Trojan Forum

[ReggaeFire]

So now that Sanctuary has *given* Morrissey the Attack label... what the heck is going to do with it? Is he going to bring it back ala the Steve Barrow era for Reggae reissues (doubtful, he does think "reggae is vile" after all) or is he doing it simply so that the labels on his new record will say "Attack"?

If it's the former, well odd, but okay. If it's the latter I would be a little offended that Sanctuary would give away a storied piece of Reggae history to a washed up pop star (who apparently hates reggae to boot) for his own use.

Jon

[Lt. Ritchie]

I think it's fair to say, the jury's still out on this one. I feel many longtime Trojan supporters may be waiting to be convinced.... Mark LaMarr - yes. Morrissey - well, we'll see.
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I'll think of something later....

[malc]

One might be tempted to mention the demise of the TRL index, progress i suppose.

[Lt. Ritchie]

One might also agree with you!
Sadly, long gone are the days of TRL TTL TBL - not to mention other-label classics like TMG and TML (You knew where you stood with those.) As for those meaningless all-digit catalogue numbers - do me a favour!
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I'll think of something later....

[Zapatoo_the_Tiger]

...not forgetting those other evocative singles catalogue prefixes US, TI, HJ, GD, BI, SO, CS, BU, CA, GAS, PM, BB, FAB, BAM and many more...

But anyway, at least "our" catalogue numbers haven't changed to be those "let's-have-a-faceless-43-digit-so-we-can-match-it-with-the-bar-code catalogue number" ... apparently, this is known as "progress" and/or "standardisation"

P.S. Morrissey - Attack! What are Sanctuary playing at?
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In love or in sympathy with someone. Having a party fun or fête then rush for a Halagala record.

Yes! It's RAM! RAM! RAM! GO! MAN - GO!

[Dave Home]

[Eben]

As a long time fan of both classic reggae and Morrissey/The Smiths I am also curious about the outcome of this new venture. Morrissey is in fact a fan of reggae, as witnessed by his inclusion of the ska scorcher "Swan Lake" by The Cats on his "Under the Influence" compilation, and his comments in the liner notes:
www.debaser.org/morrissey/sleevenotes.html

The oft quoted "reggae is vile" is a comment that should be taken with a grain of salt, anyone who is even remotely familiar with Morrissey should know that he loves to say outrageous things in jest and doesn't usually bother to clarify even after they have been maliciously misconstrued. In addition, at the time the comment was made it is my understanding that there were a large number of English youth who, while being fans of ska, rocksteady, and reggae, were disillusioned with the direction of reggae in the late 70's/early 80's. Morrissey may have identified with this general sentiment.

It has been reported on various Morrissey fan sites that the deal with Sanctuary/Trojan gives Moz complete control over Attack, both the ability to sign artists and manage the back catalog. If this is true I would say that we can hope for both reissues and new releases with the Attack label. It's well known that Morrissey is an absolute music fanatic and probably even knows what the heck you guys are talking about with all the "catalogue prefixes" you're throwing about. It's certainly an indication of his knowledge/interest that he specifically asked for the Attack label to be resurrected.

I would be careful with the "washed up pop star" comment, it's this same kind of uninformed generalization which I hear from non-reggae fans who wonder why I'm so obsessed with "outdated music for drugged out hippies which all sounds the same". Morrissey is to lyrical genius as Lee Perry is to production genius.

[boy afraid]

I find the comment about morrissey being "washed up" quite offensive. If you had seen him live on his 2002 tour then you would not have voiced such an ill informed comment. I appreciate people being concerned about Morrissey's involvment in the label, given his historical comment, however I challenge anyone to find anything other than one quote. Morrissey has always played the media to a degree and this is no exception. If you read the press release on the sanctuary site you will see that the guy who worked out Mozzer's contract was overwhelmed by his depth of knowledge about the label and its history. As was the case when he signed to EMI he has requested a specific label because the history of the label means something to him and he wants to be associated with it. Would you chose to be associated with something you believed to be "VILE?" I think not. Morrissey being involved in the label will draw a whole new audience in and raise awareness of the label and its back catalogue, fans of Morrissey will be keen to find out what on earth he has chosen this vehicle for and if this increases sales and promotes the label then how can that be a bad thing?

It is nice to see that he has had such a welcome from you folks, do you want him to fail? If not then lets be positive about something new, this is a big bold step by the record company and fingers crossed it will work for everyone's benefit.

Take care

Boy Afraid

[sebboe]

Actually, Morrissey, in addition to saying regae was vile added that is is black supremacist music, but as was said, Morrissey does say a lot of things that he doesn't mean or later retracts.

He once said something to the effect that "Madonna is the closest thing there is to legalized prostitution" but later said something like, "She has worked very hard to get where she is and has earned it."

Boz Boorer, Morrissey's music coordinator (or some such title) who he has been touring with since 1991 and recording with since 1992 has a list of ska/reggae favourites on his website right now (http://www.bozboorer.co.uk)

If there is something in the archives worthy of attention, I would assume Morrissey would try to make it happen.

[astropop3]

anyone, or any fan of morrissey remember the island records label he used for a few singles. Reggae music!
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astropop3.com

[Lt. Ritchie]

Good to see this discussion taking off, and welcome to our new friends here

One thing is for certain, Sanctuary are very astute when it comes to marketing, and aren't likely to have enlisted Mr M's support if they were in any doubt about the benefit of his association with the company. I must confess, I know very little about him - his music isn't really my scene, but I'll be very interested to see what he comes up with!
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I'll think of something later....

[ReggaeFire]

> Would you chose to be associated with something you believed to be "VILE?"

Well, let's be honest "Moz" has always courted controversy. He says and does things to get a reaction. While I think he's probably not a racist his repeated flirtation with Nationalistic looks and questionable lyrics intentionally raised the specter that he was. He never quelled these ideas, apparently he chose to be associated with something that most of us would consider vile.

Q: Do you think people are innately racist?
M: Yes. I don't want to sound horrible or pessimistic but I don't really
think, for instance, black people and white people will ever really get on
or like each other. I don't really think they ever will. The French will
never like the English. (Q Magazine, September 1992)

And I'll stand by my "washed up" comment, when was the last time he had a hit? I'm not saying he isn't making music that his loyal fan base love, I'm just saying his heyday is in the past. I love Madness, but they're washed up pop stars too.

Jon

[suedehead]

... but not having a 'hit' doesn't surely equate to being 'washed up', does it? i mean, have you looked at the charts in the UK or anywhere these days? (Do i sound like my dad? maybe...)

Funny what you said about Madness Jon. I've been a Madness fan since Baggy Trousers and saw them live then and then again at the 1st Madstock, which was when Morrissey was supporting them. Anyway, Morrissey's set was great that day and dispite what I read in the eNeMa E it was sad, fat, drunk Londoners who threw coins at Moz and not the skinheads or music lovers... And it seemed to be his lack of sexuality that annoyed them more than the Union flag... but i digress.

Anyway its funny Jon, 'cos whenever Suggs is on TV my missus shouts out 'fat-has-been' just to wind me up - bless 'er heart

And here's what the Moz has said re Reggae in more recent times...
"I once said, 'Reggae is vile,' did I? Well, several tongue-in-cheek things were said in those days, which, when placed in cold print, lost their humorous quality.
"This track [Swan Lake by the Cats], along with Double Barrel and Young, Gifted and Black, were staple teenage necessities to me."

And the good people at the Sanctuary Records Group have said officially...
"Early on in our discussions, Morrissey proved himself to be a connoisseur of our Trojan Records catalogue and expressed an interest in using the Attack label for the release of his records."

Morrissey's solo career so far has allowed him to release records on a resurrected HMV label [following his idol Billy Fury], RCA [following Elvis Presley's UK releases and classic Bowie releases] and then the Island label [oops - forgot who he was following on this one... ]

Anyway, as said plainly above, Morrissey is a massive music nut and vinyl junky. I have no doubt that he knows his stuff, and although he is perhaps unlikely to release a Reggae album himself or even a dub version of 'Everyday is like Sunday' it is likely he'll produce some interesting songs and maybe get some classic reggae and new music into the shops via this wonderful label.


"This is the days of wrath, Eastwood,
I am the Ugly One,
If you want me meet me at the big gun down.
I am Van Cleef
Die!
Die!
Die!!!!!!"
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If one tells the truth,
one is sure,
sooner or later to be found out.

[Zapatoo_the_Tiger]

Informative comments re Morrissey - and presuming these are largely accurate, my views change (after all, I did enjoy some of the Smiths/Morrissey hits)...

Does this mean we can expect some quality reggae re-releases? ...although Cats' "Swan Lake" was issued on BAF (UK BAF1 1968 and was a small UK hit thanks, I'm sure to regular plays on Mike Raven's Sunday evening "R&B Show" on Radio 1), is there any chance Morrissey will be releasing this recording via Attack? ...selfish request really, since my 7" single of this has definitely seen better days
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In love or in sympathy with someone. Having a party fun or fête then rush for a Halagala record.

Yes! It's RAM! RAM! RAM! GO! MAN - GO!

[algoriddim]

Has anything come out from the "new" attach yet?

Attack Gold singles?
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www.imanselection.com | www.algoriddim.com