The Thousands

I used to despise Morrissey. I don’t know why but he really got under my skin. Perhaps his chin, I don’t know, but I couldn’t stand the sight of him. Of course, the more I ignored him the closer he got; I was wasting my time. Now I’m one his biggest gayest fans. I even know people who’ve touched him! And I’ve touched them, so, ipso facto…

I’ll wager Simon Goddard, author of Mozipedia: The Encyclopaedia of Morrissey and the Smiths, has touched Morrissey a few times. You don’t churn out a book that comprehensive without at least a handshake from the object of your obsession. At first glance, the Mozipedia looks like it mightsuck: the cover features a creepy faceless Mozz, it’s called ‘the Mozipedia’, etc, but it’s surprisingly well written and rigorously thorough. There’s stuff in there that would blow the mind of even the most devout, dead serious, pompadour-sporting, ‘Still Ill’ tattoo-having Smiths fan; weird stuff like, did you know Johnny Marr is allergic to bananas? Neither did I! But apparently he is. Actually I just made that up, but that’s the kind of microscopic detail that characterizes the Mozipedia.