***Since Morrissey's return from the LA wilderness, he has carved out a niche as the 'fashionable' elder statesman of rock, a description I have no doubt he would despise and perhaps is too sweeping a statement in truth.
However, whereas the likes of Gallagher, Weller et al are now at their influencial nadir, 'Morrissey', on the contrary, is a name oft quoted by pioneers of this decade's music. From Franz Ferdinand and The Libertines to Arctic Monkeys, all are vocal in their debt of gratitude to the legendary Smiths frontman.
You'd think therefore, he would be pretty pleased with his current lot? In a sense he is. When asked to comment on his current popularity, he swells with pride at his chart success, a success The Smiths could only dream of, but then this far from manifests itself in 'Years of Refusal'.
On listening to the album, you still get the sense that he wants to revel in his isolation as a man misunderstood. Perhaps the furore over his comments on immigration have inflamed this rhetoric or perhaps it's a comment on his quest for love in the personal sense rather than the acceptance of the 'world', 'All You Need Is Me' with its 'you'll miss me when I'm gone' and 'I'm OK by Myself' are perhaps the most obvious examples here, but the 'love' he'd found on 2006's 'Ringleader of the Tormentors' seems to have evaporated now.
Despite disappointingly returning to type, Morrissey still wraps his irresistable voice around some beautifully heart-wrenching lyrics. "I'm Throwing My Arms Around Paris/Because only stone and steel accept my love" in particular evokes an elegant sadism in its choice of city as a refuge.
Meanwhile, 'Mama Lay Softly On The Riverbed' opines that, "Life's not very much to lose/It's just so lonely here without you" sung so delicately as to thaw even the coldest critics heart.
Where there is due cause for criticism though, is in the use of two tracks included in last years Greatest Hits release. Ardent fans will already have heard them which does somewhat undermine their 'highlight' status here.
More of a concern though, is the current backing band Morrissey has cobbled together. They hack along ardently with bluster but there's precious little delicacy in their contribution. There's a real, "Lets throw the kitchen sink at it" attitude in evidence. Admirable perhaps but you feel the album would have benefitted from a little of its predecessors subtlety, maybe its Visconti.
There are moments however, when the bombast takes a backseat, particularly in 'You Were Good in Your Time' ending suddenly and portently in the mould of 'Please, Please, Please Let Me Get What I Want". It's not enough to rescue the album though, at least not in the instrumental sense, and it leaves you harking more than ever for the jangle of a Marr riff.
Morrissey is still witty, acerbic and melodic and this is another wonderful reminder of why we should all cherish him greatly. It isn't however, the fully polished article, despite, I expect, having the potential to be the most radio-friendly of his recent releases.
A consolidation more than an unmitigated triumph, it's still clear we need him. You do wonder however, for how long will he need us?
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