Photo: Press
Set The Boy Free, Johnny Marr's autobiography describes the 70s Britain and the consequences of Thatcher's neoliberal ideology. He compares Iron Lady’s policies to behaviour of someone choosing their new two-car garage over the needs of the unemployed father three next door. His writing is compassionate, courageous and concerned.
Nearly 40 years on, the Thatcherite doctrine has been ingrained into the deep trenches of our society. So how does this indie legend view our current political climate compared to the time when he was starting out in The Smiths? “I don’t think there’s ever been a bigger political catastrophe in the UK in my lifetime than the Brexit campaign and the rapid rise of the far right,” says Marr with a focused seriousness. “It’s brought about a whole new set of social concerns and issues. The fact that we’re all so OK with aggressive xenophobia, cultural xenophobia, racism…"
“I think, now more than ever, young people are identified as cash cows,” he adds. “It’s like there’s an invisible hand reaching out from the sky into the pockets of people in their teens. In Thatcher’s day it was just plain old bleak. It was no future and no jobs. But now they’re trying to make it more difficult for you to even afford train fares, bus fares and education. There’s a lack of genuine democracy.”
His political leanings don’t come as a surprise. They’re just the honest views that someone who’s played with and appreciated Billy Bragg, and read Tony Benn’s book, Arguments for Socialism, might have. Being politically subversive has always played a huge role in his life and is what Marr thinks is part and parcel of being in an alternative scene. The first Smiths fans recognised this about them and showed their connection by turning up to gigs mimicking their image with flowers dangling from their hair, wearing cardigans and brandishing bowl cuts.
Obviously, the music didn’t remain a source of inspiration for people who were equally subversive. But - rather than indicating The Smiths’ lack of alternative perspective - the magnetic appeal to the masses implies the innate desire in millions of people to want to break out of the mould of wage work, conventional chart music and gender constrains. They may never have the courage to do so, but they relish the escape they get momentarily through hearing The Smiths.
Likewise, it’s hard to dismiss The Smiths’ whole-hearted commitment to their art and clarity of their creative vision. Even the sceptics would find it hard to disagree with the band's cultural significance. The sound of the guitars alone, are able to convey a sense of non-conformity that people understood and bought into. Marr agrees: “The sound of the music is definitely the sound of the outsider. Morrissey and I have that in common. That’s the same with Modest Mouse and The Cribs. The bands I’ve been involved with are always interested in what’s outside the mainstream experience.”
His path toward being an outsider seemed to begin at a very young age. The book reveals a childhood memory of sitting on the curb, fiddling with the tarmac outside his central Manchester home while the other kids play. The rail tracks were meters away and cars would whizz past two meters from his face but he was taking in the busy city in a different, more poetic way; more as an observer than a participant. Does he agree these meditations on his surrounds were habitual from a young age and inform his music?
“That sense of my environment and the physical place I find myself in has run all the way through my life,” enthuses Marr. “It definitely informed me when I was younger, without me realising it. Then I started to identify it. It was pointed out to me by a writer friend of mine, who noticed my interviews over the years are always paired with references to cities and towns, places where I’d written songs. To this day I refer to it. ‘The Messenger’ and ‘Say Desemne’ are about the streets. Nothing really changes very much."
Fortunately, Morrissey’s lyrical prowess connected beautifully to Marr’s innovative “guitarchestration” – a term Marr uses in the book to sum up the walls of sound he could create on his own before he even had a band. Marr’s extraordinary multi-tracking techniques incorporate tremolo, feedback, alternate tunings make him a unique visionary guitar player. He’s poppy but also psychedelic and instantly captivating. His partnership with Morrissey was undoubtedly one of the most fruitful and unique creative alliances of the last century.
But Marr appears keen to tell me about their common commitment for the mission of the band than wistfully reflect on the magic they once had. “We were similar in our characteristics. We both knew what it took to make a really, really good group - and we were both prepared to do it. And what that took was dedication, work passion, discipline and obsession. You don’t find that in anybody.”
Morrissey and Marr were always core of The Smiths and they started writing before the rhythm section came in, and ran the majority of the band’s creative decision making. On their first meeting they said that they would sign to Rough Trade. His unflinching determination paid off and after bringing in Andy Rourke, and Mike Joyce on drums they were complete. It wasn’t long until Geoff Travis, head of Rough Trade, snapped them up. Success happened very fast. In 1983, if you were on Top Of The Pops, the whole country was tuned in and saw you whereas now the multitude of platforms that bands have to get on means there’s no quick path to success. They took their opportunity by the scruff of the neck and made a great impression with ‘This Charming Man’ and things mushroomed from there on.
During their career there was immense solidarity in the group. Especially courageous was their dealings of bassist Andy Rourke, who was struggling with heroin addiction throughout The Smiths' career. He was asked to leave. Left to his own devices, he soon got arrested but the band didn’t abandon him. “When he got arrested most people would have run a mile. We got him back in the band. That shows what strength and degree of friendship we had in the group,” says Marr reflecting on one of the more positive moments of their history.
However, with success came commitments outside of writing music that would bring about tension. Having to be in London for press appearances and sessions meant Morrissey would move to London in 1986.
“Morrissey moving to London was the first significant difference in our ideology. It’s one thing having differences about business. But when it’s something that affects your creativity...” he trails off before adding: “I thought we wrote our best stuff in Manchester. Luckily, we wrote good stuff wherever we went. But if you think about it, ‘This Charming Man’, ‘Big Mouth Strikes Again’ and all of Meat Is Murder was done when we were in Manchester. I think we had more of an alternative sound when we weren’t in the capital.”
He goes further to say: “My band had two very strong ideas about their own destiny when success comes and certain amount of confidence and maybe even stubbornness. I was stubborn about where I saw the band going in the best interest of the band. And Morrissey had his ideas so….”
To reach these conflicts at a time when they were at a creative peak is a heartbreaking reality Everything Marr had worked toward in his life was coming to a head and an inevitable fall out.
Since breaking up things haven’t gone smoothly either. It’s easy to casually agree to a royalty split via conversation without signing anything. But once the millions were in, this became contentious and drummer Mike Joyce fought for more of a lion’s share. This bitter legal battle is possibly one of the biggest obstacles to getting The Smiths back together.
Paul McCartney talked to Marr about the band’s break up quite soon after and the autobiography explains his casual but helpful advice. “That’s bands for ya.” Marr explains he found this comforting at the time and some of the greatest bands of all time have their differences that just can’t be resolved. Afterall, The Smiths’ legacy doesn’t need any more gratification. It’s cast in the history books as one of the greatest bands of all time. It’s a fossil that doesn’t need waking but if it did it would be bigger than The Stone Roses reforming. It would be massive.
But the ever-resourceful independent Marr never relied on The Smiths. He’s moved on. As a gifted guitar player, he landed work his whole career and has played with The Pretenders, Paul McCartney, Talking Heads, The The, The Cribs, Modest Mouse, Electronic - to mention a few. Had The Smiths gone plain sailing this wonderful array of experiences just wouldn’t have happened. Marr’s obsessive devotion to his guitar is something that has made the world a better place to live in, and his critique of society is a necessary reminder that it’s our duty to tackle corruption. He is a true hero and an actual legend.
