MUSIC LEGEND DEAD
Andy Rourke dead: The Smiths bassist dies after battle with pancreatic cancer as bandmate leads tributes
THE Smiths bassist Andy Rourke has died aged 59 following a battle with pancreatic cancer.
His former bandmate Johnny Marr announced the tragic news on Twitter this morning.
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He described Andy, from Manchester, as a "supremely gifted musician".
The tweet said: "It is with deep sadness that we announce the passing of Andy Rourke after a lengthy illness with pancreatic cancer.
"Andy will be remembered as a kind and beautiful soul by those who knew him and as a supremely gifted musician by music fans.
"We request privacy at this sad time."
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Suede bassist Mat Osman - brother of TV presenter Richard - also paid tribute to a "total one off".
He wrote on Twitter: "Aw man. RIP Andy Rourke. A total one-off - a rare bassist whose sound you could recognise straight away.
"I remember so clearly playing that Barbarism break over and over, trying to learn the riff, and marvelling at this steely funk driving the track along."
While Stephen Street, who worked with the The Smiths as a music producer, said he was "so saddened" by Rourke's death.
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He wrote on Twitter: "Andy was a superb musician and a lovely guy. I send my deepest condolences and thoughts to his friends and family. RIP."
Born January 17, 1964, to an English mother and an Irish father, Rourke showed a passion for music from an early age - learning guitar aged just seven.
He met Johnny Marr in 1975 aged 11 and they became pals jamming in the music rooms at school.
Reflecting on the early days, Marr said on Instagram: "Andy and I spent all our time studying music, having fun, and working on becoming the best musicians we could possibly be.
"Back then Andy was a guitar player and a good one at that, but it was when he picked up the bass that he would find his true calling and his singular talent would flourish."
Rourke left school at 15 and later formed The Smiths in 1982 alongside frontman Morrissey, guitarist Marr and drummer Mike Joyce.
Considered one of the most influential alternative rock bands ever, The Smiths changed the face of indie music with their haunting lyrics and hypnotic melodies.
The backbone to all of this was Rourke's ability to inject complex funk-style bass lines which formed the foundation to some of The Smiths' most iconic hits like This Charming Man and How Soon Is Now?
Marr says Rourke "reinvented what it is to be a bass guitar player" noting that "watching him play those dazzling baselines was an absolute privilege and genuinely something to behold".
The bassist played on all four of The Smiths' studio albums: 1984's The Smiths, 1985's Meat Is Murder, 1986's The Queen Is Dead and 1987's Strangeways, Here We Come.
But he was briefly sacked from the band for two weeks in 1986 for his heroin addiction before re-joining to release The Queen Is Dead album the same year.
He left The Smiths in 1987 when the band broke up.
Rourke's music would go on to inspire the Britpop movement which birthed Oasis and Blur.
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In a career spanning over 40 years, he performed with the likes of Sinead O'Connor, Ian Brown from The Stone Roses and thoughout Morrissey's own solo career.
He last played with Marr in New York City in September 2022.
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