For goodness sakes, does everything have to devolve into "Morrissey isn't what he used to be?" No, he's not. That explains so much of the bitterness here: he's 53, and everyone has to deal with it. He seems to be coping surprisingly well.
Morrissey's height was The Smiths: he was shiny and new, and in the best band on the planet. He and J. Marr were unstoppable and a tonic in the slick, regressive Reagan/Thatcher '80s. Those dizzying heights were scaled and eventually he had to come down.
His early solo period was surprising to many of us, because folks didn't think he'd be able to hack it on his own. It was something of a comedown from The Smiths, but the post-Smiths hysteria carried him along, he put together a decent band and eventually, improbably, he shot back up to a level of sustained crazy. His '90s shows were erotic psychodramas fueled by his dazzling looks and great moves.
Sorry, disagree. I went to quite a few shows on both of those yours, and every subsequent tour, and the 91/92 live Morrissey was nowhere near as good as he has been for the last 13 or 14 years. The shows back then were still amazing because the fans were mental, and Morrissey 'mania' was in full swing. As far as his voice or the band were concerned, there was much left to be desired. The band were all over the place, and admittedly inexperienced, live shows were usually even shorter, and his voice was often pretty weak live. All you have to do is watch/listen to Live In Dallas, BWD, or any other shoes from that era, and compare them to Who Put The M..., Live At Earls Court, etc. The difference is rather shocking really. The fans were a lot more rabid in those days though, and that helped to make the live experience during those first two tours pretty electric. But listen to songs like Suedehead, Playboys, EDILS, etc., live from period. They sound pretty awful.
Exactly. It's all about the vocals now; although he's still improbably glamorous, there just isn't the hysteria that there used to be. It's 2013, Morrissey is middle-aged and his audience skews older, too. However, his vocals are as strong (if not stronger) than they ever were, and there's a protective, loving, joyful vibe at the shows that is a celebration of such an unlikely career and (for people like me) such an unlikely, continuing affection. He's not thrashing around any more it's true, he has to actually
sing, but when he belts out "November Spawned a Monster" or tears his way through "Maladjusted" he's magnificent.
Morrissey rocks his 50s better than anyone could have possibly expected, and his best shows these days are not just good, not just great, but truly remarkable. I know a few people who refuse to see him because they don't want to ruin the memory of what he once was, but they're wrong; he's the most strangely soulful singer on the planet and the older he gets the more obvious that becomes.
I'm no apologist: his lyrics aren't what they used to be, his attitude in interviews these days leaves much to be desired, and the music lacks its former subtlety and finesse, but live Morrissey is charming, engaging, funny and often deeply vulnerable: he's second to none.