“You think of incredible riffs like Layla… Johnny was doing that three times a day for four years”: The Smiths’ Mike Joyce on the guitar genius of Johnny Marr
As guitarist in The Smiths and co-songwriter alongside frontman Morrissey, Johnny Marr lays claim to some of the greatest guitar riffs to come out of English rock music – just listen to This Charming Man and How Soon Is Now? for a taste of his guitar genius.
And in a new interview with MOJO, Marr’s Smiths bandmate, drummer Mike Joyce, reflects on the guitarist’s hot streak of writing killer guitar riffs throughout the band’s five-year tenure between 1982 and 1987.
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“Just watching the way that his fingers were moving on the fretboard. The chords were so incredible and so strange,” Joyce remembers.
“The top end, the picking, it sounded like there was a bass line incorporated within it. It was magical but it looked so natural to him.
“You think of incredible riffs, like Layla, that are just part of music history. Johnny was doing that three times a day for four years. [Rough Trade label owner] Geoff Travis actually said: ‘Stop writing A-sides! Throw in a bit of filler!’
Johnny Marr has long been synonymous with the Fender Jaguar, and just yesterday launched his latest signature model based on his prized 1965 Jaguar.
Spec highlights include an enhanced neck profile inspired by Marr’s own original 1965 Jaguar, a Jaguar bridge with Mustang saddles and a vintage-style floating trem, and custom-wound Johnny Marr-designed single-coil Lipstick pickups in the bridge, middle and neck positions. The guitar also sports a custom gloss nitrocellulose black lacquer finish and 22-fret fingerboard with ivory dot inlays.
“The Jaguar has been central to my sound and style for nearly 15 years,” Marr said. “With this new model, I wanted to create an instrument that feels classic but also pushes players to explore new tones and possibilities.”
“Johnny Marr’s legacy as one of the most inventive guitarists of the last four decades is undeniable,” added Max Gutnik, Chief Product Officer at Fender.
Credit: Fender
The post “You think of incredible riffs like Layla… Johnny was doing that three times a day for four years”: The Smiths’ Mike Joyce on the guitar genius of Johnny Marr appeared first on Guitar.com | All Things Guitar.
Source: www.guitar-bass.net
