Product Description

This book gets behind the public image to tell Morrissey's story in the man's own words and explore in detail the extraordinary lyrical content of his songs. A former NME writer, Len Brown has interviewed Morrissey more times than any other journalist. He was the first writer to talk to Morrissey about the death of The Smiths and the birth of the singer's solo career. The book will celebrate the many artists Morrissey has elevated to iconic status - via the lyrics or Smiths covers including Cilla Black, Dusty Springfield, Billy Fury, Marc Bolan and The New York Dolls. It will offer in-depth insight into Morrissey's lifelong commitment to promoting the genius of Oscar Wilde.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #31280 in Books
• Published on: 2008-07-30
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Hardcover
• 350 pages

Review
Brown lifts the lid on one of the most individual performers we have today - from Morrissey's sexuality to what still drives him. Often biographies don't tell us anything new - this is an exception. Fans will love this insight into Morrissey. --The Sun newspaper September 2008

Review
Now my head is full As a man whose meeting with Morrissey, both formal and informal, stretch back to being the first to interview the solo Moz in 1988, and on into 2003 and his pre-You Are The Quarry resurgence, Brown has more credentials than most to hurl a book about Steven Patrick out into the market. A self-confessed Smiths diehard, he also avoids turning this into some fawning Mozfather love-in.

It's not quite bursting with unprinted interviews. Most of the text re-tells the story, with Brown's own personal experiences (of Morrissey and other events in his life) adding colour, turning these memoirs-cum- biography into a hugely enjoyable read. What we get is a portrait of a man who, to reference Oscar Wilde as Brown does, has turned his life into a work of art.

Brown takes Moz's declaration that "everything's linked, everybody takes from the artists they love" as a manifesto, tracing Morrissey's story through his literature, British film/TV and female pop influences. Ultimately (and sometimes wearily overbearingly so), it leads right back to Wilde, Morrissey's biggest love. The final chapter, tying up all the influences and parallels between the artists' lives, might get a bit much, mind. Without being brainsizzlingly new, Brown's turned out a very fair, even-handed account that happily gets you running back to those records to play detective yourself.

Review
There is much to enjoy here; the interview material is sparkling and Brown's extrapolations on the figures who populate Morrissey's imagination, from the obvious (Oscar Wilde, James Dean) to the more obscure (TV's pioneering camp hairdresser Raymond 'Teasy-Weasy' Bessone) show an impressive grasp of Mozza arcana...one of the better books on the man who has claimed onstage to be Stinky Turner, Stan Ogden and 'Bruce Springroll'.

Customer Reviews

Brilliant
Meetings with Morrissey is an account of a series of interviews with Morrissey over a 25 year period conducted by former NME man Len Brown. Not alone, Brown spent the early eighties frustrated and depressed by the state of the country and the music it was producing. That was until September 1983 when he first saw The Smiths and his despair at the re-election of Mrs Thatcher and the accompanying celebration of all things crass had a soundtrack, and a voice. Consequently, this book is more social history than biography. There are other books which focus in on the split between Morrissey and Marr and the endless (and pointless) speculation on Morrisey's sexuality and it is to this books credit that it does neither. Instead, it offers an analysis of not just why The Smiths were a great band but from whence came that searing critique which lifts The Smiths work out of the annals of pop music and places it alongside other great works of art. That critique was Morrissey's. While everybody else seemed to be saying `this is brilliant', Morrissey expressed an emotional language that I didn't have to say what I really thought and felt, `this is awful'. By revisiting the interviews he conducted with Morrissey, Brown is able to shed light on the key influences upon Morrissey. The chapter on Oscar Wilde is brilliant and gets closer than anything else to explaining the sense of sexual alienation and tragedy which underpin Morrissey's best work. However, this is just one aspect of the many and interconnected cultural stimulus that is explored to great effect. From soap opera characters to French cinema Brown creates a work that is insightful on a much deeper level than simply 'what happened where'.

Whilst an illuminating insight of itself, it is the personal and socio-political context of the period through which Brown weaves his insights into Morrissey's life and art which make this book such a tender and worthwhile exposition. Brown gives as much of himself as he does of Morrissey and in doing so brings the reader into intimate contact with something of themselves. Beautifully written and thoroughly researched, somehow, it really did say something about my life.

A book about Morrissey by someone who's actually met him!
REally enjoyed this though it's a bit personal in parts. Well researched, doesn't get hung up on Morrissey's sexuality, some funny new encounters, insights into the '80s NMe hostility to The Smiths, great chapter on Oscar Wilde's influence on Mozzer, and some good photos too. Criticises some of Morrissey's politics - particularly those views on immigration - so no doubt it'll annoy his most devoted, deluded fans, but overall it's quite a fair, affectionate and uplifting account of meetings with an extraordinary artist. Pretty good all round.

Too narrow and too fawning
I was really looking forward to this book. Brown has undertaken countless interviews with Morrissey over the years and I expected great things from him.

Having now finished reading `Meetings with' I can honestly say that I found it quite a let down. The problem as I see it is that Brown has attempted to construct a biography of sorts but he fails to address any aspects of Morrissey's personal life which is frankly pretty crucial in any biography. Also, the analysis and exploration of Morrissey's work and career is not consistent. Some albums such as `Southpaw' and `Maladjusted' are given around only half a page each. Even his more commercially favoured albums, though given a little more attention, are skipped over with little detail in my opinion.

Where it does work of course is in allowing us fuller transcripts of the interviews undertaken with Morrissey over the last 25 years or so. As I've said elsewhere Morrissey gives great interview so these sections are pretty valuable. Also, unique to this Morrissey book, Brown does explore Morrissey's influences with significant focus, notably Wilde, which is very enlightening.

Brown and Morrissey have endured a 'friendship' of sorts over the years and this unfortunately is another difficulty. The book makes very little criticism of Morrissey and even I, as a longstanding fan, know that there is scope for constructive negative comment in the man's career.

Overall it's worth reading for the interviews but Rogan's seminal `Morrissey and Marr' still remains the biography of choice alongside Simpson's intelligent and very witty `St Morrissey' study.