Morrissey Recording New Album & Writing A Novel, Mentions David Bowie Duet That Never Was

Iconic wordsmith Morrissey is no stranger to speaking his mind, which is one of the reasons his recently-released Autobiography made the roundup of Idolator’s favorite miscellaneous, music-related things of 2013. (Aside from that tome, one need only look to his Beyonce-slamming, Paul McCartney-dissing Los Angeles concert rants last year — trust, just one of many in a long line of beefs.) But in a new interview posted on fan site True To You, Moz mostly keeps the talking about the exciting projects he has in the works.

For one— dear god — there’s a novel coming from Morrissey! “In 2013 I published my Autobiography and it has been more successful than any record I have ever released, so, yes, I am mid-way through my novel,” he tells the site. “I have my hopes.”

Oddly, Morrissey found himself without a label following a string of high-charting albums that signaled a major comeback for the singer in the ’00s, the last of which was 2009’s Years Of Refusal. In fact, that LP and 2004’s You Are The Quarry landed Moz his highest positions on the Billboard 200 (both reached #11).

But, good news, Morrissey fanatics — there at last appears to be new material on the way. “Well, we are about to record our new album, and one of the tracks is called ‘Istanbul’,” the Manchester singer offers in his True To You Q&A.

Moz, a famously outspoken animal rights supporter and vegetarian, does get a few digs in, particularly with regards to celebrity chef Jamie Oliver: “If Jamie ‘Orrible is so certain that flesh-food is tasty then why doesn’t he stick one of his children in a microwave? It would taste the same as cooked lamb.”

And then there’s this revelation about David Bowie:

“When I made the record Ringleader Of The Tormentors, the producer (Tony Visconti), who is a very close friend of David Bowie, tried to get both Bowie and I together to do our version of ‘You’ve Lost That Lovin’ Feelin’, with David doing the deep Bill Medley parts, and me doing the Bobby Hatfield shrieks. I loved this idea, but David wouldn’t budge. I know I’ve criticized David in the past, but it’s all been snotnosed junior high ribbing on my part. I think he knows that.”

That’s entertainment.

[Via Pitchfork]

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