122 Facts About Morrissey

Steven Patrick Morrissey, known mononymously as Morrissey, is an English singer, songwriter and author.

Morrissey came to prominence as the frontman and lyricist of rock band the Smiths, who were active from 1982 to 1987.

Morrissey was born to working-class Irish immigrants in Davyhulme, Lancashire, England; the family lived in Queen's Court near Loreto convent in Hulme and his mother worked nearby at the Hulme Hippodrome bingo hall.

Morrissey formed the Smiths with Johnny Marr in 1982 and the band soon attracted national recognition for their eponymous debut album.

In 1988 Morrissey launched his solo career with Viva Hate.

Morrissey took on Alain Whyte and Boz Boorer as his main co-writers to replace Marr.

Highly influential, Morrissey has been credited as a seminal figure in the emergence of indie pop, indie rock, and Britpop.

Morrissey has been a controversial figure throughout his music career due to his forthright opinions and outspoken nature, endorsing vegetarianism and animal rights and criticising royalty and prominent politicians.

Morrissey has supported far-right activism with regard to British heritage, and defended a particular vision of national identity while critiquing the effects of immigration on the UK.

Steven Patrick Morrissey was born on 22 May 1959 at Park Hospital in Davyhulme, Lancashire.

Morrissey's earliest home was a council house at 17 Harper Street in the Queen's Square area of Hulme, inner Manchester, since demolished.

Morrissey became aware of the anti-Irish sentiment in British society against Irish immigrants to Britain.

Morrissey excelled at athletics, though he was an unpopular loner at the school.

Morrissey continued his education at Stretford Technical College, where he gained three O-Levels in English literature, sociology, and the General Paper.

Morrissey took an interest in feminist literature, and particularly liked the Irish author Oscar Wilde, whom he came to idolise.

The young Morrissey was a keen fan of the television soap opera Coronation Street, which focused on working-class communities in Manchester; he sent proposed scripts and storylines to the show's production company, Granada Television, although all were rejected.

Morrissey was a fan of Shelagh Delaney's A Taste of Honey and its 1961 film adaptation, which was a drama focusing on working-class life in Salford.

Morrissey became a glam rock fan in the 1970s, enjoying the work of English artists like T Rex, David Bowie and Roxy Music.

Morrissey was a fan of American glam rock artists such as Sparks, Jobriath and the New York Dolls.

Morrissey formed a British fan club for the latter, attracting members through small adverts in the back pages of music magazines.

Morrissey used much of the money from these jobs to purchase tickets for gigs, attending performances by Talking Heads, the Ramones, and Blondie.

Morrissey regularly attended concerts, having a particular interest in the alternative and post-punk music scene.

Morrissey recorded four songs with the band and they auditioned for a record deal in London.

Morrissey came to be known as a minor figure within Manchester's punk community.

Morrissey frequently wrote letters to the music press and was eventually hired by the weekly music review publication Record Mirror.

Morrissey wrote several short books for local publishing company Babylon Books: in 1981 it released a 24-page booklet he had written on the New York Dolls, which sold 3000 copies.

Morrissey had developed a love of Dean and had covered his bedroom with pictures of the dead film star.

Marr had been impressed that Morrissey had authored a book on the New York Dolls, and was inspired to turn up on his doorstep following the example of Jerry Leiber, who had formed his working partnership with Mike Stoller after turning up at the latter's door.

Around the time of the band's formation, Morrissey decided that he would be publicly known only by his surname, with Marr referring to him as "Mozzer" or "Moz".

Morrissey was responsible for choosing the band name of "The Smiths", later informing an interviewer that "it was the most ordinary name and I thought it was time that the ordinary folk of the world showed their faces".

Morrissey chose a homoerotic cover design in the form of a Jim French photograph.

The band denied this, with Morrissey stating that the song "has nothing to do with children, and certainly nothing to do with child molesting".

The band's aesthetic simplicity was a reaction to the excess personified by the New Romantics, and while Morrissey adopted an androgynous appearance like the New Romantics or earlier glam rockers, his was far more subtle and understated.

Morrissey had been particularly vocal in his criticism of then-Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher; after the October 1984 Brighton hotel bombing, he commented that "the only sorrow" of it was "that Thatcher escaped unscathed".

Several months before the Smiths dissolved, Morrissey enlisted Stephen Street as his personal producer and new songwriting partner, with whom he could begin his solo career.

Rather than featuring pre-existing images of celebrities, as the Smiths' album and single covers had done, the cover sleeve of Viva Hate featured a photograph of Morrissey taken by Anton Corbijn.

The album's final song, "Margaret on the Guillotine", featured descriptions of Thatcher being executed; in response, the Conservative Member of Parliament Geoffrey Dickens accused Morrissey of being involved in a terrorist network and police Special Branch conducted a search of his Manchester home.

The song attracted some criticism from the British gay press, who were of the opinion that it was wrong for Morrissey to utilise polari when he was not openly gay; in an interview the previous year he had nevertheless acknowledged his attraction to both men and women.

Morrissey began the Kill Uncle tour in Europe; he brought Phranc as his support act and decorated the stage of each performance with a large image of Edith Sitwell.

Morrissey became increasingly reticent in talking to British music journalists, expressing frustration at how they constantly compared his solo work with that of the Smiths; "my past is almost denying me a future".

Morrissey told one interviewer that the band he was then working with were technically better musicians than the Smiths had ever been.

In July 1992, Morrissey released the album Your Arsenal, which peaked at number 2 in the album chart.

In mid-1993, Morrissey co-wrote his fifth album, Vauxhall and I, with Whyte and Boorer; it was produced by Steve Lillywhite.

Morrissey described the album as "the best I've ever made", and at the time believed it would be either his final or penultimate work.

In December 1995, the song "Sunny" was released as a single; a lament for Morrissey's terminated relationship with Walters, the song was the first of Morrissey's singles not to chart.

In 1995 the compilation album World of Morrissey was released, containing largely B-sides.

In September 1995, Morrissey served as the support act for the British leg of Bowie's Outside Tour.

Backstage at the Aberdeen gig, Morrissey was taken ill and taken to hospital; he did not return for the rest of the tour.

Marr paid the money legally owed to Joyce but Morrissey launched an appeal against the ruling.

Morrissey claimed that the judge had been biased against him from the start of the proceedings because of his public criticisms of Thatcher and her government.

Morrissey lost his appeal in July 1998, although he launched another soon after; this too was unsuccessful.

Morrissey returned on Island Records in 1997, releasing the single "Alma Matters" in July, followed by his next album Maladjusted in August.

In 2002, Morrissey returned with a world tour, culminating in two sold-out nights at the Royal Albert Hall, during which he played as-yet unreleased songs.

Morrissey told interviewers that he was working on an autobiography, and expressed criticism of reality television music shows like Pop Idol which were then in their infancy.

In 2003, Morrissey signed to Sanctuary Records, where he was given the defunct reggae label Attack Records to use for his next project.

The album's cover art featured an image of Morrissey carrying a Tommy gun.

Morrissey agreed to interviews with various press outlets, including the NME, stating that "the nasty old guard" who controlled the magazine in the 1990s were gone and that it was not "the smelly NME any more".

Morrissey was invited to curate that year's Meltdown festival at London's Southbank Centre.

In December 2007, Morrissey signed a new deal with Decca Records, which included a Greatest Hits album and a new studio album.

In March 2011, Morrissey took Ron Laffitte as his manager.

In June and July 2011, Morrissey played a UK tour; during his 2011 performance at Glastonbury Festival, Morrissey criticised UK Prime Minister David Cameron for attempting to prevent a ban on wild animals performing in circuses, calling him a "silly twit".

Morrissey played concerts in Belgium, Italy, Greece, Turkey, Israel, Portugal, England, and Scotland.

Between January and March 2013, Morrissey toured 32 North American cities, beginning in Greenvale, New York and ending in Portland, Oregon.

In January 2013, Morrissey was diagnosed with a bleeding ulcer and several engagements were re-scheduled.

In October 2013, Morrissey's autobiography, titled Autobiography, was released after a "content dispute" had delayed it from the initial release date of 16 September 2013.

Morrissey had completed the 660-page book in 2011, before shopping it to publishers such as Penguin Books and Faber and Faber.

In January 2014, Morrissey signed a two-record deal with Capitol Music.

Morrissey accused Der Spiegel of misquoting him and said it would be his last print interview.

In November 2018, Morrissey released a cover of the Pretenders' "Back on the Chain Gang", performing it on The Late Late Show with James Corden.

In May 2019, Morrissey played a seven-night residency at the Lunt-Fontanne Theatre in Broadway, prior to the release of his twelfth studio album, a covers album titled California Son.

Morrissey released an 11-track album I Am Not a Dog on a Chain in late March 2020.

Morrissey completed a Las Vegas residency in July 2022 titled "Viva Moz Vegas" for the second year in a row.

On 29 October 2022, it was announced that Morrissey would be releasing his fourteenth solo album Bonfire of Teenagers in February 2023 on Capitol Records in the US, although he did not sign with a label for a UK release.

Morrissey later confirmed in February 2023 that Capitol, while still maintaining control of the album, will not release Bonfire of Teenagers; he suggested that the album had been "sabotaged" by Capitol.

On 8 December 2022, Morrissey announced that in January and February 2023, he would record a new album, titled Without Music the World Dies.

Morrissey's lyrics are characterised by their usage of black humour, self-deprecation, and the pop vernacular.

Morrissey's lyrics have expressed disdain for many elements of British society, including the government, church, education system, royal family, meat-eating, money, gender, discos, fame, and relationships.

Morrissey's vocals have been cited as having a particularly distinctive quality.

Simpson believed that Morrissey's work embodied and personified that of the "Northern Women", speaking in styles of vernacular language that would be common to many women living in northern England.

However, Stringer noted that rather than expressly singing in a Mancunian working-class accent, Morrissey adopted a "very clipped, precise enunciation" and sang in "clear English diction".

Morrissey is noted for his unusual baritone vocal style.

Rogan claimed that Morrissey exhibited "a power onstage which I have seldom seen from any other artiste of his generation", and that while performing he "oozes charisma, offering that peculiar combination of gauche vulnerability and athleticism".

On various occasions, Morrissey has expressed anger when he believes that bouncers and the security teams at his concerts have treated the audience poorly.

Stringer characterised Morrissey as a man with various contradictory traits, being "an ordinary, working-class 'anti-star' who nevertheless loves to hog the spotlight, a nice man who says the nastiest things about other people, a shy man who is an outrageous narcissist".

Morrissey further suggested that part of Morrissey's appeal was that he conveyed the image of a "cultivated English gentleman ".

Morrissey is known for his criticism of the British music press, royalty, politicians and people who eat meat.

Morrissey is a lapsed Catholic and has criticised the Catholic Church.

Morrissey has described having clinical depression, for which he has pursued professional help.

Morrissey has explained his vegetarianism by saying that "if you love animals, obviously it doesn't make sense to hurt them".

Morrissey is a supporter of People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals.

Morrissey appeared in a PETA advert in 2012, encouraging people to have their dogs and cats neutered to help reduce the number of homeless pets.

Morrissey has criticised the British royal family for their involvement in fox hunting.

In 2006, Morrissey refused to include Canada in his world tour that year and supported a boycott of Canadian goods in protest against the country's annual seal hunt, which he described as a "barbaric and cruel slaughter".

Morrissey invited those groups to set up stalls at his concerts.

In 1997, Morrissey said that he had abandoned celibacy and that he had a relationship with a Cockney boxer.

Morrissey discussed having a child with Dehghani, with whom he described having an "uncluttered commitment".

Morrissey has exhibited enduring anti-royalist views from his teenage years and has fiercely criticised the British monarchy.

In February 2006, Morrissey stated he had been interviewed by the FBI and by British intelligence after speaking out against the American and British governments.

In 2013, Morrissey said that he "nearly voted" for the UK Independence Party, expressing his admiration for party leader Nigel Farage and endorsing Farage's Euroscepticism regarding UK membership of the European Union.

Morrissey has faced ongoing accusations of racism since the early 1990s from media and commentators around the globe, which were prompted by his comments, actions, and recorded material.

Conversely, these actions resulted in Morrissey being booed offstage by a group of neo-Nazi skinheads in the audience, who believed that he was appropriating skinhead culture.

Morrissey sued NME for libel over a 2007 article which criticised Morrissey after he allegedly told a reporter that British identity had disappeared because of immigration.

In 2008, The Word apologised in court for a piece written by David Quantick, which commented on the 2007 NME article and suggested Morrissey was a racist.

The legal suit against NME began in October 2011 after Morrissey won a pre-trial hearing.

In January 2023, in response to rumours that Miley Cyrus had decided to pull her vocals from the song "I Am Veronica" from his album Bonfire of Teenagers over his political views, Morrissey published a statement on his website rejecting claims that he was far-right, and further clarified his political stance;.

At a Dublin concert in June 2004, Morrissey commented on the death of Ronald Reagan, saying that he would have preferred if George W Bush had died instead.

Morrissey openly criticized the War on Terror and condemned Bush as "the world's most famous active terrorist, as he bizarrely bombs the innocent people of Iraq out of existence in the name of freedom and democracy" in his autobiography.

Morrissey called Donald Trump "Donald Thump" and accused him of not having any sympathy for the victims of the Orlando nightclub shooting.

Simpson stated that Morrissey had a global fan following that was unrivalled in its devotion to the singer, characterising this as "the kind of devotion that only dead stars command" normally.

Morrissey's fans have been described as being among the most dedicated of pop and rock fans.

Rogan noted that while onstage, Morrissey "revels in the messianic adoration" of his fans.

Morrissey's gay following was not restricted to Western countries, for he remained popular within the Japanese gay community as well.

Morrissey has a significant Hispanic fanbase, particularly in Mexico and amongst Mexican Americans in the western United States.

Morrissey's music has resonated with these communities because of its similarities to the traditional Mexican music genre of ranchera, which revolves around romance, morose metaphors and slow ballads.

Some were moved to talk of how much Morrissey owed that blousy Anglo-Irish nineteenth-century torch-singer and stand-up comedian Oscar Wilde, the "first pop star".

Morrissey is routinely referred to as an influential artist, both in his solo career and with the Smiths.

In 2006, Morrissey was voted the second greatest living British icon in a poll held by the BBC's Culture Show.

In 2002, NME, by this point a critic of Morrissey, nevertheless considered him to be the "most influential artist ever".

Gavin Hopps, a research fellow and literary scholar at the University of St Andrews, wrote a full-length academic study of Morrissey's work, calling him comparable to Oscar Wilde, John Betjeman, and Philip Larkin, and noting similarities between Morrissey and Samuel Beckett.

Stephen Thomas Erlewine of Allmusic writes that the Smiths and Morrissey "inspired every band of note" in the Britpop era, including Suede, Blur, Oasis, and Pulp.

Morrissey has her dream shattered when she finds out that he has aged into a grey, meat-eating overweight frontman with anti-immigrant views.

The episode was criticised by Morrissey as based on "complete ignorance".