From: dennis@citr.uq.oz.au (Dennis Remmer)
Subject: Re: Morrissey/Marr
Organization: Prentice Centre, University of Queensland
Date: Tue, 28 Jul 1992 00:39:28 GMT

sepehr@acsu.buffalo.edu (Ramin S.) writes about Johnny Marr esq.:

>Now he is jumping back and forth from group to group like a whore.

Oh dear.

The man is itching to diversify fer chrissake.

Besides he hasn't joined Sigue Sigue Sputnik yet... :-)

> Don't get me wrong, I have a lot of respect for his talent.

Sure sounds like it... His talent is apparent in his ability to produce
music from the Strangeways of the Smiths, through the mind of Matt Johnson
& The The, and onto the (extremely) popular melodies and dance of Electronic.

> But why would he quit a good and successful...etc...for bands we've never
> heard of...etc... 

Because things became shitty... The magic had gone, and why prolong the 
inevitable. As for never hearing of The The and Electronic? Well my son my son,
it's time to leave those mushrooms alone.

> The bands that he plays...
>with don't even sound like the smiths ( Marr wrote if not all but most of
>the music for Smiths ), so he is like a puppet to be told what to play...

T-h-a-t-s b-e-c-a-u-s-e M-o-r-r-i-s-s-e-y i-s-n-'-t t-h-e-r-e. Man I'd sure
hate Barney to sound like Morrissey! :-P

I don't understand when you say 'The bands don't sound like the Smiths so
Marr is a puppet...' This makes no sense whatsoever. Marr has managed to shake
the Shakesperian tragedie that was the Smiths and find new life and new
direction for his talents. In Electronic especially, the music is 50/50
Marr/Sumner, and that sort of blend of background makes for a wonderful
combination that is extremely diverse upon listening (compare Idiot Country/
Tighten Up/Soviet for a cross-section of the album's variance). Marr is open
enough to appreciate the influences of the time. In the 80's the Smiths
had a fresh sound. Morrissey tries to retain that, but IMHO it is beginning
to sound dated, especially with 'Your Arsenal'. I haven't heard anything
startingly fresh from Mozza since 'November Spawned...'. 

>After all we all like to see smiths back together ...right ?

No. The Smiths deserved their place in time. I really enjoy their music because
it reminds me of what I was doing during that period. It was alive and
happening, but to continue on that stream ad infinitum would be as bad as
Dire Straits. Bands need to move with the times, to win over new fans, to
surprise thjeir diehard following with new and interesting aspects to their
sound. This is why bands such as New Order, Depeche Mode, U2, INXS, Simple
Minds, etc etc are still alive and kicking. Almost every album is new, and/or
a vibrant extension on previous material, and manages to convert a whole
new base of fans appreciative of the new material and interested to find
out more about where this band is coming from. I doubt whether Morrissey wins
over too many 'new' people with each release. There must a high degree of
reliance on ex-Smiths fans (such as yourself) to keep the ship above water.

Too see the Smiths reform would be degrading.

>On second thought , I think morrissey sounds much better than smiths ...
>maybe it's because he is more free to be miserable ...  :-) 

Oh he loves it, he really does. Topical yes, miserable no. Miserabilism went
out when the Summer of Love took over (Stone Roses, Happy Mondays, Acid House,
Madchester, and onto 90's electronic and techno, Ambient House, Bleep etc).

Cheer up, all is not lost.

--
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
       Dennis Remmer - dennis@citr.uq.oz.au - DennisR@syacus.acus.oz
    Australian Centre for Unisys Software, Brisbane Queensland Australia
Newsgroups: alt.music.alternative