London
(ANI):
Singer
Morrissey
expressed
his
deep
sympathies
in
a
tribute
that
he
penned
for
a
long
time
fan
who
passed
away
last
month.
After
being
told
by
DJ
Janice
Long
of
her
death,
the
former
The
Smiths
frontman
paid
homage
to
Melinda
Hsu
-
who
travelled
thousands
of
miles
to
follow
the
singer's
tours
–
to
thank
her
for
giving
him
"strength" during
his
live
shows.
In
a
statement,
Morrissey
writes:
"I
did
not
know
Melinda
personally,
but
I
felt
as
if
I
did
because
she
had
been
a
front
row
fixture
for
many
years...
Mel
was
a
smiling
face
who
lent
strength
to
every
single
concert,
even
when
events
were
going
somewhat
pear-shaped."
"I
felt
as
if
I
knew
Mel
because
she
was
always
there
-
regardless
of
wherever
'there'
happened
to
be;
no
snowbound
landscape
too
far,
no
off-the-beaten
track
too
untrekkable
(sic).
I
often
handed
her
the
microphone
mid-concert
and
she
would
always
make
an
effort
to
say
something
different
each
time.
"What
is
more,
she
always
seemed
so
happy
to
be
there
on
the
front
row,
even
though
she
had
heard
these
live
renditions
enough
times
to
emaciate
the
brain
of
the
most
inherently
decent
devotee...
Her
contribution
was
a
declaration
of
love
for
which
she
seemed
to
save
all
of
her
strength,
and
for
which
I
could
only
ever
repay
with
half-witted
mumbles
of
thanks," The
Daily
Star
quoted
him
as
saying.