The Smiths guitarist Johnny Marr has heaped praise on UK Prime Minister Andy Burnham for his recent riffing, calling it a “victory for guitar.”
In his latest exhibition of his guitar chops, Manchester-born Burnham showed his support for Ukraine amidst their war with Russia by visiting Kyiv and jamming The Smiths’ Rusholme Ruffians with soldiers. It came after he jammed with another Manchester icon a few weeks ago.
It didn’t take long for word to get to Marr, who wrote the song for the band’s standout sophomore record, Meat is Murder, in 1985.
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“I can’t quite get my head around it,” Marr told Absolute Radio (via Music Radar). “I don’t know if pride’s the word, but it probably is. I’ve only just been told about it, in great detail.
“I think it’s an amazing thing,” he added. “In all honesty, for me, it’s like a victory for the guitar.”
The song in question was indirectly influenced by Elvis Presley, with Marr drawing from Del Shannon’s cover of his 1961 hit, (Marie’s The Name) His Latest Flame. In fact, the two songs collided in a medley on Rank, the band’s only live album. They recorded it at the National Ballroom in Kilburn, London, in 1986, and released it two years later.
“It’s kind of beyond me to process it, really, because it could be massive, that,” Marr continues. “But I just sort of go, ‘How great is the guitar? What an amazing tool the guitar is.’”
The guitar that Burnham played on – a silver-finished T-style from Kyiv-based brand WM Guitars – was used to entertain soldiers on the front lines of war and boost their morale. It shows the instrument’s magic.
Proving he’s still a man of the people despite his guitar hero status, Marr recently helped a session player get their guitar back after FedEx had a shipping nightmare.
Marr is also set to part ways with some illustrious Smiths-era guitars and beyond in a bumper auction next month.
