Why did Nick Cave decline Morrissey’s offer to work on his new song? Singer shares his thoughts in latest newsletter

Australian musician Nick Cave shared his thoughts about choosing to decline to work with English singer, Steven Patrick Morrissey. In his 328th issue of the June 2025 newsletter, he answered his fans' questions.

A fan named Hadiyah asked about how things stood between Cave and The Smiths member. Astrid shared that she often felt overwhelmed and struggled to say no to others, and wanted to know how the person handled that.

Lindsay mentioned that she had written fifty-nine letters and wondered if constantly longing for something was just part of being human. Lakshmi was curious about what music Cave was listening to and what they were up to that day.

While answering the questions, Nick Cave touched upon the time when Morrissey asked him to work on a song. In the newsletter, he wrote:

“We had a few pleasant email exchanges last year in which Morrissey asked if I’d sing on a new song he had written. I would have been happy to do so, however, while the song he sent was quite lovely, it began with a lengthy and entirely irrelevant Greek bouzouki intro.”

He went on:

“It also seemed that he didn’t want me to actually sing on the song, but deliver, over the top of the bouzouki, an unnecessarily provocative and slightly silly anti-woke screed he had written.”

Nick Cave explained that he turned down the offer because, even though he somewhat understood the message behind the song, it didn’t align with his approach. He preferred to keep political or cultural themes separate from his music, as he felt they took away from what he aimed to express.

According to Nick Cave, Morrissey was a fine lyricist

Nick Cave also said he never met Steven, implying this was the reason he liked the Suedehead singer. He described The Smiths member as a complicated and controversial person who seemed to enjoy provoking others. Cave added:

“As enjoyable as some may find this, it holds little interest for me, but for the fact that Morrissey is probably the best lyricist of his generation, certainly the strangest, funniest, most sophisticated, and most subtle.”

Cave also said that some music had the power to make people feel less empty and more complete, even if only for a short time. For him, Morrissey’s songs, despite often sounding bitter or distant, helped listeners connect to something real and meaningful.

This isn’t the first time Nick Cave has expressed his thoughts about Morrissey. After the latter reportedly received backlash for his political ideas in 2019, he said that Steven’s personal views and actions were separate matters, and his political opinions didn’t detract from the impact of his music.

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Despite any controversial statements he may have made, Cave said Morrissey had built a remarkable body of work that deeply affected and enriched the lives of his fans. Cave believed that this creative legacy was significant and would be remembered far beyond any political controversies.

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