Nothing to Answer for: The Fearless Art of Morrissey

“Refusing to take the path of least resistance when it comes to his career, Morrissey is the antithesis of the cookie-cutter ‘artists’ favored and propped up by the modern music industry.”

Morrissey’s You Are the Quarry album turns 20 this year. It was also the first record I ever heard by the iconic singer from Manchester, whose haunting vocal melodies and witty, introspective lyrics have captured the imagination of generations of fans. “Here is somebody who is able to encapsulate a lot of deep thought, gloss it with irony, and then repackage it with emotion,” the writer Will Self once said about the legendary recording artist.

After hearing You Are the Quarry for the first time, I soon found out that “Moz,” as he is known to his fans, first appeared on the music scene in 1982 with his seminal proto-indie outfit, The Smiths. As a solo artist, he had three number one albums in England in three different decades. I also quickly discovered that Morrissey was no stranger to controversy. The outspoken frontman survived multiple cancellation attempts throughout his career. And he never apologized.

Morrissey has always been a contrarian. Album titles such as Meat Is Murder or The Queen Is Dead and songs like “Margaret on the Guillotine” set him apart from his pop contemporaries in the 1980s. A staunch anti-Royalist, anti-Thatcherite, and animal rights advocate, he quickly became something of a darling of the left-leaning music press in England. But the moment he offended progressive sensitivities, he faced accusations of racism and fascism.