Paul Morley & Simon Armitage deconstruct "This Charming Man"

From Paul Morley's programme "Pop! What Is It Good For?", broadcast 09/01/2008. Simon Armitage, the poet and Paul talk through The Smiths "This Charming Man". Mike Joyce is also present but says very little.

Category:

Music

Tags:

• smiths
• charming
• man
• lyrics
• morrissey
• marr
• manchester
• joyce
• simon
• armitage
• paul
• morley

[519386]

Dear Campfreddie,

Love the name.You sound interesting,explain why you think Savage is an arse. Is it because his gay and posh.

Yours Daubrey

[campfreddie]

Hello Daubrey. It's because Savage takes himself so seriously and has been talking and writing about the same things for over 30 years now. Morley is a plonker but he knows and embraces it.

[519386]

No my dear, it bored me shitless.He sounded like a 1st year Eng' Lit' undergrad' at a remedial class for underachievers. But then that's the nature of Morley's artlessness,which is a relentless conceptual mediocrity. He was the punk prog'rocker,the man who loved Simple Minds,the worthless U2. In fact Morley is to Rock criticism what U2 are to music,vacuos & self important. Try Jon Savage a Morley contemporary a better writer in both cultural & literary terms

Yours Daubrey Weirdsley

[campfreddie]

Thanks for clarifying the situation Daubrey. For what it's worth I find Savage to be an arse of the highest order whereas Morley is always entertaining. Let's not let it come between us.

[519386]

Paul Morley,provincial,culturally bankrupt northern twerp.Half digested Baudrillard & Barthes,Post Modernism for cretins & mental defectives. Advocate for the mediocre & facile.Magazine,Genesis for post punks.T.Rex,the 70's Robbie Williams.The Fall,leaden & lumpen for 30 years,the Northern Alf Garnett.FGTH,Gay Freddie & The Dreamers.Nick Cave 3rd rate Jim Morrison,who was a buffon anway.Morrisey another buffon,pub performer,medallion man & 50's Irish building worker.Morley intellectual free zone

[campfreddie]

Okay, but did you like it?

[LupinLoverGuitarist]

I think it shouldn't be looked down on that Armitage has tried to interpret such a glorious song. It's not a crime. I'm a keen fan of the Smiths, and Armitage.

Maybe it can't be summed up in a few minutes, but that's all the time he's been given, and it's clearly been edited.

Everyone interprets things differently, that's his opinion and I think it's fascinating to listen to.

x

[madcapoperator]

Simon armitage is a rather clever bloke and not too far up his own arse like Morley is. 'Oooh look at me i'm going to appear in every single british documentary that focuses on british music in the late 70's through the 80's'. Prick, or as he'd say: PWICK!

[MrMoviemaverick]

@519386 What made you so angry?! Like a good rant myself....keep going!

[Pelicanlake]

Phew!!!! I love Simon Armitage's work but he seems out of his depth here. All concerned seemed to have missed many of Morrisey's references. Morrisey didn't even write most of those lines “I would go out tonight/ But I haven’t got a stitch to wear” comes from the 1961 movie A Taste Of Honey, while “A jumped up pantry boy/ Who never knew his place” comes from a line by Laurence Olivier to Michael Caine in 1972’s 'Sleuth'.

[MrPaulripley]

Smithylad said...

I was in Manchester in December when Simon Armitage and Mike Joyce were filmed in conversation with Paul Morley for Pop, What is It Good For. It was great listening in - all parties contributing heartily, eloquently, knowledgably, humourously. Mike Joyce was fantastic, both on camera and off - generous and genial and informative. Yet when it came to the broadcast, all Joyce got was a quick one-liner seen over his shoulder. The poor guy had been there for three hours at least.

[rotosound1]

@clodandpebble "morally depleted scratch-card addict" Brilliant.

[LottaRadiohead]

Excuse me, does someone know who covers "This Charming Man" at the end of the video ?

[swallowedtothesea]

I fucking hate Armitage and these garrulous, sophomoric, latter-aged academics. They blemish otherwise perfect writing by dissecting and scrutinising over specifics, thereby loosing all the glamour and beauty of otherwise conceptual feeling. I love Morrissey because he says it and gives no further explanation, there should be nothing except what the writer has written and ones own imagined interpretation.

[rgdfgfgdhdfh]

Honest sexy latin brides "busizz4me.info"

[qpwo6]

@variousthings and i quite like simon armitage