The Smiths and their lead singer Morrissey were
the defining artists of my youth. Even now, I find myself pulled to the
wit and melancholy in their songs. The songs of The Smiths were
something smart and heartfelt that I clung to all throughout high
school. Not given to much reading, Morrissey was the poet I adored most
as a teen. This profound impact and admiration seems to be shared by
many as is evident in the hundreds of Morrissey-related videos on
YouTube.
On this webpage, I've compiled an exhibition of some
of these Morrissey-related videos from the YouTube archives. All the
videos that I've selected are in some way a cover. That is,
these videos are the creative response by others to material from the
Smiths/ Morrissey catalogue; recontextualized and made anew. All the
participants in this exhibition recorded their recreations and posted
their work on-line and that is where I found them. I've taken on this
curatorial experiment to rediscover these songs, but also to examine
other's homage to Morrissey and Co.. Even though these videos are
cover versions of these songs, I've found that all of these videos are
also original works; each one representing these familiar songs in a
sensitively nuanced and personal way. Not limited by the convention of
what a "cover" could be, many of these videos demonstrate the unique
presence of their creators. Some of the artists have omitted certain
parts of the songs they worked from. Others have constructed audible or
visual collages of multiple parts, tinkering with the limits of what a
traditional cover can be.
In the way some curators might
organize an exhibit I've compiled these works in an attempt to
understand these remakes under a theme. In the case of these works it
is the theme of enduring admiration. These works are beyond fan
reactions; they are in many ways love letters. Regardless of how funny
a video may be I have found them to be wholly serious. This curated
page is my love letter to the work of the Smiths and
Morrissey. None of the authors had any intentions of contributing to
this compilation, their works had a certain resonance with my
relationship to Morrissey's work and simply put: I found them
irresistible.
I would recommend an experiment. Play multiple
videos at once, altering the volume on them or pausing and playing them
under your own orchestration.
Scroll down to see all fifteen videos.
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