Johnny Marr Interview On The Smiths And Solo Career - The Quietus

Finally, an interviewer that has the guts to ask Johnny why his post-Smiths career has been so disappointing. "A bit of this and a bit of that" .
Bravo Mr Parkes!

 

[MORRIZSEY]

Taylor Parkes Interviews Johnny Marr For The Quietus

Excerpt-

So, does it ever bother Johnny Marr that arguably the most creative and certainly the most celebrated guitarist of the post-punk era has basically been doing a bit of this and a bit of that since the age of 24?

"No, not at all."

Do you never think that maybe, after The Smiths, you could or should have done something a little bit bigger... something which was totally yours?

"I know about groups, and I know about how to form groups – I did before The Smiths – and I know I wouldn't have been able to form a group of my own for a long time after The Smiths that was either going to get a fair shake, or where I was gonna have the mental energy and emotional strength and desire at that time, with all the shit I was getting, to propel three or four other people through those waters... that's the reality."


Full Interview - http://thequietus.com/articles/10748-johnny-marr-interview-the-smiths

 

[realitybites]

Great interview. Lots of interesting insights. Loved this bit... about his post-Smiths collaborations: "And then at the same time, I got to drop being a rock musician completely, and work with possibly the coolest person I've ever met, Bernard Sumner... I mean, I'll take that all day long."

 

[bob-first]

I'm really liking The Messenger. I've really wanted to like Johnny's post Smiths work, but nothing has really done anything for me except for the Neil Finn stuff. I'll actually buy Messenger.

 

[Guernie]

Nice read. It is great to hear all the tech stuff (rhythmicly) that went into forming the sound of The Smiths ....... the interplay of bass, lead and drums all joining like glue while Moz's voice kind of floated on top .
Love how he goes (deeply) into the groups he had the most influence with. Modest Mouse does change (for the better in my opinion) when Johnny adds his ideas to the group. Hey bob-first, I think I will also get a copy of The Messenger when it comes out !

 

[123xyz]

That was great to read - thanks Morrizsey ! What was particularly appealing about this interview was the ... humility (?) shown by both Marr and interviewer i.e. where Marr acknowledges the legitimacy of his fans desire to hear something more archetypally "Marr-esque" and then where the interviewer reflects on his previous Smiths review and wonders about the fairness of it.


Also struck by how similar Marr's sentiments about abhorring the bloated machismo of RAAWWK are to what U2's Edge has expressed over the years...

 

[Uncleskinny]

Great interview, great bloke.

P.

 

[King Leer]

This writer obviously loves music, but writes like a blogger rather than a journalist. Had to stop reading part way down. Please put Marr's answers in boldface so I can take in those bits.

 

[Anonymous]

"Using the guitar as a pop machine. It satisfied a lot of things I like: commercialism without being totally straight, a little bit of finesse, building songs around the guitar without all that horrible old nonsense that guitar culture became, really." -J. Marr

Unfortunately Jesse Tobias has ZERO concept of this.

Jesse is a part of the "guitar problem".

 

[Billybuddd]

I guess it points to the Marr/Morrissey colaboration being intensly reciprocal. Morrissey glows as Marr's guitar feeds his ability to be creative and visaversa. However, that doesn't explain Morrissey's ability to produce evocative and luminous work after the Smiths. Listen, the The The (3 in a row?) stuff can get me going at times, but Marr's playing never seemed to penitrate me after the Smiths. Does this point Moz being the true artistic catalyst of the Smiths? Why would I have such issue with a fact that everyone else seems to take for granted, but I have always secretly thought as far more complicated. Probably shouldn't have posted that last bit on this particular blog! Please don't hate me.

 

[Bluebirds]

I quite like the single in a I'll tap my foot kinda way when it plays on the radio. Only heard i twice but instantly knew form the guitar it was he of the Smiths parish from the sound, which must be nice. After all these years


Neatly entwined with Get The Message by the way?

Looking forward to an album and a tour if this is the quality of his new stuff

 

[Fan afraid]

While the guitar playing on the first two Smiths albums was as revolutionary as Page, Townsend or Harrison I think Marr's work with The The deserves more credit than it gets. Dusk was light years ahead of most other guitar orientated albums of the era.

 

[Anonymous]

And why does Johnny Marr have to have gone on to emulate the depth and quality of his former band The Smiths? Who other than lame journalists said he had to? It's fairly obvious certain people bring out the best creatively in others. Moz n' Marr did this for each other. Is that not enough?

- marred.

 

[Anonymous]

This writer obviously loves music, but writes like a blogger rather than a journalist. Had to stop reading part way down. Please put Marr's answers in boldface so I can take in those bits.

I do that with every Morrissey and Marr interview. Scroll down past the so called journalists' drivel, skim the questions and take in what matters. In other words only the artists' words. Music journalists are about as useful as film critics.

 

[ChicagoGuy]

Finally, an interviewer that has the guts to ask Johnny why his post-Smiths career has been so disappointing. "A bit of this and a bit of that" .
Bravo Mr Parkes!

Can't say that (as a whole) his career hasn't really taken off, but I truly love the work he did while with Electronic.....

 

[Billybuddd]

Listened to that track and was shocked at how it grew on me over the course of the song. U.S. tour? Please?

 

[FROSTY]

..great read, thank you ~

 

[celibate]

He should've stayed with The The, seen him 1989 @ Parkpop the Hague, when Johnny left, not much heard from Matt Johnson,
so I'd say he could've had a creative new starting though I would rather ben in Morrissey's band than with Matt Johnson even I admit he created some classic tunes and good albums

 

[Anonymous]

"Using the guitar as a pop machine. It satisfied a lot of things I like: commercialism without being totally straight, a little bit of finesse, building songs around the guitar without all that horrible old nonsense that guitar culture became, really." -J. Marr

Unfortunately Jesse Tobias has ZERO concept of this.

Jesse is a part of the "guitar problem".

Thank You!!! Morrissey's music has been horrible since Tobias has come into the picture. He's an ass who was thrown out of the Chili Peppers after one Month of shite playing! Morrissey would be better off with my guitar playing.

 

[Billybuddd]

And why does Johnny Marr have to have gone on to emulate the depth and quality of his former band The Smiths? Who other than lame journalists said he had to? It's fairly obvious certain people bring out the best creatively in others. Moz n' Marr did this for each other. Is that not enough?

- marred.

It's not enough. Genius of that level transcends art becomes something closer to sustenance. I think of what the Smiths and Morrissey have contributed to my appreciation of music and, thusly, the quality of my life; their continued contributions become necessity.