MORRISSEY
- ST. GEORGE'S HALL, BRADFORD
THURSDAY,
16 FEBRUARY 1995
Vocals:
MORRISSEY
Guitars:
BOZ BOOKER
Guitars:
ALAIN WHYTE
Bass:
JONNY BRIDGEWOOD
Drums:
SPENCER COBRIN
Support:
MARION
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| My original diary entry from the day! |
I can remember
feeling both excited (VERY!) and nervous when I heard that dear old MORRISSEY
would be touring once again in February, over two years after his last
batch of dates for "Your Arsenal". I was looking forward to seeing El
Mozzer ever so much, as I knew it would be more than worthwhile. But at the
same time, I was worried that perhaps it was all too good to be true, and that
something would come along to spoil everybody's plans (after all, plans can
fall through and so often they do!). Luckily, nothing of the kind happened
(thank heavens!) and I am able to tell the tale of my own account of one of the
many shows that subsequently took place.
I immediately
made arrangements with my very good friend Neil (McNab) when the dates were
actually announced as to where we would go to see Mozzer. I was desperately
hoping that the bequiffed one would play his hometown of Manchester (where I am
at the minute residing). Unfortunately, this wasn't the case (I was initially
gutted by this), and so we instead decided to go to the Bradford show (as well
as to the Brixton fixture. I even managed to get to the Drury Lane Theatre gig,
although this was sorted at the last minute as a surprise!). There were a
couple of months to go before the big day came, but the time seemed to pass me
by very quickly indeed. I was, in the meantime, having a lot of trouble with
money, men and college, so it helped a lot to know that there was some kind of
light at the end of the tunnel (if only temporarily!). Neil would also be
staying with me for most of the weekend following the show, and this was an
added source of joy.
When the day
finally arrived, I took the time off from college as I wanted to get to
Bradford in plenty of time to meet up with Neil. My lecturer was not at all
impressed by the fact that I would be missing both his lecture and seminar in
order to see Morrissey, but I wasn't too bothered or worried about this!
Anyway, I attired myself in an excellent "Meat is Murder" t-shirt,
black jeans, battered Doc Martens and grey military-style coat, topped off with
my treasured Manchester United FC woolly hat!! I also took along my NME
flap-sac bag, which I fervently hope Morrissey didn't catch sight of!! I stayed
in until about after 2.00 pm (isn't daytime TV atrocious?!), when I left for a
bus that would take me to Manchester City Centre. I got the train to Bradford
Interchange from Victoria Station virtually as soon as I got there, and spent
the journey reading my book on the history of punk (very interesting stuff, for
sure!). I got to the Interchange about an hour before I was due to meet Neil,
and so I went off in search of a Bakery of some sort. After I'd bought some food (I believe it was
a very unhealthy jammy doughnut!), I went to a John Menzies shop to have a look
at the magazines.
I was just about
to walk into this store when I spotted some familiar figures hanging around
outside the front, eagerly glancing through the pages of a monthly publication
(I can't remember which!). On closer inspection, they turned out to be none
other than (most of) MARION!! Some other Mozzer fans had already
cornered them, and got photos taken with the band and the like. In a flash of
inspiration, I whipped out my punk diary book and shyly asked one of the lads
to sign it. They all kindly autographed the inside cover (apart from one of the
group, who had gone to get something to eat!!). Jaime (pronounced Jamie)
Harding, the incredibly handsome and very gorgeous vocalist, said as he and the
others prepared to go that he loved my hat, and gave me the thumbs-up and a
great big grin! He was such a darling!! I said goodbye to them all, and then
they headed off to wherever.
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| My autographs from (most of!) Marion |
I was in a
highly elated state after such an eventful ten minutes, and happily went off to
find somewhere to wait for Neil. His train was, very thankfully, pretty much on
time, and after I'd found him we walked to the venue. I told him all about
bumping into Marion while we made our way there, and he was much amused by the
story. We had to dash to St George's very quickly as the elements had taken a
turn for the worse by this point. The sky, as overcast as anything, was dark
and dismal, morbid and miserable as the rain pelted down mercilessly. But it
didn't take too long to get there, and we picked up our tickets from the Box
Office when we'd finally tumbled in. We didn't really want to go back outside
and face the weather, as there was still a good while to wait before the doors
were opened. So we thought it would be a good idea to stay in the venue bar and
kill some time in the warmth. We did this, and found that there were loads of
other Morrissey fanatics sheltering also.
Not long after
finding a table and sharing some news about numerous things, we were joined by
Bruce Duff (Editor of the premier U.K. Morrissey fanzine "A Chance To
Shine") and his charming girlfriend Diane. Neil avidly chatted away
to them both, while I contributed occasionally. I spent most of my time keenly
watching various people come and go (I tend to do this a lot, wherever I happen
to be!). I noticed Russ Seekatz (Co- Editor of the number one U.S. fanzine (and
Morrissey's favourite, apparently) "Sing Your Life"). He
invited me over to the other side of the bar, where a contingent of American
Morrissey devotees were gathered. I enjoyed saying hello to them all, and
talked briefly about whatever. Russ very generously gave me a copy of the
latest issue of SYL, and I had a good read of it when I went back to Neil and
the others.
Well, I thought
I'd already got all the autographs I was going to procure for one day, but a
bit later on I saw BOZ BOORER wander into the bar. I marched up to him
and asked, very nicely, if he'd sign my recently-acquired fanzine. He did so
quite willingly, but not before searching through the pages for a photo of
himself in drag and having a good laugh! Five minutes later, SPENCER COBRIN also
strolled in, and I managed to corner him as well. He asked for my name before
signing the same fanzine, and he was so painfully sweet it was untrue. Diane
likewise got their signatures, and was as pleased as punch. We stayed in the
bar until about fifteen to twenty minutes after the doors had opened, then made
our separate ways to the hall itself. Neil and I had front row seats in the
lowest of the balconies. Although I would have preferred to be downstairs in
the standing area, I still had a nearly perfect view of the evening's
proceedings.
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| Autographs from Boz and Spencer |
We'd missed some
of Marion's set by this time, but caught the remainder of it. I rate the band
very highly, and they went down a storm. Their stage presence was so powerful,
and I can see why Morrissey likes them so much!! The last number they did was
their then single "Sleep", and I loved every minute of it.
They left the stage with the sound of enthusiastic cheers ringing around the
hall, and I was glad I hadn't missed the whole stint.
During the next
forty-five minutes or so, the warm-up music was played which I enjoyed a great
deal. Among the material heard was stuff by Petula Clark, The Ramones (I
think!), The Fall and Nico. I swayed around in my seat in time to the music,
and watched as the hall gradually filled up. It didn't seem like very long
before the house lights went down, and the huge backdrop adorned by the boxer
Cornelius Carr was dramatically lowered. A rowdy "Jerusalem" began,
and the crowd went mad as the anticipation rose to a great height. Morrissey
and the gang presently ran onto the stage to a particularly noisy reception,
and the show was launched with "Billy Budd". Morrissey looked
pretty smart, and was dressed in a beige-ish (?) blazer, a pale shirt, blue
jeans and black boots. Boz Boorer and the lads were bang on form, and I don't
think I'd ever seen or heard them play as well as they did. Most of the tracks
from the splendid "Vauxhall and I" were given a very welcome airing,
as well as the songs from the recent "Boxers" EP. I especially loved
the boisterous "Have-a-Go Merchant", and it worked incredibly
well in its live capacity.
As well as the
new (and newish) material, some old favourites were played such as "Jack
the Ripper", "You're the One for Me, Fatty" and "We’ll Let
You Know", as well as "The National Front Disco". I
previously had SERIOUS problems with the latter song, as I believed it
to be insensitive to a certain section of Morrissey's followers (i.e., those
from ethnic minorities including myself). But because Morrissey has since
endeavoured to explain the angle he was taking when penning this number,
I decided to relent in my past disapproval. (This isn't to say that I
didn't understand and realise Morrissey's viewpoint, but the hype and
confusion surrounding the whole thing became almost unbearable at times.
And Mozzer's apparent nonchalance didn't help matters very much either).
Anyway, I DO have to admit that he did a bloody good job of
"National" on the night!! It ended with a massive amount of
feedback which was very effective, before cleverly leading into the
classic "Moonriver" which moved me greatly (almost to tears). It's become a firm favourite, because
it's so uncomfortably poignant at this very difficult time in my life,
which I'm not too happy with. Morrissey's rendition was beautiful, and I'll
always remember it.
I don't really
recall Morrissey actually saying a great deal throughout the show, although he
did mention picking something up in Hull (he played there the night before, and
apparently didn't think much to the gig!). He also said something like "I
suppose you've all come down from Manchester", which struck me
as quite odd. Wonder what he meant by this? Anyway, there wasn't a hugely
successful amount of stage trespassers for this date, as the security was very
on-the-ball. Indeed, one of the guys hauling out impudent have-a-go stage
climbers from the front of the crowd was a giant specimen, and I'd actually
talked to him earlier on in the bar (a very nice man he was too, as it
happens!).
But what really
impressed me most was how very gentle the security appeared to be with anyone
who DID manage to get onstage. These jubilant invaders were actually allowed to
touch Morrissey before being quickly led away...
The show's
duration seemed to fly by very rapidly, and ended with the emphatic "Speedway".
This was performed with so much energy and passion, and Morrissey looked
almost defiant as he snarled each and every word. The gang left the stage
promptly after this stirring number, but there was the matter of an encore to
be attended to. The crowd stamped and cheered while waiting for their idol to
come back and entertain his blindly adoring masses. The legendary chant of
"MORRISSEY, MORRISSEY, MORRISSEY" started up and faded out again,
when suddenly the man that is The Moz was back again. He did just the one
encore, but for me it was as good as the rest of the show! It was, of course, "Shoplifters
of the World Unite". I danced away delightedly, completely ecstatic
that the lads/days of old were being honoured in such a big way.
I watched,
amused, as the crowd below went absolutely mental to this track, and I lost
count of how many people attempted to defy the powers of gravity and reach
Morrissey (Love and Bruises were in abundance on this most hectic of
nights!!). I was just totally blown away
by the entirely awesome sight of actually seeing Morrissey sing a Smiths song
in the flesh (it was the first time I'd witnessed such a miracle, as I was too
young to see The Smiths when they were in existence - I didn't even like them
at the time, though the total reverse is obviously now true!). Boz and his men
did the song a great justice, and I was very satisfied by this. As the number
came to an end, Morrissey bade his loyal and faithful followers farewell,
before he and his troupe once more exited the stage amid supportive and
congratulatory applause.
I left the hall
after waiting around for a little while with Neil, as the lights came on and
the backdrop started to rise almost majestically. We went outside, and walked
over to the spot where the tour vehicles were all parked together. Neil espied
David Bret, author of the official Morrissey Biography "Landscapes of the
Mind". He's actually rather small, much more so than I would have thought!
I was hoping that Neil and I would perhaps go for a wander, and find Morrissey
in his dressing room or something (yeah, right!!), but we stayed outside with
quite a few other hopefuls. Shortly after we'd left the hall, the band members
clambered onto the tour coach. They waved at everyone through the windows, and
I just smiled at them in my own cute way. About five or ten minutes later, Morrissey
was hurriedly smuggled on, but was hidden from public scrutiny (pity!) as he was
covered by someone's coat. The coach set off very swiftly, followed by some of
the fans. My beloved one had gone, but I was pleased and privileged to have
seen him at all.
So then, what
did we do after that? Well, we passed a lot of people selling bootleg posters
and t-shirts and the like, as well as the many fanzine editors displaying their
delectably tasty wares. I'd quite like to have bought a programme, but for the
entire tour there were none available, and I couldn't afford the other stuff as
it was just too expensive for my meagre budget to stretch to (Ah'm only a poor
student, don't ya know!!). Neil and I tiredly made our way back to the
Interchange, where we caught the train home...
I had a
thoroughly wonderful night out, and thought that the show was definitely nothing
less than brilliant (as were the other dates I attended). I've been at
loggerheads with the entirely erratic Steven Patrick so many times in the past,
but well, at the end of the day, I LOVE THE MAN TOTALLY, and think the
world of him. It was great being able to see him virtually face to face once
again, and I can only hope I'll be able to repeat the experience one of these
days. Okay then, enough of my incessant rambling. Thanks for reading this here
review of mine, and let's hope that Morrissey's much-needed influence will
continue for years to come...
ANGIE LEWIS
Manchester,
ENGLAND
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| Yours Truly circa 1995, at another Boxers gig (Drury Lane Theatre) |
MORRISSEY
- ST. GEORGE'S HALL, BRADFORD
THURSDAY,
16 FEBRUARY 1995
The full setlist
for the concert is as follows:
ENTRANCE: Jerusalem
1) Billy Budd
2) Have-a-Go Merchant
3) Spring-Heeled Jim
4) You're the One for Me, Fatty
5) The More You Ignore Me, the Closer I Get
6) Whatever Happens, I Love You
7) We'll Let You Know
8) Jack The Ripper
9) Why Don't You Find Out for Yourself
10) The National Front Disco
11) Moonriver
12) Hold Onto Your Friends
13) Boxers
14) Now My Heart is Full
15) Speedway
ENCORE:
16) Shoplifters of the World Unite
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| Appearance in "True to You" fanzine Part 1 - general overview |
 |
| Appearance in "True to You" fanzine Part 2 - my review |
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