It's crunch time for Morrissey...

[Maurice E]

An underperforming single mauled by the critics (possibly worst reception since Roy’s Keen), and ignored by many fans.
Accused, nationally, of being a ‘big-quiffed bigot’ with ‘dodgy views on immigration’.
An aborted tour.
Album sales in decline (Quarry 350,000, ROTT 150,000), Greatest Hits shock departure from top 30 after one week despite huge promotional campaign (TV, Radio, billboards, music press).

Moz now needs, more than ever, to deliver a fantastic album to stop the, err, rot. Not a ‘quite good’ album with one or two really good songs.
A consistently brilliant album stuffed with magical melodies, insightful and contemporary lyrics, and imaginative arrangements. Come on Moz!

 

[vivabob]

i dont think many fans ignored the single , i agree that he needs a good album to keep the momentum going

the greatest hits didnt sell well due to all the fact the songs mostly have been released in the past 4 years , anyone with a passsing interest would have bought them

the tour being aborted is nonsense , yes dates were cancelled but it wasnt aborted - life exists outside london , i think looking at the roundhouse dates a lot of people didnt realise that . Phill made a good point when trying to organise going to see some of the french dates , who wants to spend time at the same venue in london when you can see the world

i dont think its crunch time though , possibly after malajusted but not now , he has proved himself to be an institution ,, he's hardly living hand to mouth and i belive that the support he has now will continue to support him long into retirement

 

[Maurice E]

i dont think many fans ignored the single , i agree that he needs a good album to keep the momentum going

the greatest hits didnt sell well due to all the fact the songs mostly have been released in the past 4 years , anyone with a passsing interest would have bought them

the tour being aborted is nonsense , yes dates were cancelled but it wasnt aborted - life exists outside london , i think looking at the roundhouse dates a lot of people didnt realise that . Phill made a good point when trying to organise going to see some of the french dates , who wants to spend time at the same venue in london when you can see the world

i dont think its crunch time though , possibly after malajusted but not now , he has proved himself to be an institution ,, he's hardly living hand to mouth and i belive that the support he has now will continue to support him long into retirement

Fair comments about the tour.
I ran a poll about the single though and a lot of us didn't bother buying it. About a third I think.
Moz will always be able to tour and always has done, even in the so called 'wilderness years' he toured every couple of years. But when he tours without new material, he becomes a nostalgia act, singing to an ageing fanbase. He doesn't want that.
If album sales continue to decline at the current rate (i.e. new album sells half as many as ROTT), very few record companies will make him an offer he would consider acceptable.
So I do think it kind of is crunchtime. We really need a brilliant album from Morrissey. Let's hope he can deliver...

 

[maybe]

The GH album didn't sell well because it's just that - a Greatest Hits album with a shit tracklisting. I'm surprised that it even charted that high, and as for the fall to #30 something in the second week... did anybody seriously expect anything else? That's a common occurrence with Morrissey albums. And while I personally like That's How People Grow Up I agree that it wasn't the best single to support the album, All You Need Is Me would have been better. Also, new b-sides probably would have boosted the sales.

Yes, the last three Roundhouse dates were cancelled - and? He was ill for Christ's sake. That happens. I can't believe people on here are still going on about it. Nobody I spoke to after the Friday show was angry or bitter, so all the negative comments on here were quite surprising.

Don't forget that the Quarry sales were that high because of the comeback factor and two outstanding singles. The hype was immense and the decline in sales afterwards was just natural. I think the Ringleader sales are more representative for a Morrissey album than the Quarry sales. He could make the best album of all time and wouldn't sell much more. He'd have to bring out the really big guns, similar to the comeback after the 7 year hiatus - the autobiography, a Smiths reunion (will never happen, just giving an example) or a headline like "Morrissey in Margaret Thatcher marriage shocker" or something else that grabs the general public's attention, then he could come close to YATQ's sales.

So no, I don't think it's crunch time in Morrisseyland - it's just back to normal now.

 

[SpookyMulder]

These comments are truly disgusting.

If you don't like it - GET OFF THE FORUM! This place is meant to be for fans, not vultures who circle & destroy the forum.

A quote on an earlier post says it all - a third of "fans" didn't buy the new single.

No - 100% of fans DID buy the single - the people who didn't aren't "fans".

It's only crunch time for Mozzer because of the very, very poor fanbase he seems to have. He's not letting you down - it's the other way around.

Idiots.

 

[vivabob]

Fair comments about the tour.
I ran a poll about the single though and a lot of us didn't bother buying it. About a third I think.
Moz will always be able to tour and always has done, even in the so called 'wilderness years' he toured every couple of years. But when he tours without new material, he becomes a nostalgia act, singing to an ageing fanbase. He doesn't want that.
If album sales continue to decline at the current rate (i.e. new album sells half as many as ROTT), very few record companies will make him an offer he would consider acceptable.
So I do think it kind of is crunchtime. We really need a brilliant album from Morrissey. Let's hope he can deliver...

i hear what your saying but i cant help but think that YATQ sold exceptionally well , but ROTT , wasnt excactlly in my opinion the most accessable of albums , especially for newer fans

it is also my opinion that after an amazing selling album the follow up is never deemed as good by the public and never sells as well

vivahate - kill uncle
vaxhall - southpaw
YATQ - ROTT

i understand where your comming from regarding the poll , but i'm quite sure people bought it but didnt do the poll , i think its one of his stronger singles , the problem with the single was the distribution - hmv , zavvi , fopp all sold out of the single by the wednesday , in quite a large number of areas ...., who sells out a single on its opening week .

i do have confidence the next album will be amazing but even if it is will it sell well ... who knows , in my view decca still need to prove them selfs by aiming for the new market not the old faithful

i wonder what the average age of the people on here is ... i bet its two quite clear groups , 16 - 19 and 30 - 40

 

[Walkers Crisp]

The GH album didn't sell well because it's just that - a Greatest Hits album with a shit tracklisting. I'm surprised that it even charted that high, and as for the fall to #30 something in the second week... did anybody seriously expect anything else? That's a common occurrence with Morrissey albums. And while I personally like That's How People Grow Up I agree that it wasn't the best single to support the album, All You Need Is Me would have been better. Also, new b-sides probably would have boosted the sales.

Yes, the last three Roundhouse dates were cancelled - and? He was ill for Christ's sake. That happens. I can't believe people on here are still going on about it. Nobody I spoke to after the Friday show was angry or bitter, so all the negative comments on here were quite surprising.

Don't forget that the Quarry sales were that high because of the comeback factor and two outstanding singles. The hype was immense and the decline in sales afterwards was just natural. I think the Ringleader sales are more representative for a Morrissey album than the Quarry sales. He could make the best album of all time and wouldn't sell much more. He'd have to bring out the really big guns, similar to the comeback after the 7 year hiatus - the autobiography, a Smiths reunion (will never happen, just giving an example) or a headline like "Morrissey in Margaret Thatcher marriage shocker" or something else that grabs the general public's attention, then he could come close to YATQ's sales.

So no, I don't think it's crunch time in Morrisseyland - it's just back to normal now.

Exactly my thoughts. Very well put, Madame Butterfly.

 

[Maurice E]

These comments are truly disgusting.

If you don't like it - GET OFF THE FORUM! This place is meant to be for fans, not vultures who circle & destroy the forum.

A quote on an earlier post says it all - a third of "fans" didn't buy the new single.

No - 100% of fans DID buy the single - the people who didn't aren't "fans".

It's only crunch time for Mozzer because of the very, very poor fanbase he seems to have. He's not letting you down - it's the other way around.

Idiots.

It could be argued that you are the one doing Moz the greatest dis-service by blindly buying everything he does, regardless of its quality.

Moz is obsessed with chart positions; ergo when a single does well, he assumes it’s because it’s a great song. That’s why he’s put rubbish like Redondo Beach on Greatest Hits instead of fantastic songs like November, Piccadilly and Sunny.

It may be a good thing that many people round here didn’t buy ‘That’s How People Grow Up. That way Moz knows, he really has got to put out much, much better songs...

 

[Jones]

It could be argued that you are the one doing Moz the greatest dis-service by blindly buying everything he does, regardless of its quality.

Moz is obsessed with chart positions; ergo when a single does well, he assumes it’s because it’s a great song. That’s why he’s put rubbish like Redondo Beach on Greatest Hits instead of fantastic songs like November, Piccadilly and Sunny.

That's a big stretch. I very much doubt that's why he included that song. If he really thought that then he wouldn't be so in love with so many artists who've hardly seen a chart hit in their entire careers.

 

[laughing_anne]

It could be argued that you are the one doing Moz the greatest dis-service by blindly buying everything he does, regardless of its quality.

Moz is obsessed with chart positions; ergo when a single does well, he assumes it’s because it’s a great song. That’s why he’s put rubbish like Redondo Beach on Greatest Hits instead of fantastic songs like November, Piccadilly and Sunny.

It may be a good thing that many people round here didn’t buy ‘That’s How People Grow Up. That way Moz knows, he really has got to put out much, much better songs...

I agree with Redondo Beach, I never listen to it. However it does make sense to release a compilation with mostly recent songs as songs such as Piccadilly, November and Sunny etc are already available on different compilations . Had Morrissey released yet another compilation with the expected classics it would have been met with criticism. As far as I'm concerned, this GH is a contractual obligation.

And as for the new material, it rocks! I'm so looking forward to his new album.

 

[CharethCutestory]

That's a big stretch. I very much doubt that's why he included that song. If he really thought that then he wouldn't be so in love with so many artists who've hardly seen a chart hit in their entire careers.

I disagree, I think it was a good point. He wasn't talking about Morrissey's thoughts about other artists, he was talking about his thoughts of himself.

We live in a capitalist society, whether people like that or not it's a fact, it's supply and demand and as long as delusional morons say things like "I'll buy anything he releases" means that he will see the demand for sub standard shite and keep on churning it out.

Also people keep saying things like "His comments on immigration are nothing to do with his music". That may be true, but who wants to pay a racist?

 

[Skinner]

An underperforming single mauled by the critics (possibly worst reception since Roy’s Keen), and ignored by many fans.
Accused, nationally, of being a ‘big-quiffed bigot’ with ‘dodgy views on immigration’.
An aborted tour.
Album sales in decline (Quarry 350,000, ROTT 150,000), Greatest Hits shock departure from top 30 after one week despite huge promotional campaign (TV, Radio, billboards, music press).

Moz now needs, more than ever, to deliver a fantastic album to stop the, err, rot. Not a ‘quite good’ album with one or two really good songs.
A consistently brilliant album stuffed with magical melodies, insightful and contemporary lyrics, and imaginative arrangements. Come on Moz!

That's all I have to say about that.

 

[Ck.]

Is the decline in album sales not across the board for all artists?

 

[mozzer7]

I enjoy THPGU. However, I wish he had recorded "Something Is Squeezing My Skull" earlier and released that as a single. That would have a garnered a lot more positive feedback. I am still hoping he releases it as the first single for the new album.

 

[Assassin]

Jaysus,

Do people ever stop whining and demanding more?

 

[Dow Jones]

Jaysus,

Do people ever stop whining and demanding more?

Whining and demanding more is what makes us human. Obviously.

 

[mozzer7]

And I agree that he has been in more of a "crunch time" with previous albums. I.e., after Kill Unclie and Maladjusted.

 

[MadameChaos]

You know nothing of the Crunch! You haven't even been to the Crunch. Oh, a little day trip around the Crunch, we can all be tourists. Ooh look, there's a bit of crunch!

But seriously.

Don't you think you are being a bet negative? A bit demanding? Hmm? Yes?

The album got to number 5, and the single got to number 14. Thats pretty good good considering that THPGU (you've got me doing it now) got precious little airplay (and if the polls are anything to go by only 1/3 of the people on here bought it) and the album was a greatest hits (so most fans will have most of the tracks already).

What more do you want?

 

[That's Enough For Me]

These comments are truly disgusting.

If you don't like it - GET OFF THE FORUM! This place is meant to be for fans, not vultures who circle & destroy the forum.

A quote on an earlier post says it all - a third of "fans" didn't buy the new single.

No - 100% of fans DID buy the single - the people who didn't aren't "fans".

It's only crunch time for Mozzer because of the very, very poor fanbase he seems to have. He's not letting you down - it's the other way around.

Idiots.

Some questions if this post is not a wind-up:

1. Why would the original poster 'get off the forum' for expressing an opinion and a fairly accurate one judging by other posts on this thread

2. Are you saying that you only qualify as a fan if you give Moz money regardless of what he's offering?

3. Why are the fans letting him down when he is the originator of the product? If the fans (who must have been fans for a reason historically) like the product (as they must have done previously to become fans in the first place) they buy it, non? Your description of a fan comes across as having the blind sheep mentality does it not?

4. Out of interest, do you use the words 'vile' and 'loathesome' a lot in your vocabulary and are you 'sick and ill' a lot?

 

[CrystalGeezer]

Say my name.