A
Remember Alain's God-awful "Ganglord" rehash from the other thread? Well "This Song Doesn't End..." makes that look like Last Night I Dreamt. My God.
And "Lover to Be" makes me think he'd had a bottle of vodka, decided to mess about and someone recorded it. The weird, breathy vocals - "Oh, OH, I have nothing to say." You're not kidding!
These tracks should have stayed buried. Awful.
Actually, back in the real world, they are three really nice songs. They feel like the strong b-side quality of Quarry/Ringleader/Refusal but have their own particular quality: dark, moody, loose.
Actually, back in the real world, they are three really nice songs. They feel like the strong b-side quality of Quarry/Ringleader/Refusal but have their own particular quality: dark, moody, loose. It almost feels like Morrissey is ad-libbing and being a bit free and bluesy. He knows they're not out and out classics, hence they weren't on the album and are only extra tracks. But they are smart, amusing, and you can hum them after one listen - unlike his former collaborators recent material. I like them a lot.
Remember Alain's God-awful "Ganglord" rehash from the other thread? Well "This Song Doesn't End..." makes that look like Last Night I Dreamt. My God.
And "Lover to Be" makes me think he'd had a bottle of vodka, decided to mess about and someone recorded it. The weird, breathy vocals - "Oh, OH, I have nothing to say." You're not kidding!
These tracks should have stayed buried. Awful.
I agree with most of what you post Amy, and maybe I am misunderstanding what you meant, but this song and it's lyrics is so beautiful that it moves me every time I hear it:
Last night I dreamt
That somebody loved me
No hope, no harm
Just another false alarm
Last night I felt
Real arms around me
No hope, no harm
Just another false alarm
So, tell me how long
Before the last one?
And tell me how long
Before the right one?...comes along
The story is old - I know
But it goes on
The story is old - I know
But it goes on
Oh, goes on
And on
Oh, goes on
And on
With the stringed backing it is a clear example of the direction that Marr was interested in taking the music, and I thought the album was very strong and a clear departure from the past and a glimpse into where the band might be headed, but then it ended. I can't name more than a handful of songs they ever recorded as a band that I still to this day do not enjoy listening to and this surely isn't one of them.
The Quarry B-sides were absolutely fantastic, I don't know how you can compare them with this...dreck, for want of a better word.
Let’s be serious, if you think any of these 3 songs are remotely of similar quality to the Quarry/Ringleader/Refusal b-sides then you need your ears checked.
Hi Evennow,
I just meant that the recent crop are so bad, they make a terrible song (The Experiment) sound like a masterpiece (Last Night) by comparison. Last Night is amazing and hasn't aged a day - Morrissey and Johnny have both said it's one of their favourites.
Actually, back in the real world, they are three really nice songs. They feel like the strong b-side quality of Quarry/Ringleader/Refusal but have their own particular quality: dark, moody, loose. It almost feels like Morrissey is ad-libbing and being a bit free and bluesy. He knows they're not out and out classics, hence they weren't on the album and are only extra tracks. But they are smart, amusing, and you can hum them after one listen - unlike his former collaborators recent material. I like them a lot.
They have their own particular quality alright (i.e. not very good) and I think its a stretch putting them up there with the Quarry/Ringleader/Refusal b-sides. Heck, they aren't even as good as the worst bonus tracks on the World Peace deluxe edition. They feel like experimental throwaways and Morrissey was quite right to opt for live cover versions to include on the LIHS singles rather than this dreck. Even he knows these would tarnish his fantastic b-sides reputation. At least he knows...
I'm glad you feel this way...I thought I must have misunderstood given we normally are on the same page regarding his music. What a song like The Experiment does though is shine a light on Morrissey's skill as a lyricist and vocalist.
To anyone who says that The Smiths would still be relevant today, or would even have reached the level of recognition they have without Morrissey is deluded. And just as crucial is the music that Johnny created to carry and spark Moz's creativity in such wonderful ways. The two are eternally linked and inseparable even if those that created such masterpieces are not.
Even though I've said the other two songs (Lover-To-Be and This Song Doesn't End...) are rather forgettable, after further listens it is interesting to find bits of the old magic in places, it can be Morrissey's turn of phrase or just a little inflection here or there.
I am thinking about the part where he goes "do you recall when I was in love with you? do you recall the lengths I would go to? I must have been out of my mind". I find myself singing those words aloud, time and time again, despite the fact that the rest of the song does nothing for me.
Which takes me back to something we have all been discussing here for years, the music he is being given to work with is simply not up to scratch and it hasn't been for a long time, few exceptions aside.
I know what you mean. But a nice little part or some kind of reminiscence (in parts"I bury the living" f.e.) isn't enough. I tried to like his latter-day output but it hasn't got the charms of old. Listening to something like "Whatever happens I love you" even worries me, how B-sides from 1995 are much better than album tracks from 2014-2018. Better in a sense of being more fitting, interesting & exciting than all the recent music.
I have to disagree with this. The music isn't as bad as a lot of people say (except the Jesse Tobias songs, they generally are poor) - it's the lyrics that let them down. They're either just long, rambling nonsense or Morrissey repeating the same lines over and over again. And it is specifically the lyrics, as the vocal melodies are usually quite good.