I had to come back and say something about Sinead O'Connor. I had a great deal of affection for her. She was great. Her voice of course, but her heart.
Like most people, the first I was aware of her was when Mandinka came out. At the time it just sounded so different. You knew this was a big talent you were hearing. But also seeing her interviewed, you couldn't help but love her. She was so fragile but at the same time fierce, shy and self-effacing but at the same time confident and passionate. It was compelling.
There's not much that hasn't been said over these last few days about her ferocious honesty. I remember the Pope photo thing. Although I hadn't remembered, until reminded by the coverage of her death, that it was SNL. But I remember the furore. I knew then that she was right, and I was angry with those who turned on her for it. I was at the time an angry atheist. I've softened my atheism since then. But the knee-jerk reactionary response was sickening.
She'd already started to make musical choices I didn't understand by then. I think she'd already done at least one Andrew Lloyd Webber song, and I'm sure she did more. I couldn't get on with that, no matter how good her voice was on it. One of my mates liked her folk song stuff, but it wasn't until the Massive Attack collaboration that I really liked - or, to be honest, particularly noticed - anything else she did.
editor says Kristofferson has gone up in his estimation. I remember that gesture. I remember seeing it at the time. It was televised. The Bob Dylan gig. Funnily enough I was in a country band at that time and was aware what a good guy he was.
But I just watched the documentary on Now, and saw Joe Pesci and Madonna being arseholes, which I don't remember and probably wouldn't have seen at the time. But the truly shocking one was the supposedly feminist Camille Paglia saying, "in the case of Sinead O'Connor, child abuse was justified". Fucking sickening.
She already had daemons. No wonder she continued to with shit like that heaped on her. And of course the sad tragedy of her son, Shane.
I could never really understand her relationship with religion. It was obviously very complicated. She was complicated. But I can't follow how such a fierce critic of patriarchal clericalism in the case of Catholicism goes on to become a headscarf-wearing Muslim. But she owed no explanation to me, and I hope it brought her some comfort. And I hope she knew how loved she was.
Love you, Sinead. Go well.
www.variety.com
probably not that common..
