Morrissey Claims Universal Halted Reissue of Paris Song in Wake of Attacks

Former Smiths singer Morrissey is back in the news, this time claiming that Universal Records, who has since denied the accusation, thwarted his plans to reissue his 2009 single "I'm Throwing My Arms Around Paris" in the wake of the recent terrorist attacks in Paris.

Morrissey claimed, on his popular fan site True To You, that he was preparing to re-release the song, which appeared on his 2009 record Years of Refusal, as a "loving tribute to the lives lost in the Paris atrocities" after 130 innocent lives were taken on Nov. 13. Moz claims that the label has their own plans for a tribute album, which is why they denied his request.

The artist claims to have proof, adding, "The letter can be freely made available to anyone who wishes to read it." The label has responded stating that Moz is "hurtful and wrong" in his accusation.

"We have not received—let alone refused—any request from Morrissey himself related to 'I'm Throwing My Arms Around Paris'," the label told Pitchfork. "While we have not been contacted directly by Morrissey, after seeing the comments on his website last week, we asked his representative to confirm his intentions and which charity he had in mind to support via the song's proceeds. We are yet to receive a reply."

Morrissey recently released his debut fiction novel titled List of the Lost, which was attracting criticism for its sex scenes, which some readers felt were poorly written. It has since won Literary Review's Bad Sex In Fiction Award. Morissey's latest album, World Peace Is None of Your Business, was released last year via Universal Records' offshoot Harvest Records, but the release was not without its own set of drama. The singer had announced that the label dropped him from their lineup shortly after the record hit stores.

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Morrissey, The Smiths, Universal, Paris, Paris Attacks