81. "They Didn't Realize I Was a Seed" - Sinead O'Connor, 1966-2023
This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit smokeempodcast.substack.com“They tried to bury me,” Sinead O’Connor said in the 2022 documentary about her, Nothing Compares. “They didn’t realize I was a seed.” We look back at the life and legacy of Sinead O’Connor, who died this week at the age of 56. Sinead was a firebrand onstage, but her 2021 memoir Rememberings reveals her to be funny and unpretentious and not very interested in fame. She was a protest singer cast in the role of pop star. Topics discussed:* Ghosts in the piano, writing songs to the rhythm of a rocking chair* Why do some children of abuse mourn their parents so deeply?* That time she shaved her head* A bizarre anecdote about Prince, who wrote “Nothing Compares 2 U”* How she managed to sneak the Pope moment onto “SNL”* Four children with four different fathers* Morrissey gets the last word* Pivot to Israel: What is going on? * Kevin Spacey exonerated, but huh, there’s a pattern here* Graphic novels are cool