Quarterlifeparty

Full Disclosure: I have been a fan of The Smiths for only about 4/5 years. And I only own the Singles album. Yes…i know…blasphemy. But it was always one of those “i need to get more of such and such bands albums” things. That being said I absolutely LOVE Morrissey’s voice. As far as I am concerned he could sing the back of a Lucky Charms box and it would sound good.

So when I heard he was coming to Baltimore to play at Rams Head Live (a very small venue for a Morrissey show) I jumped on some (expensive) tickets. I dragged myself to the show, as I was pretty tired from seeing Ryan Adams the night before in DC, but as soon as Morrissey hit the stage I was in awe and instantly energized.

Now I know Morrissey is known for his prima-donna tendencies (not allowing any cameras at the venue, not letting anyone see his face back stage, etc) so I was expecting him to kind of be all greater-than-thou on stage, and what really happened couldn’t have been further from that: the guy was hugely likeable and had a presence on stage that I haven’t seen from many, if any, performers.

The guy walked on stage in a full tux amid an applause that would make the 1960 Beattles blush and had the entire crowd hanging on his every flip of the mic cord until the very last song. Girls (and boys) were reaching out to touch him like he had the cure for cancer and he was just having a ton of fun on stage. Three times through the set he took his sweet-soaked shirt off and threw it into the crowd, and ran off stage only to be back on in less than 30 seconds with a brand new one. Seriously, what other 40+ year old singer could get away with taking off his shirt, throwing it into the crowd, and standing there in a “check this out” kind of way?

Did i mention he sounded great? His entire backing band was dressed in nothing but loin clothes and I can now honestly say I have seen the most in shape accordion player ever.

I have been on a high from the show all day long, and you can be sure that this saturday you will find me at the local record store picking up all of his back catalogue. well done sir…well done.

Tags: , morrissey