Kirsty mentions Morrissey in the Times of London dated 15 05 2000. Link:

Guys down the chip shop swear she's Elvis

Excerpt:

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Unexpectedly but happily, Bono from U2 can answer that question. "Red hair, sharp tongue - she should be Irish; but I think of Kirsty as one in a line of great English songwriters that includes Ray Davies, Paul Weller and Morrissey. The Noëlle Coward of her generation." He isn't wrong, and he's got celeb back-up to prove it. Morrissey, very much the Morrissey of his generation, noted that MacColl has "great songs and a crackin' bust. She is a supreme original - but not, as far as I know, one of the original Supremes." And Johnny Marr, who played guitar alongside Morrissey in the Smiths, reckons she has "the wit of Ray Davies and the harmonic invention of the Beach Boys. Only cooler."

We know all of this because in 1995, when she released her greatest hits album, MacColl enjoyed the fun bit of death without actually dying - she got her peers to write the sleevenotes in the form of a eulogy. Every rock luminary you can think of chipped in with tributes to her ability to write perfect pop singles, sing like an angel and drink them all under the table. Only Morrissey mentioned her breasts, though.

When I meet her today - in her own house this time, and drinking just tea, thank God - she admits it was Morrissey's tribute that touched her the most. "I was heavily impacted by him as a writer. He taught me that you can write about what you want to write about, and not all the stuff that was previously associated with pop lyrics." The wrinkle of her nose suggests she's thinking of moony-Juney-spoony stuff. "That made me a far better writer."

Thought you might like to know about a programme that will be broadcast on Channel 4 UK in the next month. It's a documentary about Manchester bands, specifically about record sleeves and poster design. It will contain with interviews with my mate Ian Tilton ('Rank' album gatefold photographer) and Linder Sterling. It's been made by Carl who used to be in Liverpool band The Farm.

Those of us who are Jeff Buckley fans know that Jeff Buckley was a very big Smiths fan. This is often shown by his covers of Smiths tunes such as "The Boy With A Thorn In His Side" and the recent release of his live album with the medley of "Hallelujah"/"I Know It's Over". In the DVD of his live 1995 show from Chicago he says the following to the crowd after finishing the MC5 classic kick out the jams: "the 60's are bullshit, the 70's almost big, big bullshit, the 80's(pause)-I don't even need to tell you-except for The Smiths maybe (compliment). Then he goes on to talk about how things are happening in the present and live in the present as he then goes into his wonderful song "Grace".

This is but another wonderful tribute to The Smiths and their lasting legacy as they have influenced numerous talents such as Jeff Buckley. Hopefully Jeff Buckley's legacy and spirit live on in his exceptional music (and musical taste).

Side note: There are also live recordings of "The Boy With A..." in which Jeff Buckley says that The Smiths helped him through some of his toughest times.

The Bert Jansch album is called Crimson Moon and will be out next month... Bernard butler plays on 5 songs, with Mako playing on 3 and Johnny Marr on 3...

12 May 2000 Later with Jools Holland
source: Bernard Butler

Bernard will be appearing on Later with Jools Holland as part of Bert Jansch's performance next week.

Johnny Marr will also be part of the performance, which should be aired about two weeks later. Please check your guide for broadcast date details.

I found this very thorough DVD review and figured others like myself would enjoy it. While it's easy to pass off as "re-packaged", it's important to keep in mind that the screen resolution is more than twice VHS, and that the sound quality is actually superior to CD... impressive in that right alone.

I drove up to Philadelphia last Wed. (05/10) to attend the Travis show with my brother John at the TLA on South St. A very good show by these up and coming Scots but probably the funnest moment of the evening came when a member of the audience down front handed lead singer Fran Healy a single flower. Seeming not to know what to do with it for a moment he put the flower in his back pocket and sang "The boy with a thorn in his side" then turned to his right, pointed at his bass player and squeeked "oh you handsome devil". We all had a jolly good laugh and the majority of the crowd seemed to "get" and appreciate the reference.

I would like announce that  we´re holding a Morrissey birthday party in Stockholm, Sweden next Monday ( 22 May). It will be at Babs Bar on Birger Jarlsgatan 37 between 10- 01. If anyone would like to come earlier they're welcome. There will be no entrance fee and we´re looking forward to see all of Stockholm's Morrissey fans here.

Atención morrissianos de CHILE:

El cumpleaños no. 41 de nuestro querido Morrissey se celebrará en Santiago el Sábado 20 de Mayo en Av. España #91. Se mostrarán diapositivas, fotos inéditas y el concierto de Moz en Chile.

También se celebrará el Sábado 27 de Mayo en Bal Le Duc (Irarrázabal #433). $2.000