Teenage Morrissey critiqued the Sex Pistols Morrissey is known for writing the eloquent lyrics of The Smiths, but he was also a dab hand at letter writing. A teenage letter from the former frontman, under his full name Steve Morrisey, was published in the NME in 1976, and has been uncovered by Letters Of Note blogger Shaun Usher. In it, a spiky 17-year-old Morrissey describes the Sex Pistols gig he attended in Manchester, a year after the short-lived punk band formed. The letter reviews the gig: "The bumptious Pistols in jumble sale attire had those few that attended dancing in the aisles despite their discordant muisc and barely audible audacious lyrics, and they were called back for two encores." More interestingly, Morrissey questions the band's claim to be uninfluenced by the New York music scene. Comparing Johnny Rotten to "both Iggy Pop and [New York Dolls singer] David JoHansen in their heyday," Morrissey also notes the connections between the Sex Pistols' manager Malcolm McClaren and the New York Dolls, and praises the Sex Pistols' similarity to the band. Morrissey closes with a cheeky barb: "I'd love to see the Pistols make it. Maybe then they will be able to afford some clothes which don't look as thought they've been slept in.