Andy Rourke
Really having a tough time with this one. Never met the guy. I shouldn't feel that sense of loss that I've lost a friend, but I think the impact of the Smiths for me at such a young age was profound because I was confused, figuring myself out, and the Smiths made it perfectly OK to be the weirdo who didn't listen to heavy metal or whatever pop schlock was popular that week. Nobody can dispute the genius of Johnny Marr. Andy made his own playing the ingredient in the Smiths that somehow was the thing that you constantly heard, but maybe didn't identify right away. No other bass player could bring such a groove to a bummer like "How Soon is Now?" and make it feel like it should be played for the dance floor. There was elegance in "the Boy With the Thorn in His Side", the early versions of "These Things Take Time", "You've Got Everything Now", and of course "Handsome Devil" are downright propulsive. "William, It Was Really Nothing"...I bet if you were to isolate the bass, you'd have a banger that you could dance to all on its own. Marr's playing was like stitching that often enveloped the song so it was tight, but Andy's bass could be so substantial but taken for granted for how perfectly-placed it was. Regardless of what the Smiths' legacy is now, I think what's key is how in an extremely short amount of time they crafted some of the best songs I've ever heard. Andy's contribution was essential, and it still saddens me that he left at such a young age. I suppose his loss reminds me of a pivotal time in my life where I developed the maturity to be my own self...to figure out how to leave behind the idea of what I am supposed to be and realize what I am...weirdo, geek, and different, and know that it's all a very good thing. Great music can do that. And Andy was a great musician.
