It occurred to me recently that there may be those in the audience at our little concerts, or listening to the audio on our myspace, who are wondering why we play some of the songs differently, and why I sometimes sing different lyrics and vocal melodies, to those of the studio versions on Morrissey's records and CDs.

Well, as many of you know, during live appearances Morrissey often makes lyrical changes, as well as slight changes to vocal melodies, also, many of the songs have been reworked down the years, particularly since the inclusion of live keyboards in 2004, and when played onstage, songs such as 'Suedehead' and 'Why Don't You Find Out For Yourself', among others, are now strikingly different from their studio versions

As a band, we listen to the most recent live recordings that we have of each song, and attempt to accurately recreate what we hear.

Occasionally, if a song hasn't been played live for 15 years or so, and we feel that, were Morrissey to play it today, it would be more like the original studio version, then we'll use the studio version as our template.
This also applies to songs that, for one reason or another, Morrissey has never played onstage, and where the only versions that exist are the original studio versions.

Like Morrissey himself, we always include several Smiths songs in our set.
We only play Smiths songs that Morrissey has played live since the break up of the group, and we attempt to play them as Morrissey and his band play them, rather than how a Smiths tribute band might...

So there you have it.

We continue to strive for authenticity and accuracy, with fierce determination, knowing full well we are doomed to failure, because, as has often been said, there is, and can only ever be, one Morrissey.

May your god bless and protect him.

Below is a short Q&A session Paul did recently for an online zine.

- what is it about morrissey and the smiths that makes them so important?

Quite simply, The Smiths had, and Morrissey still has, the power to change people's lives.
They were much more than a simple pop/rock band, of the kind designed to "entertain" and distract us temporarily from the dreary day to day existence most of us experience.
Morrissey had, and continues to have, a unique perspective on life, and his lyrics, and the views and opinions he expresses during interviews, are testament to this.
The Smiths emerged from the music scene of the early Eighties, which was dominated by glossy pop acts, whose over-produced synthetic music, ludicrous and tasteless clothes, and tedious cliche ridden lyrics, bore no relation to life as the majority of people lived it.
The whole Smiths aesthetic, and Morrissey's lyrics in particular, struck a massive chord with "ordinary" people living "ordinary" lives. His lyrics were direct, to the point, and respected the intelligence of his listeners.
His influence, and the influence of The Smiths, has reverberated throughout the last 25 years, and not just in the world of music, but in myriad other fields.
Bono was right for once, when he described Morrissey as an archetype, and the force of his personality has influenced and changed how we view the world and our place in it.
Put simply, there was a world before Morrissey, and a completely different one after 'Hand In Glove' was released.

- what would you say to anyone who said his music was too depressing?

I'd simply advise them to listen to it.
People who say that are people who have never really sat and listened to his music, had they done so they would know that the whole gamut of human emotions are explored, and that there is great humour in many of the songs, with absolute laugh-out-loud moments galore.
However, as we know, life isn't all beer and skittles, and it is true that he doesn't shy away from the realities of life, however bleak some of these realities may be, but he writes with intelligence and with sincerity, qualities which are sadly lacking in so much of what passes for art, or "entertainment", and because of this, regardless of what the subject matter may be, I always find his writing uplifting.

- do you think there is any living artist as iconic and influential as Morrissey?

There is certainly no-one who has been as influential on me. Apart from myself that is.

- do you agree with all of morrisseys opinions on culture, politics etc?

The fact that I respect and admire him as much as I do, means that I give him plenty of latitude, if not absolute carte blanche, regarding his views and opinions.
I really would be hard pressed to think of anything specific he has said which I particularly disagreed with. Not to say necessarily that I agree with everything he says either, but rather than violently disagreeing, It's more likely that I just wouldn't particularly care one way or another.
The reason why I still have such admiration for, and am so hugely fascinated by Morrissey, is that, to this day, even after 25 years, I still haven't detected a chink in his armour.

- can you remember the first smiths/Morrissey record you ever heard?

I had been vaguely aware of The Smiths for a few months or so, but hadn't been directly exposed to them, as it were, until I saw them on 'The Tube' TV show in 1983, doing 'This Charming Man' . A few days later I heard it in a club called 'The Warehouse' in Leeds. It sounded FANTASTIC through a powerful sound system, and it undoubtedly changed my life forever.