All the greats have dabbled in such projects. Bowie with Pinups, Johnny Cash with American IV: The Man Comes Around, Lennon with Rock & Roll, Metallica with Garage Inc, Cat Power with The Covers Record, Meshell Ndegeocello with Ventriloquism, Patti Smith with Twelve, Costello with Almost Blue and hundreds more. Nevertheless, the cover album remains a risky project that rarely stands out in an artist’s discography. With California Son, Morrissey works namely to unearth unexpected, obscured or even forgotten songs. The ex-Smiths singer’s favourite artists (New York Dolls, Patti Smith, Roxy Music, Bowie, Sparks etc.) are known to many yet are nowhere to be found on this album. With the help of seven collaborators (LP, Ed Droste of Grizzly Bear, Ariel Engle of Broken Social Scene, Petra Haden, Sameer Gadhia of Young the Giant, Billie Joe Armstrong of Green Day and Lydia Night of the Regrettes), Moz excels particularly on tracks by Roy Orbison, Melanie, Laura Nyro, Buffy Sainte-Marie, Bob Dylan, the 5th Dimension but also Jobriath, Phil Ochs, Tim Hardin, Joni Mitchell and Carly Simon. His voice acts as a driving force and is often exquisite, mastering each title (it’s astonishing on Dylan’s Only a Pawn in their Game). Above all, it’s a record we recommend to all Morrissey fans. © Max Dembo/Qobuz