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Artist News
Morrissey working on LP, book and (kind of) Bowie reconciliation
By Aly Barchi | Published on Tuesday 7 January 2014
Pop workaholic Steven Morrissey is on the brink of beginning his first entirely new, entirely solo LP since 2009’s ‘Years Of Refusal’. Sharing scant info, as usual, via his main fansite True To You, the one-time Smith said – in regal style – “we are about to record our new album”, later revealing the title of one of its tracks, ‘Istanbul’.
And another thing. Moz is in the act of writing a book, which – contrary to his last, that ‘Autobiography’ – will be a work of fiction, only loosely based in reality. Replying to a True To You user’s question, he said “yes, I am mid-way through my novel. I have high hopes”, adding that, basically, the literary project was a savvy move part-motivated by the realisation that it’ll probably make him loads of cash.
In his own words: “In 2013 I published my ‘Autobiography’ and it has been more successful than any record I have ever released. The actuality is that radio stations will not play my music, and the majority of people have lost faith in the music industry, and it’s generally assumed – quite rightly – that the number one chart positions are ‘bought’ by the major labels, so there really is no passion left in pop or rock music, and I don’t think people believe for an instant that the faces we constantly see on television and in magazines are remotely popular”.
And: “It’s all, now, solely a question of marketing. All success stories are safe and dreary, and you will never be taken by surprise by a hit song that sounds out of place. This is not just my view but the view of everyone I know”.
Amongst other topics covered in the TTY Q&A, Mozza also talked a bit about his oft-times sparring partner David Bowie. Steve and Dave’s pseudo-‘friendship’ of course, soured after the latter declined to allow a photo of himself to be used on the cover of a Morrissey single re-release last year.
Suggesting the ‘friendship’ was already semi-sour back in the era of his 2006 LP, ‘Ringleader Of The Tormentors’, Morrissey told a TTY fan: “When I made that record, the producer Tony Visconti, who is a very close friend of David Bowie, tried to get both Bowie and I together to do our version of ‘You’ve Lost That Lovin Feelin’, with David doing the deep Bill Medley parts, and me doing the Bobby Hatfield shrieks. I loved this idea, but David wouldn’t budge”.
I guess Rick Astley must’ve been busy.
He closed with: “I know I’ve criticised David in the past, but it’s all been snotnosed junior high ribbing on my part. I think he knows that”.
