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Before joining The Smiths , Andy Rourke had played guitar and bass in various Rock bands, as well as in the short lived Funk band Freak Party , often with his school friend John Maher (the future Johnny Marr ). When Marr and Morrissey formed the Smiths, Rourke joined the band after their second gig, and remained with the band throughout its existence. Marr claims that Rourke's contribution to The Queen Is Dead LP was "something no other bass player could match". Rourke was briefly sacked from the Smiths over drugs abuse, resulting in a weekend prison sentence, which was posted on TV news. The brief dismissal of Rourke came in the form of a note left by Morrissey under the wind-screen wiper of his car; "Andy, you have left The Smiths. Good luck and goodbye, Morrissey". In May of 1986 Rourke rejoined the Smiths, just before the release of "The Queen Is Dead" album. Immediately after the breakup of the band, Rourke and Smiths Drummer Mike Joyce played with Sinéad O'Connor - Rourke (but not Joyce) appears on the album '' I Do Not Want What I Haven't Got ''. The duo also provided the rhythm section for two singles by former Smiths singer Morrissey , and Rourke composed the music for Morrissey's songs "Yes, I Am Blind" and "Girl Least Likely To". Rourke has also played and recorded with The Pretenders (appearing on some of the tracks on 1994's ''Last of the Independents''), Killing Joke , Badly Drawn Boy , Aziz Ibrahim (formerly of the Stone Roses ), and ex- Oasis guitarist Bonehead (as "Moondog One"). Rourke and his Production Company, Great Northern Productions, organised Manchester Vs. Cancer, an anti-cancer concert in Manchester in January 2006. He sensationally unveiled Johnny Marr (his old bandmate in ). Rourke will be a DJ on Xfm Manchester when it launches, broadcasting new and classic indie anthems on Saturday nights. He is currently in a band called Freebass with bass players Mani (ex-The Stone Roses ) and Peter Hook ( New Order ). He is also working on MvC 07 which it is rumoured may well be extended to include foreign events, most notably American shows. ANDY'S BASS SOUND Andy Rourke's bass has a very twangy sound to it. Listening to various Smiths albums, it is noted how melodically the basslines are around Johnny Marr's guitar playing, Morrissey's singing, and Joyce's drumming. His sound is the result of two different basses:
Andy was known to play with the tone knob turned to its fullest and with a plectrum. EXTERNAL LINKS
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