> I Will See You In Far Off Places - One of the lesser tracks on the album.
> Alain's worst certainly. A good enough opener I suppose. Morrissey's
> distinctively interesting and original take on world politics is more
> pedestrian here. A simple mention of the USA bombing someone isn't enough
> to fully explore his intelligent take on politics. America Is Not The
> World this ain't. If we approach it as Morrissey's political song on this
> album, it fails. However, if we simply apporach it as a Middle Eastern
> flavoured little ditty about life and love it nearly suffices.
> Dear God Please Help Me - This really is one of most beautiful things
> Morrissey has ever recorded. I truly believe it's on par with I Know It's
> Over. As I said, I played it earlier on and I started crying at the second
> line. The organ creates the perfect ethereal ambiance. Peaceful yet
> troubled and tinged with regret. Morrissey sounds like a man sick of it
> all. Ready to lay down and die (or other). The arpeggio at the beginning
> and throughout is extraordinarily accomplished and evocative. I'm still
> not absolutely certain of the song's meaning and I don't want to be yet.
> You Have Killed Me - A good single and song. Placed next to other songs on
> the album it quickly diminishes in quality, but as a radio friendly tune
> it is perfect. I think we need these songs from Morrissey. It's ours and
> his bread and butter.
> The Youngest Was The Most Loved - A great glammy song. Visconti has
> sprinkled his fairy dust on this. Unfortunately, at times the music just
> feels slightly... dull. It could have been much better. The children's
> choir, however, is a revelation and saves the song from mediocrity.
> Frankly, the lead guitar isn't very good. It fails to be original or
> anything out of the ordinary. I'm disappointed that when Jesse should be
> producing career best work, he's creating this slightly plodding piece of
> music. Mozza's lyrics are entertaining, though. It's still pretty good.
> In The Future When All's Well - A good bit better that The Youngest Was
> The Most Loved. More tuneful and interesting both lyrically and musically.
> Jesse still isn't doing excellently, though. Hardly that much different to
> the other Jesse songs on the album. It is quite fantastically catchy,
> though. I think more could have been done with this song. Visconti
> could've taken it further. Pushed Moz out of his comfort zone.
> The Father Who Must Be Killed - This is one of the most interesting
> up-tempo songs on the album (and one of Alain's). Reminds me of other
> Morrissey songs in which he approaches a touchy subject with extreme
> intelligence and insight (November Spawned A Moster, National Front Disco
> etc). The music is suitably dark and disturbed. The lyrics are spot on.
> One of my favourites.
> Life Is A Pigsty - Following on from Dear God Pleaes Help Me, Alain proves
> he is still Morrissey's best musician. A genuinely experimental Morrissey
> song. The bass is the most arresting and pertinent it's been in years.
> Mozza's vocals and lyrics are career best stuff and his most original in a
> long time. This is what Morrissey should be doing. Much more left field
> songs with his inimitable take on things with no lacklustre music to weigh
> him down. The first three minutes are merely a prelude (a genius one at
> that). When the acoustic guitar kicks in and Morrissey starts singing
> "Life is a pigsty" it becomes magically life affirming stuff
> somehow. "And if you don't know this, then what do you know?"
> Absolutely marvellous. The electric guitar kicks in at it turns from
> contemplative to epic. This song is epic. Words cannot express how much I
> love this song. And as I sit here typing it I'm starting to cry to
> "Even now in the final hours of my life I'm falling in love
> again". Dear Lord. It's beautiful.
> I'll Never Be Anybody's Hero Now - Another of Alain's up-tempo numbers.
> It's less interesting than The Father Who Must be Killed, but still a
> splendid song. I love the vocal melody in this song. It reminds me of lots
> of Irish songs. The outro, keyboards and build up to the chorus are all
> absolutely splendorous. A majesty of a song. The sum of it's parts aren't
> brilliant, but the song on the whole manages to be quite rewarding. It
> shouldn't really be as good as it is. Yes, the lyrics are fairly standard
> Moz rejection mode, but for some reason it's very appealing. I really,
> really like it.
> On The Streets I Ran - Jesse is back to have another go. After three gems
> from Alain, this very nearly serves as competition. Different enough to
> Jesse's other songs and flexuous enough to interest. A nice rhythm to it.
> Reminiscent of Your Arsenal. It isn't spectacular - just very good. And
> I'm noticing how I'm finding it hard to write anything about this song.
> Not a good sign. The intro and outro are oddly the best parts of this
> song.
> To Me You Are A Work of Art - Here there is real yearning and craving in
> his voice. It tackles any boredom one may be experiencing by tracks eight,
> nine and eleven. Alain confirms he is the superior musician. The wailing
> in the background, prominent bass and brilliant arrangement make this one
> of the best songs on the record. This is the romantic Moz, but as ever
> with the heartache thrown in ("I would give you my heart, that's if I
> had one"). Again there's a Celtic flavour in the strings. Is Moz in
> Italy or Inniskeen?
> I Just Want To See The Boy Happy - Nothing out of the ordinary here
> really. Jesse again produces work that pales in comparison to Alain. I was
> really behind Jesse after hearing You have Killed Me. I have to say I'm
> slightly disappointed in him. He really doesn't show a lot of variation or
> creativity on this album. This is evident in this song. The music, lyrics
> and vocals don't interest me too much. Saying that, I kind of like it and
> will obviously listen to it. Just not as much as the rest.
> At Last I Am Born - The military feel of the drums perfectly suits the
> unforgiving feeling of this song. Morrissey is gay, has a penis and
> apparently knows how to use it. He is no longer a crumpled mess of a human
> sitting in his bedroom worried about what others think of his shoes. He is
> a confident older man. And if other people don't like him - f*** 'em.
> It would be easy to lump this album in with Maladjusted and Southpaw
> Grammar due to it's many shifts in quality, but the heights of this record
> equal anything Morrissey has done. Purely for Dear God Please Help Me, The
> Father Who Must Be Killed, Life Is A Pigsty, To Me You Are A Work Of Art
> and At Last I Am Born this record is ranked alongside The Queen Is Dead
> and Vauxhall And I. And yes, all the songs I just listed were written by
> Alain Whyte. Was there any point in Jesse being brought on board? Should
> he have stayed a session musician rather than a major contributor? I would
> say so. I believe Boz and Alain could have done better than on the whole.
> And remember we still have half a dozen B-sdies left to hear. That's all I
> can write for the moment. Off to play the record on shuffle while killing
> virtual people. That's the real test!
> 9/10
Enjoyed reading your review, don't agree with all of it, but you made one error - DGPHM is Jesse's. You can check this, but it's true.