Former Viva Brother singer Lee Newell has revealed that Morrissey kicked the band off a support slot on his tour for talking to the crowd too much.
Newell, now singing in new band Lovelife, revealed how the treatment from his idol upset him in a new interview for The Guardian to discuss his new direction
"My hero Morrissey kicked us off his tour," he told the paper. Adding: "We never met him. The first night he got his people to tell me: 'You're talking too much to the crowd.' I wasn't. I was on my best behaviour because it's Morrissey. He's my hero. So the next night I didn't talk to the crowd and just said: 'Thank you, we're honoured to be here.' He was: 'I'm afraid you overstepped the mark.'"
Newell also revealed his ill feeling towards NME, the magazine that put Viva Brother on their cover before dropping their interest in the band as their popularity failed to take off.
"They're getting away with murder," Newell says of the magazine. "You know what? Much as I love the Stone Roses, I was absolutely gutted they got back together because I thought: that's gonna keep NME in business for another f*cking year."
Elsewhere in the interview, Newell reveals a newfound humility and speaks of his hope that Lovelife can succeed where Viva Brother failed.
Below: Viva Brother and more bands who've split in 2012