Morrissey has written about The Smiths as well as his first serious relationship in Autobiography, which is published today [October 17].
According to quotes published in The Guardian, Morrissey says that he did not have his first serious relationship until his mid-30s.
“For the first time in my life the eternal ‘I’ becomes ‘we’, as, finally, I can get on with someone.”
The relationship was with a man The Guardian identify as Jake Owen Walters. “Jake and I neither sought not needed company other than our own for the whirlwind stretch to come,” Morrissey writes. “Indulgently Jake and I test how far each of us can go before ‘being dwelt in’ causes cries of intolerable struggle, but our closeness transcends such visitations.”
Morrissey also discusses his lack of interest in girls as a youth: “Girls remained mysteriously attracted to me, and I had no idea why, since although each fumbling foray hit the target, nothing electrifying took place, and I turned a thousand corners without caring … Far more exciting were the array of stylish racing bikes that my father would bring home.”
On the subject of The Smiths, The Guardian reports that Morrissey writes: “The Smiths’ sound rockets with meteroic progression: bomb-burst drumming, explosive chords, combative basslines, and over it all I am as free as a hawk to paint the canvas as I wish. It is a gift from Jesus.”
The Guardian also report disclosures including a potential kidnap attempt in Mexico and an incident where he was detained by officers from Special Branch following the release of “Margaret On The Guillotine”, “so that they might gauge whether or not I pose a security threat to Margaret Thatcher.”
The Guardian also reports that Morrissey is critical of the NME, Rough Trade records and the judge who presided over the 1996 court case which found in favour of Mike Joyce‘s claim for 25% of The Smiths’ earnings.