40 Years of Morrissey
For better or worse, Morrissey has been a notable figure in the public eye for 40 years now, with today marking the anniversary of the debut self-titled album by legendary band The Smiths. Released to critical acclaim on the label Rough Trade on this day in 1984, it helped catapult the band into the upper echelons of British music royalty. There is a lot to say about how this rise to fame may have impacted Morrissey’s less-than-questionable political views and stances, but that’s not to detract from the outstanding prowess shown by the whole band here.
While this album is often overshadowed in people’s eyes by the band’s third album, The Queen is Dead, it’s always been a toss-up for me in terms of which I prefer. Where their self-titled album is remarkably consistent, with peaks and valleys that lay pretty close to each other, The Queen is Dead is a trek through the Swiss Alps, bound to fall flat just after soaring like Icarus. The consistency of their debut is unparalleled in their discography to me, even if the band may hit higher peaks in the future; I would be hard pressed to find many albums by any rock band that can retain such a quality throughout.
With all this being said, how does any of this impact Morrissey as a public figure? He was at the forefront of animal rights advocacy in the ‘80s, as well as being an early notable figure for the LGBTQ+ movement at a time where it was much more frowned upon. Since then though, his politics have become much more problematic, to say the least. There have been accusations of racism and xenophobia levied against him, culminating in public outbursts from the controversial figure, as well as in one case, a lawsuit against NME for libel in 2007.
It’s hard to find a middle ground for someone like Morrissey. While on one hand he was the figurehead of one of the most influential and acclaimed bands of the 1980s, along with guitarist Johnny Marr, he is also one of the most criticized and lambasted public figures since then, gaining headlines with almost anything he says. Should his politics take away from his music, and vice versa? I don’t think so. While it is hard to completely separate the two from each other, they should be viewed from different angles, almost as if it were coming from two separate people. We are seeing this play out in real time with more artists lately, most notably Kanye West after his anti-semitic comments. To condemn these people does not mean to disregard the art they have provided us with, particularly when that art came from a different time before the controversy took place.