Did the song 'Meat is Murder' make you veggie?
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LfcMotd73 — 16 years ago(July 13, 2009 06:02 PM)
I have battled with this issue for years and it's a very interesting point raised by the OP here.
I've been a Smiths fan since 1988 when I was 14 and a friend got me into them. I never got into the whole albums at once- it progressed over a year or so. The songs always struck me as uncomfortable but brilliant and way different from the pop rubbish in the UK charts at the time. U2 were big then but they just weren't as interesting as the brilliantness of putting on Bigmouth Strikes Again or This Charming Man, etc.
Meat Is Murder is a song I grew to love over time because the album was my least played back then- I constantly played Hatful and Queen from start to finish and Strangeways became a favourite too.
But over time I loved the song MIM. And I've wrestled with my guilt over eating meat over the years since.
I play the song and can lose myself in it's evocative gloom and beauty and passionately sing along to the words but then I think I can't promote that I believe in this- and interestingly I've owned 2 of the album t-shirts but couldn't wear the MIM one because I'd feel like a hypocrite.
I sometimes try to become veggie for a while but I'm a fully grown stron2000g young man who needs meat to live and I enjoy it so until the day-if I do- quit eating meat, then I will always feel uncomfortable listening to that magnificent song.
But then, surely Morrissey's point was always to make people uncomfortable in the early days.
Songs about exploring/ denying/ being happy or ashamed of homosexuality, songs about paedophilia, the Moors Murders,songs about school brutality, domestic violence, songs about depression, alienation, loneliness, songs mocking the music of (most probably) your cool friends or family.these were songs that were always going to make you face up to yourself weren't they?
It's become cooler over time to be a Smiths fan because "cool" bands like Oasis - who are, let's face it- a lad's band- had them as an influence.
But back inthe 80s you were sort of set apart by being into Morrissey and the Smiths because people were either listening to acid house (which I embraced btw) or working class bands like UB40 or Madness.
Where I grew up it was mainly reggae and dance music and - chart pop. So me playing Panic or Death Of A Disco Dancer was me rebelling and making a statement, but equally feeling at odds with myself because of my peers. Hence, Morrissey wrote confrontational and uncomfortable songs.
So Meat Is Murder makes you question your right to like it.
-we hate it when our friends become successful -
Meven_Stoffat — 16 years ago(October 09, 2009 11:45 AM)
I find vegetarianism to be bullsh-t. What if you're out in the forest and you have nothing to eat? You'd have to kill for survival.
Therefore it didn't make me a vegetarian, because really, vegetarianism is hypocritical bullsh-t. I'm an animal lover, doesn't mean I can't eat meat. SOme of my favorite dishes are meat-fuled too.
"That's a mistake you can make just one time." - Bruce Dickinson,
Dracula -
Jewels200987 — 16 years ago(October 26, 2009 09:58 AM)
It's a bit different if you're starving in the forest Bruce. If you had your dog with you and nothing else to eat you'd probably be forced to eat your dog but in normal circumstances I doubt you'd eat your pet dog one day just to try it. Use your head.
As for me, I was a vegetarian long before that song, but I wouldn't be surprised if it made a lot of people vegetarian because most people don't even think about where their food comes from before they put it in their mouths. That song makes the uneducated think about it though. -
XxblackrainbowsxX
da0 — 16 years ago(November 13, 2009 12:49 PM)'Meat Is Murder' didn't make me vegetarian exactly- guilt over eating meat and feeling angered at the treatment and slaughter of animals had been at the back of my mind before I'd even listened to it. However, the song and what Morrissey has to say about vegetarianism did make me think about the issue more, and so probably helped me a bit in my decision.
"I'm actually 40% papier mache"
-Morrissey -
PocoLoco7 — 16 years ago(January 21, 2010 07:07 PM)
I was a veggie way before
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Danae89 — 16 years ago(March 29, 2010 02:52 PM)
I know this is going to sound stupid but i wonder how he feels about bugs, because them i cant stand. As for the veggie thing i want to be one because i've always felt like a hypocrite for eating meat and loving animals and Morrissey is right. I'm considering making it happen and yes, Morrissey does have a lot to do with it but in an inspirational way not in "because he said so" way.
