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 almost 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
windscreen wiper of his
car; "Andy, you have left The Smiths. Good luck and goodbye, Morrissey".
However, in May 1986 Rourke rejoined the Smiths, just before the release of
The Queen Is Dead album. Immediately after the break-up 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," "Girl Least Likely To," and "Get Off the Stage."
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 was originally involved, with Mike Joyce, in legal action against Morrissey and Marr in a dispute over royalties (see
The Smiths for details). However, while Joyce continued with the action, Rourke opted to settle out of court and was subsequently declared bankrupt.
http://www.manchestereveningnews.co.uk/entertainment/music/indieandrock/s/221/221927_can_a_new_film_heal_smiths_rift.html
Rourke and his Production Company with long time Manager Nova Rehman, Great Northern Productions, organised Manchester Vs. Cancer, an anti-cancer concert in Manchester in January 2006. The concert was a response to learning that Nova's father Sheik Abdur, and sister Nina had been diagnosed with cancer. He unveiled Johnny Marr (his old bandmate in
The Smiths) as one of the performers taking part.
Rourke is a
DJ on
Xfm Manchester, 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.
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