Morrissey has dropped all of the new songs from the set list - but why?

[Maurice E]

Back in the 1990s, Morrissey hardly ever played unreleased songs live (I think WHIWOFBS and Sunny might be the only exceptions).
But in the 2000s, it seems he was quite keen to preview unreleased stuff, particularly in the 2002 (with IBEH, M, TFOTGTD, ILY etc) and 2008 (ITMAAP, AYNIS, SISMS etc) tours.
He continued this trajectory in 2011 but in 2012, for the first time in his career, he seems to have changed his mind. From a peak of 4 or 5 new songs, he brought this down to 1 or 2, and for the past few shows, he hasn't played a single one.
Any ideas as to why?

 

[[email protected]]

He did play action immn at his last show. I think we shall see them back on in the next leg. Perhaps he didn't want to preview too many at places he hasn't played much and give the SA fans the known songs preferably to the new ones.

 

[Skylarker]

This one is just way too tempting...

 

[Amy]

"The Kid's a Looker" and "People are the Same..." went down like a lead balloon on the UK tour dates I attended last year - in Leeds, he said, "Did you like that song?" after "Kid's..." and passed the mic to someone in the front row who just said "No". I think he probably still thinks they're fantastic songs - he's just noticed that the reception has been lukewarm at best, so he's bypassing them for now. Perhaps all the criticism on this site has gotten back to him and he's realised that most of the new songs are shit. Who knows?

 

[123xyz]

It's a shame "Art-Hounds" only featured live once or twice - I quite liked the weird hysterical air to it. Maybe it is the lack of response from both crowds and music labels. But I wonder if the crowd's indifference has more to do with being unfamiliar with the new material . Although , the audience remark Amy mentioned above and the general feeling shared on this site probably shows it's a bit more than that...

 

[VivaGil]

He's giving up and practicing for a smiths reunion...duh

 

[peptastic]

Perhaps one of those fans who goes to every show simply got tired of the new songs and wanted a new set list?
I know that isn't likely.
Is he switching them up with new songs or adding new songs into the setlist?

Radiohead debuted new songs for their Florida gigs. [I went to the Tampa one]
Everyone was enthuastic despite not knowing them. I guess it's the fanbase.
Maybe the crowds just wanted songs they could sing along to? He's playing to some non-fluent English fans possibly? They could need time to be familiar with the lyrics.
If that is the case Moz is awfully nice to switch up the setlist for fan approval.

 

[Harsh Truth]

I'd rather hear "The Kid's a Looker" over "Meat is Murder" any day. 1700 people out of 1800 staring at the floor as he yelps over those videos does not a good concert make.

But in general, I support any band/artist playing brand new songs live. It's actually rather awesome. Yes, sometimes you get a clunker but often you get a real gem in its infant stage. FOTGTD is great example. How cool was it for the audience to hear that 2 years prior to release??

 

[Maurice E]

He did play action immn at his last show. I think we shall see them back on in the next leg. Perhaps he didn't want to preview too many at places he hasn't played much and give the SA fans the known songs preferably to the new ones.

Whoops - yes, he did indeed play Action.
Yep, it could well be linked to the fact that he was playing lots of cities in SA for the first time, and wanted to do more of a greatest hits.
Guess we'll see what happens on the next leg...

 

[Maurice E]

I'd rather hear "The Kid's a Looker" over "Meat is Murder" any day. 1700 people out of 1800 staring at the floor as he yelps over those videos does not a good concert make.
But in general, I support any band/artist playing brand new songs live. It's actually rather awesome. Yes, sometimes you get a clunker but often you get a real gem in its infant stage. FOTGTD is great example. How cool was it for the audience to hear that 2 years prior to release??

Good points, all. When I saw him at Brixton last summer, it was the first time I'd ever heard a new song debuted. It was Art Hounds (which sounded great even on first listen) so yes, it's a splendid thing to hear a song in an early stage. I wonder what he's doing with the month off. I'm hoping he's recording at least some of the new album...

 

[Orson Swells]

Back in the 1990s, Morrissey hardly ever played unreleased songs live (I think WHIWOFBS and Sunny might be the only exceptions).
But in the 2000s, it seems he was quite keen to preview unreleased stuff, particularly in the 2002 (with IBEH, M, TFOTGTD, ILY etc) and 2008 (ITMAAP, AYNIS, SISMS etc) tours.
He continued this trajectory in 2011 but in 2012, for the first time in his career, he seems to have changed his mind. From a peak of 4 or 5 new songs, he brought this down to 1 or 2, and for the past few shows, he hasn't played a single one.
Any ideas as to why?

I think some other songs have been debuted live. Possibly, I Changed My Plea and certainly Jack The Ripper. Occasionally he seems to test brand new songs out: Pashernate Love and Let The Right One, if memory serves, which were later dropped. He may have done this much later with I'm Playing Easy To Get too.

I like one or two new songs in a set. Not too many. Only the best survive the test. I think he possibly doesn't want to overkill the new material. Maybe, as with Let The Right One or Playing Easy, he thinks one or two aren't as strong as he initially did.

 

[Orson Swells]

Whoops - yes, he did indeed play Action.
Yep, it could well be linked to the fact that he was playing lots of cities in SA for the first time, and wanted to do more of a greatest hits.
Guess we'll see what happens on the next leg...

Action almost feels like an old song already.

 

[alabamy]

Not only he played "Action", but he even chose "Scandinavia" for the Vina del Mar festival in Chile, where many people in the audience weren't his fans at all. But there are few reasons to promote a new song constantly when people can't buy a studio version, when you are touring far away from your main target markets (US, UK) and when you know that the audience expects to hear your most famous songs. I guess he will reintroduce again one or more new songs in San Diego.