Possibly the most unpleasant thread ever on this site.
It's unfortunate that Morrissey has never had effective press and P.R support. There have been so many situations where simple professionalism would have prevented enormous distress to so many people.
There was absolutely no requirement to disclose the identity of the person taken ill. A simple statement that a close family member within the tour team had been taken ill would have sufficed. The festival in Portugal had to be cancelled due to a band member's injury, if I recall. Again, the detail was superfluous and unecessary. No-one purchasing these consumer experiences has any legitimate reason to demand further intrusive detail. An insurance claim covering cancellation of an event might need more detail, but not the 'fans', some of whom seem quite unable to act with any measure of decorum or respect. It must surely be of some concern to this Artist to have attracted such specimens, but it's probably too late to turn this around without a fundamental re-imagining of some of his most belaboured cliches.
I realise there's a whole subtext of the supposed legitimacy of previous cancellations but that can be safely and swiftly dismissed. Some of the greatest artists have been beset with health challenges which have scuppered the best laid plans for tours. If anyone makes a decision that an artist is 'swinging the lead' then they vote with their feet by not purchasing: not with hideously cruel comments about a stranger who is not even a public figure.
Of course, Morrissey has lamentably chosen to involve non-public figures in his dramas in the past. Whilst these have usually been semi-anonymous aggregates such as victims of terrorist atrocities or global dismissals of whole cultures: it's sobering to recall his deeply unpleasant comments on David Banda, who was adopted by Madonna. This child, like Morrissey's mother, was not a public figure, and Morrissey's choice to invoke this child as part of some criticism of his new mother was both banal and sinister.
I'm not aware of him ever having retracted that woeful outburst. We all make mistakes. We all lash out, even Crystal Geezer! It's very hard to reconcile Morrissey's 'sensitive' reaction to other people's cruel criticisms with his own outbursts, never mind his resort to the gangster code of libel laws in failed attempts to silence criticism. Either the tape of the NME interview exonerates him or it leaves questions unanswered. It's strange that it has never been shared.
It sometimes seems that he can dish it out but can't take it. However, nothing he's said in relation to anyone else excuses the ridiculous attention seeking insults of certain entities on this thread. On a personal level, I'm pretty much at the point where I question the morality of being in the same space as either Morrissey or his increasingly splenetic and intemperate 'fans'. We all make mistakes, but a sign of maturity is being able to express genuine remorse for hurtful words and actions. I've said some unkind things about Morrissey over the years, largely in exasperation at having to face up to the fact that my investment in supporting his artistic journey has become increasingly difficult to justify as his outbursts have increased in intensity and irrationality. I have no problem in apologising sincerely for any such remarks.
I've always seen Morrissey's work as having a practical utility value for wrestling with emotional challenges, never regarding the 'star' trappings as anything more than parody. However, it seems that was never the case and Morrissey may, hilariously, regard himself as 'above and beyond' the Audience as he parades the stage so entertainingly. I remember once he caught my eye imploringly from the stage and seemed affronted to only receive a calm smile in response. At the same show he later castigated the audience as dullards for not pandering to the rehash of pop-star stage invasions which he so assiduously cultivated from the start of his very long career. I couldn't help but feel it was an undignified way to behave for a man of my age.
I wish him well. I hope he moves onto something more dignified. In the same way that the Rolling Stones jaded libertine dandy tropes now look like a pathetic nostalgia cult for washed up corporate Boomers: Morrissey's unresolvable issues also seem like tacky career props rather than genuine existential dramas. I've enjoyed so much along the way, but I guess there comes a time when it's best to just let someone leave your life rather than puzzle at the existential maze they seem to be locked within. I'm sure some people who know me would say exactly the same thing about me. That's life, etc.
I'd like to thank DavidT for hosting this experiment over the years, despite its' faults it's been an arresting exposition of the boundaries of legitimate 'free speech', particularly for an Englishman. I'd also like to thank all who've joined me in 'heated debate'. It's been a hoot.
I hope I'll be drawn back by some vibrant new art from Morrissey that is age-appropriate and not just a rehash of previous glories. But if not, there's lots of other wonderful music to listen to. And Morrissey really has produced some special music both as part of The Smiths collective and with his various solo collaborators. With the departure of Crysal Geezer it seems as if an era is ending. I'll check back in now and again, but i'd like to thank both Morrissey, his 'fans' and his Audience for such a wonderful lesson in how to be a public figure. And how not to be!
regards
BrummieBoy.