Can you imagine what it would be like if people only wanted to talk about things you did before turning 25?
Even though Johnny Marr has a well-earned reputation as one of the most consistent guitarists and songwriters in alternative music, it feels like the conversation always goes back to his work with The Smiths. It’s understandable. They were great! But whether you’ve been aware of it or not, he’s also been all over tracks from some of your other favorite artists.
So here are ten songs that show off his versatility as a guitarist, songwriter and producer— and only two of them are by that band.
“This Charming Man” (The Smiths, 1984)
If you had to pick a song that sums up the sound of The Smiths, you couldn’t do much better than “This Charming Man.” Johnny spends the whole song chirping out spindly Telecaster riffs, but he claims there are more than a dozen other guitar tracks buried in the mix — including one of him dropping knives on the strings.
“Milk & Honey” (Beck, 1999)
Beck and Johnny Marr had been talking about collaborating for a while before fate put them both in Los Angeles while the Midnite Vultures sessions were underway. But what must have seemed like a match made in alternative heaven, ended up being much, much weirder. Beck told Rolling Stone he asked for “Skynyrd riffs,” which isn’t exactly Johnny’s forté. “I don’t think he was too enthused, but he said he would do it, but only for me.”
“(Nothing But) Flowers” (Talking Heads, 1988)
Johnny Marr was only 25 when The Smiths split up. While it must’ve been pretty terrifying, immediately joining Talking Heads in the studio isn’t the worst way to rebound… Apparently he didn’t even realize he was being recorded when he laid down his instantly recognizable guitar part on “(Nothing But) Flowers.”
“Sexuality” (Billy Bragg, 1991)
The sessions for Billy Bragg’s Don’t Try This At Home featured a real who’s-who of indie icons — Peter Buck and Michael Stipe of R.E.M., Kirsty MacColl and Natalie Merchant. But none of them were quite as hands-on as Marr, who produced a few tracks and helped write the lead single, “Sexuality.”
“Slow Emotion Replay” (The The, 1992)
Johnny Marr spent six years with Matt Johnson’s SEO-be-damned project The The, touring with the band and playing on the albums Mind Bomb and Dusk. A song he would describe as “the human condition wrapped up in a verse and chorus,” 1992’s “Slow Emotion Replay” is one of his personal favorite tracks from this stint.
“We’ve Got Everything” (Modest Mouse, 2007)
Even though his tenure in Modest Mouse was brief, Johnny told The Guardian they were the band he enjoyed playing with the most. What was originally supposed to be a brief writing/recording experiment would eventually turn into a full-time (albeit temporary) membership in the cycle surrounding 2007’s We Were Dead Before The Ship Even Sank.
“How Soon Is Now?” (The Smiths, 1984)
While it isn’t exactly representative of his style, “How Soon is Now?” might be Johnny Marr’s most recognizable work. More than just impressive playing, getting that sound took some serious studio wizardry — he ran his guitar through three separate amplifiers, each with the tremolo effect set to a different speed. Good luck replicating that, Smiths fans…
“Beautiful People” (Pet Shop Boys, 2009)
After collaborating with Neil Tennant on Electronic’s debut album, Johnny developed a long-standing friendship with Pet Shop Boys. You can hear his guitar work on four of their albums, most recently 2009’s Yes.
“Get The Message” (Electronic, 1991)
By 1988, The Smiths were kaputt and tensions were running high (well, higher than usual) in New Order. Enter Electronic. In this collaboration with Bernard Sumner, Marr does an incredible job of balancing his signature textural guitar work with forward-thinking pop sensibilities to create something that sounds natural but never too familiar.
“Armatopia” (solo, 2019)
Four decades into his career, Johnny Marr’s hooks are sharper than ever. Solo albums like Playland and Call the Comet feature a lot of that signature guitar work that fans of The Smiths will appreciate, but more adventurous releases like this year’s “Armatopia” prove that he isn’t content to rest on his laurels.
The author’s favorite Johnny Marr riff is probably “Ask,” but that changes on any given day. You can follow him on Twitter.
