Johnny Marr plays riffs from The Smiths, TheThe, The Kinks

[piopereira53]

On the 6:34 the headmaster ritual riff is amazing! Marr is my hero!

[athleticscoach2012]

The guy is a genius on the guitar. He really knows the history of his instrument as well

[xxRandomnameguyxx]

He has a weird way to describe music lol. He doesnt want his sound to get too "harley davidson" ? is that what he said?

[lambrattle]

@xxRandomnameguyxx he's saying he goes for a more mod perspective

vespas over harleys and all that goes along with that

[xxRandomnameguyxx]

By "Hi-fi", is he talking about using a Clean tone?

[Osc1llateW1ldly]

3:52 - best riff EVER! - can't get enough of it

[Fac063]

Is it just me or is the Manchester accent effing bad ace!? Maybe it's because I speak with a generic American accent.....peeeeeeeooooooooo

[jamesysaan]

I love when he launches into What She Said

[riesencub]

Legend.

[lucaslmgv]

I could watch this guy play and talk about his intruments all day long

[InvadedDub]

What tune is the riff right at begginingg from?

Cheers

[ninelivecat]

Johnny is a star on the guitar

[FernandoPixies]

what music is that on  1:25

[gome5000]

is hes using grolish beer bottle straplocks?

[InvadedDub]

what is the riff he plays first?? cheers

[darcythornton]

@InvadedDub 'That Joke Isn't Funny Anymore'

[clemzzz]

@InvadedDub I've seen this happen in other peoples lives etc. etc..

[Thumbshifter]

Interesting that he seems to be playing the prototype of his new Johnny Marr signature Jaguar - it's got the four way switch on the lower horn and everything :-)

[Tycho114]

@Thumbshifter This must have been an earlier prototype, because although it has the four-way switch on the lower horn, it still has the traditional Jag circuit on the upper one.

[ph03n1xamb1t]

He's not that good - pretty shit actually

[usandthem73]

@ph03n1xamb1t WANKER

[ph03n1xamb1t]

@usandthem73

Intelligent comment. Lay off the capitals Sartre

[blakefish80]

Johnny marr, John Squire, Graham Coxon... The best guitarists of my generation. In my humble opinion :)

[mmartinez8549]

he's so freaking cooooool!!!

[UNITEWAD]

Go Jonny Go Go Go! > DJ(UNITE)MC - MADCHESTER - ROCK ON!

[dienkonig33]

I haven't got a fucking clue what he's on about.

[InsanikRhi77]

imm go play guitar now

[pastfrom1990]

1:09 - 1:14 does anyone know where that riff comes from? or was it just pure impro :)

[theone456]

may fave guitar player, he didn't need 5 minute solos, or show off.

[chair1234567]

This is a Fender Jaguar right?

[darcythornton]

@chair1234567 Yes.

[MrItsabeautifulday]

@chair1234567 I think you can now get Johnny marr signature Jags now. :)

[afrondzito]

Johnny Marr, lenda, cúmulo de criatividade musical, gênio, coração da maior banda de todos os tempos, The Smiths.. Alma gêmea do Mrrissey.. Só vocês dois não percebem que foram feito um para o outro..

Johnny Marr, legend, summit of the musical creativity, genious, heart of the biggest band of history, The Smiths.. It's a pity, that both, you and Morrissey, don't notice that you are created one to another, a twin soul, an equal destiny.. From Renato, a Brazilian fan....

[18kkrr]

is this from a documentary???

[darcythornton]

@18kkrr This edited video is from four separate videos that Fender produced in 2009, with Johnny Marr discussing various Fender amps. The links to those videos are in the description above.

[TheSaleShark]

All of the good guitarists are from Manchester! Go Manchester

[offspringj1]

@TheSaleShark got that fucking right mate, GET IN

[ruthlessmada]

Never have i seen a guitar player combine so many different genres of sound together . When i listened to him i hear everything ...Quite literally . He adds so much soul and depth to his music he's a rare breed you don't want to lose . The melancholy and the folk rock atmosphere he creates put you into a trance ...I can't really word it better than that ..Long live Johnny marr !!!

[michbeck88]

Sorry but I agree to geobruf, everything Marr did after The Smiths (except Electronic) was not my cup of tea

[vivmex78]

Oh yes 3:52!!!

[xLiaaaaMWaalkeeRx]

thank you!

[Smitho94]

Its not good...

Its god-like

[cazulu3]

Would be nice to see more of the "That joke isn't funny anymore" riff

[wotabass]

T-heads Nothing but flowers?

That would be JM at intro and beyond...

[tsjaCHA]

I've seen this a couple of times now and it just stays magical. What a style this man's got!

[transonicbuoy1]

What difference?

[transonicbuoy1]

After all those years. I bought that THE THE album,and you could tell immediately, that bit, who was doing that. JM. 2 or 3 years after Strangeways. JM can`t talk the English, and the best music writers can`t describe the music. It is true.

[macca3666]

So there's the deluxe. But does anyone know/can read what the second amp he plays through is??

[darcythornton]

@macca3666 Deluxe Reverb and Super Reverb - go to "Show more" above and see the links to the original videos from Fender

[xLiaaaaMWaalkeeRx]

what is the riff just after 1:10? the riffe before the kinks - all day and all of the night? i have to KNOW!

[FretLegendSmithy]

@xLiaaaaMWaalkeeRx i don't think it's from a song, he's just demonstrating cool riffs you can play. i could be wrong but i've never heard that riff on any of his recordings. it is cool though isn't it. and he just came up with it. great guitarist.

[JaEuerMeister]

@xLiaaaaMWaalkeeRx I'd say Free - The Stealer, slightly sped up...

[xxTedMaulxx]

The guys a genius ... Anyone who could write This Charming Man, in his bedroom at 17!! He was and still is way ahead of his time. And as much as i'm a Smiths fan, Morrisey's morose lyrics would have been nothing without Marr's genius.

[thesmithsmad]

what the name of the riff he plays at 1:16

[cheekyboy37]

I'm an old fart of 50 now, but I remember when The Smiths hit the scene in '84... Truly blessed by this band and the music is just as good, if not better, today than it ever was. They spawned The Stone Rose and Oasis... he music scene today is awful !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[permaveg]

@lydiaDeetz89 What great taste you have.

[geobruf123]

great player but seems to have lost it since the smiths. cant think of one guitar part since then that compares. cant work out why. maybe he just got bored playing like that. shame

[darcythornton]

@geobruf123 That's a shame, you must not have really listened to what Johnny's done since The Smiths to say that.

[geobruf123]

@darcythornton ive listened to all the the (3) albums, kirsty macoll, pretenders, boomslang, the cribs, modest mouse. perhaps you could recommend a track/band I may have missed?

[darcythornton]

@geobruf123 You forgot Electronic.

[basehead617]

@geobruf123 i think his guitar work with The The is brilliant..part of the difference may be that he's not co-writing the songs.

[bollockowithalob]

@darcythornton

Wank tunes since 1987, flapjack.

[GreyRose93]

@geobruf123 Yeah, when he left The Smiths he was fed up with playing that way, he referred to it as his 'jingly jangly stuff'.

[afro20man]

@geobruf123 how about his work with modest mouse?

[youebutme]

we are watching a living genius speaking

[paulconrad]

i could watch this over and over and over

[omgu8mynewt]

I thought I could play guitar but I know realise I can't. But this guy definitely can.

[stevebruce13]

Best video on youtube?

[darcythornton]

@TheSessionsVideos 'The Headmaster Ritual'

[Greatest1979]

7 minutes 53 seconds of bliss, this brought a smile to my face. Johnny ur a fkin legend, man!!!!

[crazynoobboy]

People say hes not a great guitarist, They dont understand he also composes it all. Marr is a truly talented musician...

[TranslucentBubble]

Is it weird that I still find him extremely attractive? =D And, he's a brilliant guitar player; my favourite! =) <3

[PouringDownAStream]

The day Johnny Marr dies will be the saddest saddest day ever... but wow are Hendrix, God and Johnny gunna have a hell of a jam when he's gone!

[MrRascasseman]

@PouringDownAStream he's better than Hendrix....

RUNS AWAY

[hxzxxl]

@PouringDownAStream omg, lol.

[duke000222]

Class

[ShaneRaw1]

When we play riffs - why do we always look at our amps?....

[THESOUNDCONSTRUCT]

I think this man is really good at presenting tonal nuances and colours, chordal shades. Say what you will about him; but have you played in his league? I found him as a result of a link, I'm 55 and from the older school of Hendrix, Page, Beck, but this man impresses me from his own point of creative style

[dogfrt]

Headmaster Ritual

[wildgeko123]

What is the riff beginning at 7:00 i love that single note riff and I really want to know what it is so I can learn it (if possible)

[CelticReject]

Bit of fun, something I just thought of!

"Jimi Hendrix, the Marshal, and the Fender Strat..... But I could Never afford any of That..

Anyone care to add to these lyrics?????

[AkyovNorthWest]

whats the song he plays at 7:01?

[wardehill]

@AkyovNorthWest some girls are bigger than others

[wardehill]

@AkyovNorthWest some girls are bigger than others

[MsMtnGrrl]

@AkyovNorthWest The Headmaster's Ritual.

[spakuloid]

I'd like to know what pedals he's using - clearly a delay and an overdrive of some sort

[CMPx92]

whats the riff from starting at 3:55

[darcythornton]

@CMPx92 'What Difference Does It Make?'

[CMPx92]

@darcythornton Thanks amigo.

[MelPullThePin]

@CMPx92 What Difference Does It Make - The Smiths

[wendywolfman]

3:52 I wish I came up with that fucking riff

[neverender888]

Johnny Marr: Proof that you don't need sweep picking, tapping or divebombs to be an amazing guitarist.

[dannylaine1096]

johnny marr has great teaste in guitars i fancy buying a fender jaugar now LOL :D

[Rikk303]

Until he said he preferred a Scooter over a Harley, I really liked the guy. I even sort of understood the crap in a way. Basically, he's an average guitarist with a learner style that's unique. Went well with the bloke that sang with a bush up his arse....

[HUMANSAREBENEATHME]

@Rikk303 "average guitarist"...Listen,STUPID!! You're a NO TALENT NOBODY, who isn't fit to suck Johnny's stains...you must now KILL YOURSELF for daring to badmouth a LEGEND!!

[Rikk303]

@HUMANSAREBENEATHME just checked out your channel. You don't seem to be well liked which is ok. Liked the headline track a lot as it happens. Rickie Lee Jones meets Edie Brickell. Brickie Lee Jones? Johnny's stains cracked me up!!! Nice one.....

[HUMANSAREBENEATHME]

@Rikk303 Brickie Lee Jones!!!! HOW DARE UUUUUU!!! Those 2 OLD TWATS couldn't shine NINA DIAZ'S Doc Martens....

[Rikk303]

@HUMANSAREBENEATHME Loved the track that you have headlined right now on your channel, albeit very heavily edited. Love the sentiment behind the corporate hatred as well, I'm not that far away from St. Pauls. RLJ & EB are not 2 old twats, they just smell a little funny

[ToneGarvey]

@HUMANSAREBENEATHME Settle down there chief, it's only the internet. Let him be ignorant, he's missing out.

[lozer13]

@Rikk303 You clearly have no GOOD taste in music.

[Rikk303]

@lozer13 I have a certain taste in music. It clearly doesn't agree with yours. Big whoop. Check out players like Jerry Donahu and Will Ray before you fall in love with average guitarists. Why would anyone back up a guy with a bush hanging out of his arse? "If I want some drive...you know" dear me....Steve Howe would probably blow your tiny little mind if you got that stick out of your butt. Ask Morrissey...

[lozer13]

@Rikk303 My mind is far from tiny and there is no stick in my ass. Why are you even on a Johnny Marr video if you don't like him? To me, a sensible young woman, I would think it'd make sense for you to waste your time doing other things like...I don't know..searching an artist you actually like? Or do you take absolute pride in being a douche bag?

[Rikk303]

@lozer13 He sort of featured in a Bert Jansch posting..Bert is a proper guitarist and Marr was quite rightly in awe of him. Thought I'd check Marr out and then remembered he backed the Misery Man. Always bucks to be made from teenage angst in every generation huh? A douche bag is a peculiarly feminine hygiene device and being such is alien to me..probably to you as well

[lozer13]

@Rikk303 You don't need to define it for me, buddy, I know what it means, or I would not have said it. You're right, I've never had to use one, and hope like hell I never have to. Anyways, there's no teenage angst here, I just think that the Smiths made beautiful music and I think that Johnny Marrs guitar playing is beautiful, no matter whom he's copying, everybody got their style from somebody.

[Rikk303]

@lozer13 You asked me why I felt moved to comment on Marrs' playing. I gave a decent answer and still you won't let it go. In a backline, in any group, I'm sure Marr is totally adequate but so are a billion other strummers. By the way, when you tell someone they "clearly have no GOOD taste in music"....it suggests your taste is better than theirs....pompous and narrow-minded some might say....rather like that Morrissey bloke/thing

[lozer13]

@Rikk303 Obviously I think my taste in music is better, it's my taste!

[Rikk303]

@lozer13 taste being subjective, not really an argument. Heart and feel on the other hand are

[lozer13]

@Rikk303 Ok.

[Rikk303]

@lozer13 an end to this pathetic to and fro-ing then hopefully. Be warm and happy this Christmas

[Rikk303]

@lozer13 Try "Blues Run The Game" by Bert Jansch..have a feeling you'll like it

[MelPullThePin]

@Rikk303 I love Bert Jansch...but the original is the best version. Jackson C. Frank is wonderful.

[Rikk303]

@lozer13 Sensible..young..and woman....3 outright lies for a start. You protest and define way too readily. Are you that much in need of a date?

[lozer13]

@Rikk303 I'm unsure how any of those descriptions are lies. I'm not old, I'm a girl, I've got a good head on my shoulders. I just dislike it when people leave negative comments on something when they know on coming on to the page that they don't like the artist. It doesn't make sense to me, you know it's going to annoy people. It annoyed me. So I said something.

[Rikk303]

@lozer13 why even mention your age and gender status? What's the deal? What the hell has that got to do with anything?

[lozer13]

@Rikk303 The reason is unimportant, but I digress. I'm done fighting with you. You're clearly rather bored and carry a sad pathetic life, and you fill the voids by annoying people on YouTube. Carry on, Troll.

[TheSquire007]

@Rikk303 = C*NT

[Rikk303]

@TheSquire007 sucC*inct and to the point. Well done squire, but we've all agreed to differ, or differently agreed..time passes m8

[TheWhitenissan]

he makes me proud to be a short scale player

[Jamesssgull]

my hands down favourite thing about this video is the fact that johnny marr is a legendary guitarist, has written some of the best riffs ever, he's got his own signature guitar and inspired generations of guitarists.. yet he still can't get his lead in the les paul first time..

[gnrboy]

I could listen to him talk about guitars and music all day. Amazing guitar player.

[MsWildCard]

whats the name of that last song he's playing on the les paul?

[maorinui]

@MsWildCard It's called The Headmaster Ritual from the album Meat Is Murder.

youtube.com/watch?v=RgNfTx9pGz­A

[12SeanH]

What are the 2 riffs from 1:08 to 1:21?

[mauryrules]

@12SeanH The second one is "The Kinks - All Day and All of the Night"

[MoveOverCasanova]

he nails it completely, by words and more even with playing!! the real spirit!

[JohnnyJ301]

@VengeanceismineBitch.

Seriously how can you call a great guitarist like Johnny Marr an amateur. He doesn't play Jazz. He plays his own music. His music was original and he created a sound I haven't heard in any other band. His sense of melody was genius.

[cpkelley]

Anyone know when his signature Jaguar is coming out? They've been working on one...haven't heard about when it will be out.

[webdemarcio]

It´s nice to hear him playing some Smiths riffs.

I can trip some decades ago hearing them.

[Renhjarta]

He really makes that Jaguar sound fantastic!

[nmssis]

It's been too long Johnny....come back!

[triangledamncool]

marr's the best

[VengeanceIsMineBitch]

i really don't know why people bang on about him being a great player. he sounds fucking sloppy. no where near as good as any of the so-called greats, ie hendrix clapton

page, zappa etc.

[boggedmaffus]

@VengeanceIsMineBitch Clapton is one of the most overrated players ever. Obviously utterly vital in the history of rock music for his '60s Bluesbreakers and Cream stuff and being the reason Hendrix moved to London, but he's done nothing really interesting since the Layla riff in, what, '71? Check out the 1983 ARMS tour where Page plays an instrumental version of Stairway to Heaven with him and Jeff Beck... Jimmy blows Eric's solo outta the water even though he's fucked up on heroin at the time!

[doublej706]

Music isn't just about technicality, friend. The world rates musicians on such things and we all celebrate the most highly rated musicians our peers and former peers approve of. Yet, It's really all a delicate mix of instrumentals, harmonies, melodies, and phrasing which are the foundations that create a certain atmosphere or feeling that we can associate within ourselves. I've heard songs that were so simple to play musically, yet were so tremendously moving for me. Take it easy!

[boggedmaffus]

@doublej706 Pretty much the point I'm trying to make! In the video I mentioned Jimmy has barely picked up a guitar in three years and is in the middle of heroin addiction, so his playing is way off, but the moment, the catharsis, the crowd - it all makes what's actually a fairly bad solo from a purely technical standpoint into a really emotional one. Post-Cream Clapton never really seems to just let it all hang out. Stuff like Wonderful Tonight is a little too slick, a little too note-perfect...

[XellKamikaze]

@VengeanceIsMineBitch Can't hear any sloppiness in this video at all. Either way, in The Smiths (especially early on), it was all about Chorus with a tiny bit of Overdrive. He pretty much played completely clean. Not only that, but his stage presence while he was playing was completely flawless. He deserves all the credit he gets.. In fact he deserves more credit.

[ThecJc541spec30]

fantastic, outstanding!

[epiphone125]

love that line....''rather have a scooter, than a Harley'' thats proper...

[s7even6ix]

3:51,genius at work,classic, enough said.

[drunicusrex]

But it will be a few decades before I can play anywhere near Johnny's level...

[drunicusrex]

My jag, used, was $500; my vox vt-30 was USD $400 and can almost exactly duplicate these sounds.

[FretLegendSmithy]

would everyone stop going on about how he's not using a rickenbacker? he recorded most of the smiths with telecasters and les pauls. he only used rickenbackers live. Besides, all the sounds in this video are fucking ace.

[raconteurful]

Take the snare off!!! fook-inelll.....

[NSAHAI1]

1:15 that is the best riff of all time

the kinks!!!!

[menga111]

RIFFTASTIC 

[puhzam]

I'll take a scooter over a Harley Davison.

[STEVEFINNERTY]

top lad.

[Arrivald]

Wow, his gear sounds beautiful. I am fed up with my plastic sounding guitar and amp, too bad those things cost so much.

[eightiesdude99]

scooters over harleys, nice.

[DUI59]

Love that '57 Fender Champ! - Little tube amps can really crank it out ...

[DUI59]

Nice post @darcythornton - Thanks! - Johnny is a guitar hero and a really decent bloke!

[MattHXIV]

@weecolski

same

[cribsstewart]

at the start was that half a person?

[TomRAFC]

@cribsstewart that joke isn't funny anymore

[weecolski]

iam a metal head but love johnny marr

[VengeanceIsMineBitch]

@weecolski i'm a jazz snob but johnny marr is an amateur.

[thetrooper2]

@weecolski Same here.

[missritinha14]

Love Love Love

[NotMyBroder]

marr is a superb guitar player

[FretBattles]

Who played the better solo, Eddie Van Halen or Jimi Hendrix? Great head-to-head comparison here:

/watch?v=Gf85d0fxiNw

[vanderrhuc]

Sounds shit without a Rickenbacker to be fair!

[s3c0ndsk1n]

@vanderrhuc To be fair, I don't understand why Marr is constantly linked with the Ric given that he plays and has played a huge variety of guitars throughout The Smiths and beyond. Strats, Teles, Les Pauls, Epiphone Casinos, Gibson ES-335, ES-330 plus a few Gretches have all featured on Smiths records.

[xPsuedo]

he's actually really interesting to listen to.

[vanderrhuc]

@xPsuedo That's cos he's a Northerner la

[MinorHeadstorm]

4 people arn't feeling "rifftastic"

[philbio66]

I love it when he gets rifftastic.

[longview1987]

legend

looks like the guy from Blondie btw

[guyfidelity]

Man, his right hand is unreal. How well does he play that Kinks riff? Man it's scary

[rocktenniscat]

When he's talking about liking "Mod" style guitar playing over "Metal" style, I think it's just another way of saying he's into melodic playing. ME TOO! Go Johnny, go!

[cefdhefnSAE]

wow.. cool video.. I spent sooo much time listening to The Smiths, what a great guitar player.. prob my favourite.

I gotta say though that the best amp (for my Tele) is my 1952 Stromberg Carlson. I had it converted to three prong so I don't die.. but man what a great tone.

At the beginning of my video.. studio tour, you can see it.. and hear it on my song "All That's Left".. but in the room with that amp is lush and lucious.

Check it out!

CefdhefnSAE