Tina Fineberg for The New York Times Johnny Marr, above performing with Dinosaur Jr. in December, releases his first solo album on Tuesday.In this week’s popcast, Ben Ratliff talks to Larry Rohter about his recent encounter with Johnny Marr, the guitarist and songwriter for the Smiths during the first half of the 1980s, and finally â€" at age 49 â€" in charge of a record under his own name, “The Messenger.†Mr. Rohter explains an unusual guitar hero, or “Godlike Genius,†as per the award just bestowed on him by England’s New Musical Express: one who has built his reputation around rhythm and texture rather than solos, around collaboration rather than leading, and around constant change rather than the creation of a static brand.
Listen above, download the MP3 here, or listen on iTunes here.
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Larry Rohter on Johnny Marr and “The Messengerâ€
SPOTIFY PLAYLIST
Tracks by artists discussed this week. (Spotify users can also find it here.)
