On April 10th, Melinda Hsu, a Morrissey fan who travelled thousands of miles to watch him from the front row wherever he played, died.
This is what Morrissey had to say:
“I did not know Melinda personally, but I felt as if I did because she had been a front row fixture for many years… Mel was a smiling face who lent strength to every single concert, even when events were going somewhat pear-shaped.
“I felt as if I knew Mel because she was always there – regardless of wherever ‘there’ happened to be; no snowbound landscape too far, no off-the-beaten track too untrekkable I often handed her the microphone mid-concert and she would always make an effort to say something different each time.
“What is more, she always seemed so happy to be there on the front row, even though she had heard these live renditions enough times to emaciate the brain of the most inherently decent devotee… Her contribution was a declaration of love for which she seemed to save all of her strength, and for which I could only ever repay with half-witted mumbles of thanks.”
What a wonderful thing a persons love for another can be.