Happy 50th Birthday Morrissey

Another year of refusal.

Today Steven Patrick Morrissey turns the big 5-0. It’s a happy day for one of Brit-pop’s most prolific voices. His tone though, is and has always been melancholy since Morrissey birthed a seminal career as the front man for the Smiths over twenty years ago.

This benchmark in the life of the Moz should be a big deal, right? At least in his solo career, he’s aged well—Morrissey’s ninth studio album, Years Of Refusal was released this past February. As for a grand celebration, don’t expect bottle popping of baller proportions. At Sway, New York’s cornerstone of Morrissey’s music, DJ’s Ben Cho, and Brian DeGraw dedicate a weekly party to Manchester’s finest. The dedicated patrons dance, and raise their drinks as if it were their own born day. Actors, Mike Meyers, and Benicio Del Toro, and prized model Kate Moss have joined in on the excitement of the Smiths and Morrissey’s gifts of music. I’m also included in my four year dedication to the raging party at Sway, especially with some shoot-from-the-hip photography á la Terry Richardson and the Cobrasnake. See the joy or lack therof Morrissey’s music put on people’s faces back in 2006.

*NSFW