28 February 2000
930 Club, Washington, DC

Tomorrow
Ouija Board, Ouija Board
Billy Budd
A Swallow On My Neck
Is It Really So Strange?
Hairdresser On Fire
I Am Hated For Loving
Boxers
Meat Is Murder
November Spawned A Monster
The Teachers Are Afraid Of the Pupils
Half A Person
I Can Have Both
Lost
Break Up the Family
Last Night I Dreamt That Somebody Loved Me
/Shoplifters Of the World Unite
This was a good concert, perhaps slightly better than the one from the night before in the same venue. However Morrissey was starting to show signs of fatigue and according to what he said after "I Am Hated For Loving" he was also starting a cold. This must be why he ignored fans who were trying to make it on stage. Without his help very few made it there. There was no change of outfits for this second Washington date, so consequently no fighting in the audience for scraps of sweat-drenched shirts.

The setlist was scrambled and in the process Morrissey made a few substitutions. "Tomorrow" replaced "You're Gonna Need Someone On Your Side" in the opening slot. "Lost" and "Break Up The Family" were reinstated in place of "Now My Heart Is Full" and "Alma Matters".

Upon entering stage Morrissey welcomed his fans "Hello friends! Welcome to Latino Night!" At this point the band wasn't ready to go into the opening song so Morrissey said "Yes, yes, yes, yes, yes... We're ready, we're ready, we're ready, we're ready..." And when the band was finally ready he said "We're not ready...". After the opening song he extended his greeting with "Hello! Hello! Hello! Hello!" and then went through the same routine of repeating over and over "We're ready, we're ready..." while waiting for Alain to be ready. And again, when Alain finally was, Morrissey joked "We're not ready!"

The fans were greeted for a third time after "Ouija Board, Ouija Board": "Welcome to the second night of our residency... here in... jolly Slashington!". After "Billy Budd" Morrissey joked "That was a song from the album 'Vauxhall & Wang'... 'Vauxhall & I', just kidding..." He made quite a few changes in "A Swallow On My Neck". He sang "same old chatter and "I am a simple man with so much to gain and lose..." In live performances of the song the chorus usually ended with the line "from then on I knew" but on this date Morrissey actually extended it by singing "Kentish Town..."

Someone in the front rows was wearing a Vinnie Jones shirt. Morrissey had read the name out loud over the outro to the opening song "Tomorrow". However after "A Swallow On My Neck" he decided to tell the fan "I've got something terrible to tell you about Vinnie Jones... Do you know that he belongs to this fox hunting thing and... he keeps all things around his living room, do you know that? I'm afraid he does... He loves the whole thing of chasing foxes and chopping their heads off... real man!"

After "Is it Really So Strange?" Morrissey said "When we took the train yesterday, we stopped in a place called... I think it's called Wilmington, do you know it? (some shout 'yes!') Does that mean you actually live there? (some shout 'yes!', others 'no!') No... It's not a very nice place is it? (crowd: 'no!') I'd like to give you some money..." After the opening line "Is it home of the free or what?" in "Hairdresser On Fire" Morrissey jokingly whispered the answer "It's 'what'!" He also slightly changed a line to "*I* might be depressed but *I'm* remarkably dressed, and that's all *I* need". After the song he asked "Did anybody see the Grammies the other night? I wasn't mentioned... Moby had the 'best performer' I think, the 'best live performer'..."

Besides all the usual changes in "I Am Hated For Loving" Morrissey changed a line to "I am falling, there never will be someone to catch me". Further into the song he followed "I don't want to belong" with the comment "which is just as well, 'cause I don't!" After the song he announced "I've got the Wilmington sniffles... I might sue..." After "Boxers" Alain chatted shortly with a fan he couldn't understand much, then Morrissey said "Some critics - and I think I have one or two - they say that I sing as if I'm reading a shopping list, I look as if I'm reading a shopping list, or something like that... What did they say? I don't know, I've never read them... but I've only got one face and it's always been the same face (crowd cheers)... I knew you'd cheer..."

During "Meat is Murder" Morrissey tried a different pose to the dramatic one he usually took. Instead of lying on the floor like a dying animal with his hands in a triangle, he stood leaning backwards and put the tip of his thumb against his teeth. "November Spawned A Monster" was humourously followed with "That song was actually written about Mariah Carey", which got a good laugh out of the audience. Next on the setlist, "Half A Person" was jokingly introduced with the line "This song is about... it's about 3 minutes long" and "I Can Have Both" was introduced with "This song is extremely dangerous... It's called 'I Can Have Both'."

Before "Lost" Morrissey started "Some of you got very interesting faces... and... then others of you..." but he was cut short by someone screaming, so instead he asked "Say that again please? (takes on accent) Glasgow Barrowlands... (lower) Glasgow Barrowlands... (then something else in a deep accent)". As the opening notes of "Break Up The Family" were heard he said "I can't see very well". Before the encore Morrissey thanked everyone for "two great nights... it means a lot when you're very kind... Why are you so kind? Why, why?".

 


A good audience recording of the complete set is available on compact discs and in digital format on the internet.

 

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