and he takes vast swathes of lyrics from other people."

Just a brief mention.
Regards,
FWD.
 
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Nearly as bad as the time he pulled a sickie and then was seen out-on-the-town drinking later that night. San Francisco, I believe.
Sometimes the only cure is a hot whiskey.

Actually that would make a fairly indecent song title.
 
Southpaw was another classic blown opportunity by Morrissey. Such a solid Lp working in a harder direction and with those acoustic versions and out takes just as good. All shat upon by the disaster of the tour and his ill- spoken and conceived public statements. Sound familiar???
 
Southpaw was another classic blown opportunity by Morrissey. Such a solid Lp working in a harder direction and with those acoustic versions and out takes just as good. All shat upon by the disaster of the tour and his ill- spoken and conceived public statements. Sound familiar???

No.
 
Southpaw was another classic blown opportunity by Morrissey. Such a solid Lp working in a harder direction and with those acoustic versions and out takes just as good. All shat upon by the disaster of the tour and his ill- spoken and conceived public statements. Sound familiar???

Are you talking about the ill-fated support tour for David Bowie and his subsequent comments about him?
 
Southpaw was another classic blown opportunity by Morrissey. Such a solid Lp working in a harder direction and with those acoustic versions and out takes just as good. All shat upon by the disaster of the tour and his ill- spoken and conceived public statements. Sound familiar???

I don't recall any self-sabotaging to the press in the lead-up and release period of Southpaw. He would recall in both the 2009 reissue liner notes and in his autobiography that Howie Klein from Sire/Reprise quite candidly told him that the higher-ups were content to let it die in the U.S. Ironically, the harder-edged sound hewed closer to American "alternative rock" du jour at the time. With "Britpop" in full flight, the sound of the album was hopelessly out of step with the times back home so there was nowhere to go but down. A shame, as the idiosyncrasy of its timing in its marketplace probably caused it to be more unfairly maligned.
 
I don't recall any self-sabotaging to the press in the lead-up and release period of Southpaw. He would recall in both the 2009 reissue liner notes and in his autobiography that Howie Klein from Sire/Reprise quite candidly told him that the higher-ups were content to let it die in the U.S. Ironically, the harder-edged sound hewed closer to American "alternative rock" du jour at the time. With "Britpop" in full flight, the sound of the album was hopelessly out of step with the times back home so there was nowhere to go but down. A shame, as the idiosyncrasy of its timing in its marketplace probably caused it to be more unfairly maligned.
I recall being horrified by the sound of it when it came out, especially given the quality of the albums preceding it. There are some really poor songs on that one, and the length of some of them were really unnecessary.
 
I don't recall any self-sabotaging to the press in the lead-up and release period of Southpaw. He would recall in both the 2009 reissue liner notes and in his autobiography that Howie Klein from Sire/Reprise quite candidly told him that the higher-ups were content to let it die in the U.S. Ironically, the harder-edged sound hewed closer to American "alternative rock" du jour at the time. With "Britpop" in full flight, the sound of the album was hopelessly out of step with the times back home so there was nowhere to go but down. A shame, as the idiosyncrasy of its timing in its marketplace probably caused it to be more unfairly maligned.

I don’t know if I quite agree with this assessment. Harder edged for morrissey perhaps but even compared to other Brit pop acts it’s not really that heavy or loud as people make out. Radiohead oasis suede Strangelove boo radleys etc albums or songs. Most people don’t like this album as it’s got a lot of really long songs without hooks not because it was to out of step or to hard/heavy
 
When promoting Southpaw Grammar in the press Morrissey would admit that, "This is not as good an album as Vauxhall" so I guess that could be considered self-sabotage in a way.

However, the album was never destined to be a big hit imo. The opening single is pretty dire, most of the songs are twice as long as they should be and Morrissey simply hadn't written anywhere near enough lyrics. It didn't deserve a particularly good reception and, while there are always other factors in play, the songs were the central reason why it didn't do any better.
 
On the borrowing lyrics topic, that's what creative people do. The best artists are collage artists, and in the realm of pop lyric writing, it's a worthy tactic. It's the tune that ultimately matters. It's not Byron.

Although, am I the only one who thinks Morrissey's lyric writing became patchier, and patchier the less he appeared to have borrowed wholesale from texts, and film?
Interesting point. I have always felt that when he first emerged from his bedroom with the Smiths, he'd spent so long amassing and fermenting all these creative influences, with so little else in his life, that they exploded into his lyrics with absolute potency. But over time this effect got diluted as his life changed and these influences became less critical to him. So yes, I would tend to agree.
 
I don't recall any self-sabotaging to the press in the lead-up and release period of Southpaw. He would recall in both the 2009 reissue liner notes and in his autobiography that Howie Klein from Sire/Reprise quite candidly told him that the higher-ups were content to let it die in the U.S. Ironically, the harder-edged sound hewed closer to American "alternative rock" du jour at the time. With "Britpop" in full flight, the sound of the album was hopelessly out of step with the times back home so there was nowhere to go but down. A shame, as the idiosyncrasy of its timing in its marketplace probably caused it to be more unfairly maligned.

"Tuesday August 8th 1995 is the launch of Southpaw Grammar at Terry Venables’ club Scribes West on Kensington High Street. I prepare to leave but then quickly turn back. I just can’t face it – there is too much clattering about inside my head. I stay home and I put the kettle on, talking aloud to myself and pondering on how even Billie Holiday had sex. ‘Oh that’s so Morrissey – he doesn’t even turn up for his own album launch,’ says someone with scurvy and rickets."
 
Steve Lillyface should just be happy that Morrissey let him produce one of his albums, really takes the piss all these people thinking they are bigger and better, if its so easy to do, why not do it yourself ?
 
Steve Lillyface should just be happy that Morrissey let him produce one of his albums, really takes the piss all these people thinking they are bigger and better, if its so easy to do, why not do it yourself ?

Lillyhead is another broke DH who is resentful because Moz moved on to a better producer.:thumb:
Why cant he go produce Dramas sci fi sucky albums? Hes good for 100 pds.:straightface:
 
Lillyhead is another broke DH who is resentful because Moz moved on to a better producer.:thumb:
Why cant he go produce Dramas sci fi sucky albums? Hes good for 100 pds.:straightface:
Too many people who are nothing are all having a jab at Morrissey, skinny fella on here for one, but they all have one thing in common, They're f***ing nothing!!
 
Too many people who are nothing are all having a jab at Morrissey, skinny fella on here for one, but they all have one thing in common, They're f***ing nothing!!

Too many is true, the Skinnies and the Dramas mostly working in tandem. They jab and jab Moz but when you say to them: 'hold on have you had a look at :handpointright::guardsman::handpointleft: lately', then they start jumping and protesting. :okay:
 
On the borrowing lyrics topic, that's what creative people do. The best artists are collage artists, and in the realm of pop lyric writing, it's a worthy tactic. It's the tune that ultimately matters. It's not Byron.

Although, am I the only one who thinks Morrissey's lyric writing became patchier, and patchier the less he appeared to have borrowed wholesale from texts, and film?

Not all creative people borrow lyrics, you know. Just think how very much more impressive it would have been had Morrissey made all of those lyrical zingers up? I remember being ever so slightly disappointed on reading a comprehensive Morrissey crib-list a few years back... almost all of his best stuff had been lifted from other sources (or so it seemed on a first read through)!
Whilst I can't agree that "it's the tune that matters" (how often does Morrissey write his own music, anyway?) I do think that his great talent lay in his good-taste in steal-able quotes and his ability to construct a song around those quotes, then to set those lyrics to the music his collaborators presented him with.
 
Not all creative people borrow lyrics, you know. Just think how very much more impressive it would have been had Morrissey made all of those lyrical zingers up? I remember being ever so slightly disappointed on reading a comprehensive Morrissey crib-list a few years back... almost all of his best stuff had been lifted from other sources (or so it seemed on a first read through)!
Whilst I can't agree that "it's the tune that matters" (how often does Morrissey write his own music, anyway?) I do think that his great talent lay in his good-taste in steal-able quotes and his ability to construct a song around those quotes, then to set those lyrics to the music his collaborators presented him with.
I would agree there. It's spotting the potential that's the clever bit. Also, I felt that the literary/film references gave those songs extra layers and it must have been the first time ever that pop songs sent people scuttling off to discover plays and poetry. So I personally don't mind the borrowing, I think it's an art all of its own.
 

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