Johnny Marr reveals why The Smiths split up: “It was mostly a personal thing”
Johnny Marr, the former guitarist with The Smiths, has explained the “personal” reasoning behind why The Smiths split up in 1987.
Despite only being an active outfit for five years, the indie icons released four albums and cemented their place in the musical history books. While their tenure was minuscule compared to other bands, The Smiths carved an indelible legacy before calling it a day as they were at the very peak of their talents. Unlike most bands who split, they’ve also resisted any opportunity to reunite.
In a new interview with MusicRadar, Marr reflected on the split, noting: “It was mostly a personal thing. We were working at such a breakneck pace – 50-odd tracks in four years – that I thought I was going to end up repeating myself.”
He continued: “Also, I was frustrated with what people expected me to come up with. By creating your own rules, the influences and methods of songwriting that you allow yourself to use, you end up boxing yourself into a corner of musical politics.”
“And if you step out of that corner, it’s immediately called ’sell-out’. Some ‘fans’ – for want of a better word – just wanted me to jingle-jangle on my Rickenbacker till I died. But if I have to forsake fame, fortune, and popularity for the experience of being able to play exactly what I want when I want, I’d do it again,” he added.
Marr also touched on the number of controversies which surrounded their time as a band, recalling: “The Smiths went through every conceivable rock and roll tragedy: drug busts, police harassment, controversy. We had everything but a death, thank God. That was avoided by us splitting up. We were smarter than some. Some groups actually start believing they’re the Rolling Stones, and that’s how they do themselves in.”
Meanwhile, Marr, who earlier this week released his new book Marr’s Guitars, recently revealed plans to celebrate the first ten years of his career as a solo artist with the new compilation album Spirit Power: The Best of Johnny Marr. The LP is set for release on November 3rd through BMG.
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