Andy Rourke post Smiths Discography

[gbarry]

Hello, I'm compiling a "Discography" list of releases featuring ANDY ROURKE on 'bass guitar', after The Smiths split (i.e. NOT Smiths items but from guest playing and numerous bands he has formed since then).
There are quite a few omissions from the list on the "Discogs" webpage.
Any help with this Discography (and Track names) would be very much appreciated.
Regards.

HERE IS THE LIST so far:
Particular songs Andy played on in some sessions are in 'brackets':
1988 - Sinéad O'Connor – Jump In The River [SINGLE] (Jump In The River / Never Get Old)
1988 - Sinéad O'Connor – Someday My Prince Will Come (from Various – Stay Awake [LP] (Various Interpretations Of Music From Vintage Disney Films)
1989 - Sinéad O'Connor - The Value Of Ignorance [Live Video]
1989 - Morrissey - The Last Of The Famous International Playboys [SINGLE]
1989 - Morrissey - Interesting Drug [SINGLE]
1990 - Morrissey Piccadilly [SINGLE]
1990 - Morrissey - November Spawned A Monster [SINGLE]
1990 - Morrissey – Hulmerist [Video]
1990 - Morrissey – Bona Drag [LP]
1990 - Sinéad O'Connor – I Do Not Want What I Haven't Got [LP] (The Emperor's New Clothes / Jump In The River / You Cause As Much Sorrow)
1990 - Sinéad O'Connor - Three Babies [SINGLE]
1992 - Max – Silence Running [LP]
1992 - Max - Hold On [SINGLE]
1994 - Pretenders - Last Of The Independents [LP]
2000 - Aziz - Middle Road [SINGLE] (Kills Me)
2003 - Badly Drawn Boy - All Possibilities [SINGLE] (Where Were You?)
2004 - Proud Mary - Love And Light [LP] (Mexico / Never Good Night)
2005 - Vinny Peculiar - Two Fat Lovers [SINGLE]
2006 - Kings Have Long Arms - I Rock - Eye Pop [LP] (Meat Is Awful)
2007 - Ian Brown - The World Is Yours [LP] (On Track / Goodbye To The Broken)
2008 - Crisis - Consequences [SINGLE]
2009 - Peculiar Gentlemen - The Difference [LP] (The Part That I Love)
2010 - Freebass - It's A Beautiful Life [LP]
2010 - Freebass - Two Worlds Collide [SINGLE]
2010 - Freebass / Man Ray - Two Worlds Collide EP / Summer 88 EP [SINGLE]
2010 - Freebass - You Don't Know This About Me (The Arthur Baker Remixes) [SINGLE]
2010 - Freebass - Fritz von Runte vs Freebass Redesign [SINGLE]
2010 - Freebass - Live Tomorrow You Go Down [SINGLE]
2015 - Ovlov - Solo [LP]
2015 - Diane Charlemagne - It's In Your Eyes [SINGLE]
2016 - D.A.R.K. - Science Agrees [LP]
2016 - Daddy - Let Me Get What I Want [LP]
2017 - Various – The Many Faces Of The Smiths [LP] (D.A.R.K. – Curvy / Steal You Away)
2017 - Justin Dean Thomas [SINGLE] (Anytime I'm Feelin / Standing In The Door)
2017 - Steve Conte - Gimme Gimme Rockaway [SINGLE]
2018 - Kevin Max - AWOL [LP] (Melissa / Half Of The Better One / Yeshua)
2019 - Blitz Vega - Hey Christo [SINGLE]
2019 - Blitz Vega - Lost & Found [SINGLE]
2019 - Blitz Vega - LA Vampire [SINGLE]
2022 - Blitz Vega (featuring Johnny Marr) - Strong Forever [SINGLE]

Possibly involved with these releases too:
1996 - Delicious - Stimulator [SINGLE]
1999 - Jeep - Curse EP [SINGLE]

 

[Amy]

I don't mean this unkindly but I think even the world's most obsessive Smiths fan would struggle to compile an Andy discography.
After the early Moz solo singles he basically disappeared - bits and bats of sessioning, obscure projects that didn't get off the ground or that had to be abandoned due to circumstances (eg. DARK). EPs and one-off items, it's stuff that most people couldn't even name. Sorry.

 

[Raphael Lambach]

Hello, I'm compiling a "Discography" list of releases featuring ANDY ROURKE on 'bass guitar', after The Smiths split (i.e. NOT Smiths items but from guest playing and numerous bands he has formed since then).
There are quite a few omissions from the list on the "Discogs" webpage.
Any help with this Discography (and Track names) would be very much appreciated.
Regards.

Some include:
Morrissey (solo), Sinead O'Connor, Max, The Pretenders, Aziz, Badly Drawn Boy, Proud Mary, Vinny Peculiar, Ian Brown, Peculiar Gentlemen, Freebass, Jetlag, Diane Charlemagne, Dark, Daddy, Justin Dean Thomas, Ovlov, Steve Conte, Kevin Max, Blitz Vega

You can find a lot of his discography here: https://www.discogs.com/artist/367691-Andy-Rourke

 

[bhops]

Interesting you bring this up. I've seen recent photos on IG and the poor dude looks very ill. In fact looks like he may have even had chemo recently, I know it's only speculation but once you've seen someone who has gone thru chemo up close you recognise the signs. I hope I'm wrong. Looks like Johnny sent him a Fender recently, stepping up for his old mate. In many ways they are the original Smiths in the sense they knew each other before the band. Andy was one of the greatest bass players of his generation and I just wish he'd gotten more session work after the band split up.

 

[Amy]

Interesting you bring this up. I've seen recent photos on IG and the poor dude looks very ill. In fact looks like he may have even had chemo recently, I know it's only speculation but once you've seen someone who has gone thru chemo up close you recognise the signs. I hope I'm wrong. Looks like Johnny sent him a Fender recently, stepping up for his old mate. In many ways they are the original Smiths in the sense they knew each other before the band. Andy was one of the greatest bass players of his generation and I just wish he'd gotten more session work after the band split up.

He deserved the same payout that Mike got, too. When you consider their contributions to the Smiths, it seems horribly unfair that one guy receives £1 mill that he was rightfully owed and the other guy settles out of court for just 80k. By the end of the 90s he was bankrupt. Moz and Johnny should be ashamed of that and I hope that Johnny has helped him over the years, trying to redress that balance.

 

[bhops]

He deserved the same payout that Mike got, too. When you consider their contributions to the Smiths, it seems horribly unfair that one guy receives £1 mill that he was rightfully owed and the other guy settles out of court for just 80k. By the end of the 90s he was bankrupt. Moz and Johnny should be ashamed of that and I hope that Johnny has helped him over the years, trying to redress that balance.

Did you go to the court case? Because I did. Mike's 'evidence' was shaky at best. now to be clear I'm not speaking about the moral aspect of who deserved what, but from watching the case it seemed pretty clear to me that Johnny and Morrissey at no time agreed to what Joyce claimed. In fact not even Andy could remember to what was agreed, LOL.

 

[Amy]

Did you go to the court case? Because I did. Mike's 'evidence' was shaky at best. now to be clear I'm not speaking about the moral aspect of who deserved what, but from watching the case it seemed pretty clear to me that Johnny and Morrissey at no time agreed to what Joyce claimed. In fact not even Andy could remember to what was agreed, LOL.

Oh, I don't doubt it, but I guess it doesn't matter now. I was just saying that whatever they got, Mike and Andy surely deserved an equal share. Andy only took the paltry settlement because he was desperate and needed money immediately, he couldn't wait a year or two for the outcome of a legal case. Morrissey and Marr must have known that and they took advantage of it. The situation wasn't helped by his problems with heroin etc either.

 

[BurgerButt]

He deserved the same payout that Mike got, too. When you consider their contributions to the Smiths, it seems horribly unfair that one guy receives £1 mill that he was rightfully owed and the other guy settles out of court for just 80k. By the end of the 90s he was bankrupt. Moz and Johnny should be ashamed of that and I hope that Johnny has helped him over the years, trying to redress that balance.

Always makes me laugh that Marr paints himself as a man of the people / socialist..... but screwed his mates.

All men are equal indeed.

 

[Flibberty]

Oh, I don't doubt it, but I guess it doesn't matter now. I was just saying that whatever they got, Mike and Andy surely deserved an equal share. Andy only took the paltry settlement because he was desperate and needed money immediately, he couldn't wait a year or two for the outcome of a legal case. Morrissey and Marr must have known that and they took advantage of it. The situation wasn't helped by his problems with heroin etc either.

I don't think it's anything like as simple as that. We know from what others have said that, even ignoring songwriting, Morrissey and Johnny were doing far, far more than either Andy or Mike. As Richard Boon later said:

"Johnny and Morrissey were really driven and had a clear sense of purpose. They knew exactly what they wanted. They shared a vision. It was those two that pushed it forward. The other two were the rhythm section, nice as they were. For Johnny and Morrissey it really wasn’t about work. It was their passion. For the rhythm section it was work. They referred to it as work."

Also, when it comes to the concerts, Morrissey and Johnny really were completely in charge. Between them they would organize the tours, conduct meetings, do promotional interviews, select the intro music, design the backdrops, choose the set lists etc. More than the vast majority of bands, it really was a case of two people being the main members and the other two being simply the rhythm section.

Obviously, they made a disastrous mistake in not getting everything down in writing.

I don't think people can question Johnny's friendship to Andy too much, anyhow, considering that Andy could easily have been permanently fired. Johnny protected Andy, hid his drug use from Morrissey as much as he could and made sure he remained a member of the group.

 

[Amy]

Hi @Flibberty . When I said equal share, I meant that Andy and Mike deserved the same as each other - not that they should be level with Morrissey and Marr. Instead, Joyce got almost 10 x as much as Andy and the poor guy was penniless within a few years.

 

[bhops]

From memory Mike and Andy were earning 50K per year in the mid-eighties which was pretty good money. Mike only started complaining AFTER the group split.

 

[Flibberty]

Hi @Flibberty . When I said equal share, I meant that Andy and Mike deserved the same as each other - not that they should be level with Morrissey and Marr. Instead, Joyce got almost 10 x as much as Andy and the poor guy was penniless within a few years.

Sure, but the main reason Andy was penniless was due to his poor decisions.

Obviously, anyone can feel sympathy for a person who has substance abuse issues, but there is no way that either Morrissey or Johnny can be blamed for that or for Andy being penniless. He was still earning very good money throughout that period even taking his % into account.

 

[gbarry]

HERE IS THE LIST so far: (Any additions/omissions /errors would be most welcome)
Particular songs Andy played on in some sessions are in 'brackets':
1988 - Sinéad O'Connor – Jump In The River [SINGLE] (Jump In The River / Never Get Old)
1988 - Sinéad O'Connor – Someday My Prince Will Come (from Various – Stay Awake [LP] (Various Interpretations Of Music From Vintage Disney Films)
1989 - Sinéad O'Connor - The Value Of Ignorance [Live Video]
1989 - Morrissey - The Last Of The Famous International Playboys [SINGLE]
1989 - Morrissey - Interesting Drug [SINGLE]
1990 - Morrissey Piccadilly [SINGLE]
1990 - Morrissey - November Spawned A Monster [SINGLE]
1990 - Morrissey – Hulmerist [Video]
1990 - Morrissey – Bona Drag [LP]
1990 - Sinéad O'Connor – I Do Not Want What I Haven't Got [LP] (The Emperor's New Clothes / Jump In The River / You Cause As Much Sorrow)
1990 - Sinéad O'Connor - Three Babies [SINGLE]
1992 - Max – Silence Running [LP]
1992 - Max - Hold On [SINGLE]
1994 - Pretenders - Last Of The Independents [LP]
2000 - Aziz - Middle Road [SINGLE] (Kills Me)
2003 - Badly Drawn Boy - All Possibilities [SINGLE] (Where Were You?)
2004 - Proud Mary - Love And Light [LP] (Mexico / Never Good Night)
2005 - Vinny Peculiar - Two Fat Lovers [SINGLE]
2006 - Kings Have Long Arms - I Rock - Eye Pop [LP] (Meat Is Awful)
2007 - Ian Brown - The World Is Yours [LP] (On Track / Goodbye To The Broken)
2008 - Crisis - Consequences [SINGLE]
2009 - Peculiar Gentlemen - The Difference [LP] (The Part That I Love)
2010 - Freebass - It's A Beautiful Life [LP]
2010 - Freebass - Two Worlds Collide [SINGLE]
2010 - Freebass / Man Ray - Two Worlds Collide EP / Summer 88 EP [SINGLE]
2010 - Freebass - You Don't Know This About Me (The Arthur Baker Remixes) [SINGLE]
2010 - Freebass - Fritz von Runte vs Freebass Redesign [SINGLE]
2010 - Freebass - Live Tomorrow You Go Down [SINGLE]
2015 - Ovlov - Solo [LP]
2015 - Diane Charlemagne - It's In Your Eyes [SINGLE]
2016 - D.A.R.K. - Science Agrees [LP]
2016 - Daddy - Let Me Get What I Want [LP]
2017 - Various – The Many Faces Of The Smiths [LP] (D.A.R.K. – Curvy / Steal You Away)
2017 - Justin Dean Thomas [SINGLE] (Anytime I'm Feelin / Standing In The Door)
2017 - Steve Conte - Gimme Gimme Rockaway [SINGLE]
2018 - Kevin Max - AWOL [LP] (Melissa / Half Of The Better One / Yeshua)
2019 - Blitz Vega - Hey Christo [SINGLE]
2019 - Blitz Vega - Lost & Found [SINGLE]
2019 - Blitz Vega - LA Vampire [SINGLE]
2022 - Blitz Vega (featuring Johnny Marr) - Strong Forever [SINGLE]

Possibly involved with these releases too:
1996 - Delicious - Stimulator [SINGLE]
1999 - Jeep - Curse EP [SINGLE]

 

[Flibberty]

Possibly involved with these releases too:
1996 - Delicious - Stimulator [SINGLE]
1999 - Jeep - Curse EP [SINGLE]

Just to add that I definitely recall a harsh NME review from around 1996 that mentioned Andy appearing on a single at that time. I can't remember whether it was Stimulator, but there's a good chance.

 

[Juan Dulces]

Oh, I don't doubt it, but I guess it doesn't matter now. I was just saying that whatever they got, Mike and Andy surely deserved an equal share. Andy only took the paltry settlement because he was desperate and needed money immediately, he couldn't wait a year or two for the outcome of a legal case. Morrissey and Marr must have known that and they took advantage of it. The situation wasn't helped by his problems with heroin etc either.

Great points! Andy is a great player, and also seems very humble and genuinely happy!

I've always thought, too, that Andy may have taken a smaller settlement because of the overall love and respect he has for The Smiths. Regarding his involvement in the court case, he chose to not have litigations drag on and took the shortest way out - regardless of why or if he needed any money at all. That's been one thing that's always displayed his devotion to the band to me. Another thing showing respect is all the positive things he's said about the other Smiths, for like the last 35 years. You can tell Andy loves that part of his life, having played a large role in the success of a truly great band.

It's such a shame about the money share, from the first signed contract all the way to the court case. Added some grim to an otherwise abundance of wild color and rich storytelling. There is no band like The Smiths. Perfect combo of musicians, and the songs were so dynamic and really different. Their music endures.

 

[Martin L]

An addition to the above lists. In late 1988 or 1989 Andy briefly joined Killing Joke, but it didn't really work out or last long. I don't think any commercially available recordings exist, but there is a fanclub-only flexidisc of an early version of The Beautiful Dead on which Andy plays.

 

[Anonymous]

1996 - Delicious - Stimulator [SINGLE]

Andy definitely plays bass on this single - I've even got it somewhere, I think I only bought it at the time as I knew he was on it.
You can see him playing in the band here:

 

[gbarry]

UPDATES AND ADDITIONS:
2016 - Freak Party [SINGLE] (Featuring Johnny Marr and Andy from 1981)
2023 - Blitz Vega - Strong Forever [SINGLE]

 

[Young And Alive]

Always makes me laugh that Marr paints himself as a man of the people / socialist..... but screwed his mates.

All men are equal indeed.

He only "screwed his mates" if he had lied to Andy and Mike that they were getting the same percentage as him and Morrissey. Neither you nor I can possibly know if he lied, or whether there was a misunderstanding, or whether Joyce was just chancing it when he took legal action.

Johnny and Morrissey's position was that Andy and Mike knew what they were earning in relation to them.
Andy and Mike's position was that they were led to believe all four members were getting the same percentage of performing and recording royalties.

In the absence of a written contract confirming one of the above scenarios, Judge Weeks sided with Joyce.

Another judge may have taken an entirely different view, siding with Morrissey and Johnny and telling Joyce that in the absence of a contract, he is only entitled to whatever Morrissey and Johnny gave him, and that his downfall was not having the gumption to insist on a contract.

The crux of the matter is that in 1982 Andy and Mike were never shown a contract to sign. Had they been, then they could either have signed it and then foregone any legal action years later, or considered the offer unfair and walked away from the band.

I can't help but feel however that Judge Weeks took an instant dislike to Morrissey and was hell bent from that moment on finding in Joyce's favour, despite the flimsiness of Joyce's performance in court. And this is unprofessional in the extreme. Whatever he thought of Morrissey's personality or perceived arrogance, Weeks' job was surely to look at the facts and nothing else.

And I did find it curious after the outcome of the case that Morrissey (and Morrissey alone) was criticised in the press as being this rip off merchant who deliberately tried to screw an ex bandmate out of cash - completely ignoring the fact that Johnny "nice guy" Marr was on the same side of this battle as Morrissey. If Morrissey is a greedy liar, then so is Marr. If Morrissey is dishonest, then so is Marr. But the press ignored that aspect of it completely.

If anything, the press should have gone in harder on Marr than Morrissey. Marr, after all, was the group's de facto manager after Joe Moss left. He was more involved with the business side than Morrissey was.