Zak Starkey reveals Mani was meant to be in Mantra of the Cosmos: “There was no substitute for Mani so we never had a bass player”
Zak Starkey has paid tribute to the iconic Stone Roses bassist Gary ‘Mani’ Mounfield, revealing that he was meant to be a member of his supergroup, Mantra of the Cosmos.
The drummer took to Instagram on November 23rd, following the tragic news that Mounfield had passed away, aged 63, on November 20th, to share a clip of the pair performing ‘This Old Town’ by Graham Coxon and Paul Weller together, alongside some heartfelt words.
“Mani was always supposed to be our bass player in Mantra Of The Cosmos but due to his amazing strong woman Imelda being v sick he couldn’t commit to Mantras,” Starkey explained, referencing his supergroup consisting of himself alongside Oasis’ Andy Bell, and Shaun Ryder and Bez from The Happy Mondays.
Mounfield’s wife, Imelda, died after a battle with bowel cancer in 2023, which Starkey said prevented him from joining the band. He added: “There was no substitute for Mani so we never had a bass player cos it just wouldn’t have been right.”
Starkey recalled that the last time he had spoken to the bassist, he had said he was ready to “‘dust off me strings and give it a go’. Sadly that was not to be,” he added.
In his lengthy tribute to the Manchester legend, the drummer also noted: “We will all miss him whether he’s on the bass or in yer face… a beautiful big hearted, cripplingly funny, political, sharp modernist and I loved him so much.”
Referencing the video he posted of the pair playing together, he continued: “We only played together this one time with the Weller feller and Foxy Coxy on Jonathan Ross but we locked in immediately and could not stop grinning.”
Starkey’s tribute comes as the latest in a long line paid to Mounfield, after Oasis dedicated their performance of ‘Live Forever’ to him in Sao Paulo, at the penultimate gig of their reunion tour.
Tragically, it seemed that Mounfield had a number of other plans in the works prior to his death, aside from any potential gigs with Mantra of the Cosmos. Only a week before his passing, he had announced that he was set to embark on an extensive tour of the UK throughout 2026.
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