Morrissey Croons the Moldy Oldies

Britpop icon (and terminal wet blanket) Morrissey’s next record isn’t going to be original material (he got so depressed he forgot to write any). Instead, it’s a 12-song, all ’60s/’70s covers record called California Son out May 24th on the BMG label. Moz will be lending his fabulous voice/singing karaoke to the classic tunes of Bob Dylan, Joni Mitchell, Dionne Warwick, Roy Orbison, and others.

The cover of Orbison’s “It’s Over” that has already been released sounds amazing and goes perfect with Morrissey’s voice. Not sure how the other songs will play out, but at first glance they do seem a little yawn inducing. Not only are we getting a covers record, we’re getting special guests too. Ed Droste of Grizzly Bear, Sameer Gadhia of Young the Giant, and Billy Joe Armstrong of Green Day are all going to show up! (VOMIT!). However, it will be interesting to hear him pair up with Petra Haden on two different songs.

Photo by Juan Carlos Equihua.