Johnny Marr on “the greatest rock singer of all time”
Not every rock and roll singer is destined to have the most incredible voice in the world. While there are often artists like Freddie Mercury who have sported impressive vocal ranges whenever they step up to the microphone, it sometimes comes down to how much attitude one is bringing across whenever they enter that vocal booth, being able to inhabit a character whenever they sing. Although Johnny Marr may have one of the most inspiring frontmen in front of him with The Smiths, he believed one singer outshined everyone who came after him.
Then again, Marr was always willing to let his fingers do the talking whenever he stepped onstage. Throughout every classic Smiths song, it’s usually Marr who’s leading the charge from a melodic point of view, creating different sonic textures that no one could have imagined being performed by one single set of hands.
Inheriting the same guitar sensibilities from guitarists as varied as Brian Jones and Andy Summers, Marr was interested in creating sonic landscapes over Morrissey’s vocals, making a backing track that matched the emotional intensity of whatever Morrissey sang about. While there was always a strong sense of melody in the band’s repertoire, Marr was still interested in the band’s punk credentials.
Throughout the band’s salad days, the punk genre had first washed up on English shores, with John Lydon pioneering the fashion with Sex Pistols and bands like The Clash pointing to where the genre could go beyond rudimentary guitars. Although every band may have claimed to be one of the earliest punk bands of their time, the genre indirectly started in Detroit in the late 1960s.
As rock and roll started to get more dangerous, Iggy Pop had the idea of making songs decidedly caustic with The Stooges. Across albums like Fun House and Raw Power, Pop would create the most feral sounds any rock and roll frontman had ever made on record, screaming his way through songs like ‘Shake Appeal’ while going to war with the audience whenever he performed.
Even though many fans were initially put off by just how forceful Pop could be, Marr was transfixed by what he saw. Instead of shying away, Marr would fall in love with albums like Raw Power, even singling out Pop as one of the greatest frontmen to ever walk the Earth.
When talking about the legacy of Raw Power to The Guardian, Marr counted Pop among the best rock singers, saying, “James Williamson’s guitar is as good as any guitar playing that has informed British or American punk rock, or the G-word – grunge. And as for the singing – well, Iggy’s the greatest rock’n’roll singer of all time”.
Even though Marr would take his music in a different direction with The Smiths and beyond, he hasn’t lost the innovative and self-destructive spirit that Pop instilled in him. While many have wanted to become a rock star just to sing a sweet song to the audience, Marr understood that it was about more than just a catchy tune. This was an all-out assault on the senses, and he would spend the rest of his career making his sound different from the one that came before.
