5 ms·

Andy Rourke: The Smiths bassist dies aged 59

100 points by mellosouls 3y ago

arathis 3y ago
I spent an evening with Andy Rourke a few years ago. He was DJing a small bar and I was looking after him. Man, he really didn’t think much of Morrissey! He was a lovely man.
- ArtWomb 3y ago
  I assume he was a legit Man City supporter, because all those members of Oasis & Stone roses seem to be? Maybe they take the field at the final to "Panic (Hang the DJ)" ;)
  - uhtred 3y ago
    I don't think there are any Man U supporters in Manchester
    - youngNed 3y ago
      Thats just not true. In fact until very recently Unitedwere by far the more popular team in this city, the meme came about as they have so many fans from outside the city as well. Also, to the poster who mentioned Stone Roses, No, they are united fans. In fact until Oasis the only celebrity city fans were bernard manning and curly watts from corrie
    - seanhunter 3y ago
      Definitely not the case. In Salford, Cheshire, South Manchester etc you'd really struggle to find anyone who was a city fan. Source: I lived in Ashton-under-lyne from 1990-1995 or so. I personally knew literally hundreds of United fans (and this is before their really dominant era). During that time I knew literally 1 person who was a city fan and everyone would relentlessly take the piss out of him for it.
      - mahathu 3y ago
        How do you personally know hundreds of people well enough to know about which football team they're supporters of?
        youngNed 3y ago
        Its really not difficult at all. Especially in Manchester.
sammyteee 3y ago
Very sad. An incredible musician, if you listen to some of his intricate basslines on some of the early Smiths tricks, they are incredible.
- terramex 3y ago
  Case in point: last 90 seconds of "Barbarism Begins at Home": https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9zNwZomsONA https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9zNwZomsONA
  - spondylosaurus 3y ago
    The main bass riff of Barbarism Begins at Home is unbelievably catchy, too. Those ghost notes! Marr gets much-deserved credit for his guitar work, but I firmly maintain that some of the Smiths' best tracks basically are their basslines, and Barbarism is a standout example. What a terrible loss....
    - whstl 3y ago
      "The Queen Is Dead" is another one. I love Marr's more atmospheric work on this track, but Andy Rourke's riff is what's carrying the song. Fantastic bassline.
    - seanhunter 3y ago
      Yeah. Bigmouth strikes again also fits that category.
spondylosaurus 3y ago
:( Holy shit... gone far too young. Andy was one of the greatest bassists of the 80s, no question. (Do you think we can offer up Morrissey's soul in exchange for bringing Andy back?)
- Cymrukicks 3y ago
  Does he still have one?
  - spondylosaurus 3y ago
    Fair point—and even if he does, we might have to fudge the Blue Book value a bit.
- lb1lf 3y ago
  >> (Do you think we can offer up Morrissey's soul in exchange for bringing Andy back?) -What would the market value of Morrissey's soul be? Heck, even Satan rejected it! This was very sad news indeed, The Smiths basically was the soundtrack to my teens (Which were after they had split, but I had a few older acquaintances who strongly urged me to check them out despite the albums being very, very old - almost ten years!) Think I'll put on 'Meat is Murder' now.
- deleted 3y ago
  [deleted]
- hluska 3y ago
  Hold on, Morrissey has a soul? I’ve had the misfortune of seeing Morrissey play a few times and my god, what a twat.
  - apelapan 3y ago
    He is indeed a right knob, but that hasn't stopped me from enjoying the few shows of his that I've gone to. Assuming one accepts the basic premise of his music (melodical moping), he has an amazing catalogue of songs and a lovely voice to deliver them with.
robga 3y ago
I was surprised to see the BBC report that he’d lost his battle with cancer as I’d thought BBC retired the term. Here is BBC reporting on the unusefulness of the term https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/health-47002578 https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/health-47002578 Here is a Wikipedia page on the topic https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/War_metaphors_in_cancer https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/War_metaphors_in_cancer
- dumpsterdiver 3y ago
  > Calling a person's cancer diagnosis a "war" or a "battle" and saying they had "lost their battle" or "lost their fight" when they died, were other unpopular descriptions, according to the poll carried out by YouGov. I am responding to the weakly linked poll, which I didn't read because there wasn't actually a link provided (that's why it is weak). YouGov is not a complete URL. Did you mean YouGov.io? Or perhaps YouGov.porn? Would we have better luck with YouGov.com, or will that lead us to a similarly questionable site? Response: Um, okay. I'll be sure to not to mention such words when I refer to my girlfriend who is "having so much fun" with uterus cancer.
  - kashunstva 3y ago
    > I'll be sure to not to mention such words when I refer to my girlfriend who is "having so much fun" with uterus cancer. The issue is around bellicose metaphors in oncology. While some people respond to that language, many do not. In particular, in some studies it increases feelings of guilt regarding the transition from active to palliative care in situations where the malignancy is not responding to active treatment or where the patient doesn’t want to accept the adverse effects of treatment, as in “Oh, you’re giving up?” But surely there are choices of language that are neither war-like nor cynical.
    - chiefalchemist 3y ago
      Across the board, we should "retire" the war-esque (i.e., violence normalizing) language. There's got to be better ways to communicate such things without promoting the species' worst habit.
nappy-doo 3y ago
At least it'll give Morrissey a reason to be depressed.
- wiz21c 3y ago
  rtfl!!! sarcastic !!!
hestefisk 3y ago
May Keats and Yeats be on his side…
melling 3y ago
He died from pancreatic cancer. Anytime, I read someone dying from this particular cancer, I think of Randy Pausch and the Last Lecture. https://youtu.be/ji5_MqicxSo https://youtu.be/ji5_MqicxSo HN discussion from 2008: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=256623 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=256623 It’s really a shame no progress has been made in treating this cancer in the last 16 years.
- kjs3 3y ago
  It’s really a shame no progress has been made in treating this cancer in the last 16 years. https://www.mskcc.org/news/can-mrna-vaccines-fight-pancreatic-cancer-msk-clinical-researchers-are-trying-find-out https://www.mskcc.org/news/can-mrna-vaccines-fight-pancreati... https://www.hopkinsmedicine.org/health/conditions-and-diseases/pancreatic-cancer/pancreatic-cancer-vaccine https://www.hopkinsmedicine.org/health/conditions-and-diseas...
uhtred 3y ago
Very sad. On a more positive note, my spirits are lifted seeing people talk about his bass playing prowess. I didn't think anyone listened to anything pre 2010 anymore, let alone noticed bass playing.
minimal-o 3y ago
I'm old enough to remember when "The Smiths" album was released and hit the underground club scene in the city where I grew up. "How Soon Is Now" was a smash hit with the ecstacy crowd and was the track that compelled me to go right out and buy the record. I can't count how many times I listened to that album for the lyrics, but moreso for the music. To that point, Andy Rourke's bass lines were prominent in the mix of every song, and a core component to The Smith's "sound". As much as Johnny Marr's rhythm and lead guitar in my opinion. And as important as Peter Hook's bass playing or Ian Curtis' off key vocals were to Joy Division's sound. RIP young brother
remote_phone 3y ago
Another person dying of pancreatic cancer. I commented on this less than a week ago. It’s getting more and more common and we need to figure out why. https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=35920445 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=35920445
relyks 3y ago
This is terrible :( and on a somewhat unrelated note, the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame sucks for not having inducted them already... though the rest of the band probably wouldn't have gotten back together to play for the ceremony. The Smiths deserve more respect (especially Andy Rourke's bass playing)
- cowanon222 3y ago
  > the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame sucks for not having inducted them already The Rock and Roll Hall of fame sucks in general - they have inducted a ton of pop, rap, and country stars but have kept out some of the legends of rock, especially in hard rock, punk, and heavy metal. The actual museum is also a bit boring too IMO; it needs more experiences with actual music.

100 points by mellosouls 3y ago

I spent an evening with Andy Rourke a few years ago. He was DJing a small bar and I was looking after him. Man, he really didn’t think much of Morrissey! He was a lovely man.

ArtWomb 3y ago
I assume he was a legit Man City supporter, because all those members of Oasis & Stone roses seem to be? Maybe they take the field at the final to "Panic (Hang the DJ)" ;)
- uhtred 3y ago
  I don't think there are any Man U supporters in Manchester
  - youngNed 3y ago
    Thats just not true. In fact until very recently Unitedwere by far the more popular team in this city, the meme came about as they have so many fans from outside the city as well. Also, to the poster who mentioned Stone Roses, No, they are united fans. In fact until Oasis the only celebrity city fans were bernard manning and curly watts from corrie
  - seanhunter 3y ago
    Definitely not the case. In Salford, Cheshire, South Manchester etc you'd really struggle to find anyone who was a city fan. Source: I lived in Ashton-under-lyne from 1990-1995 or so. I personally knew literally hundreds of United fans (and this is before their really dominant era). During that time I knew literally 1 person who was a city fan and everyone would relentlessly take the piss out of him for it.
    - mahathu 3y ago
      How do you personally know hundreds of people well enough to know about which football team they're supporters of?
      - youngNed 3y ago
        Its really not difficult at all. Especially in Manchester.

sammyteee 3y ago

Very sad. An incredible musician, if you listen to some of his intricate basslines on some of the early Smiths tricks, they are incredible.

terramex 3y ago
Case in point: last 90 seconds of "Barbarism Begins at Home": https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9zNwZomsONA https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9zNwZomsONA
- spondylosaurus 3y ago
  The main bass riff of Barbarism Begins at Home is unbelievably catchy, too. Those ghost notes! Marr gets much-deserved credit for his guitar work, but I firmly maintain that some of the Smiths' best tracks basically are their basslines, and Barbarism is a standout example. What a terrible loss....
  - whstl 3y ago
    "The Queen Is Dead" is another one. I love Marr's more atmospheric work on this track, but Andy Rourke's riff is what's carrying the song. Fantastic bassline.
  - seanhunter 3y ago
    Yeah. Bigmouth strikes again also fits that category.

spondylosaurus 3y ago

:( Holy shit... gone far too young. Andy was one of the greatest bassists of the 80s, no question. (Do you think we can offer up Morrissey's soul in exchange for bringing Andy back?)

Cymrukicks 3y ago
Does he still have one?
- spondylosaurus 3y ago
  Fair point—and even if he does, we might have to fudge the Blue Book value a bit.
lb1lf 3y ago
>> (Do you think we can offer up Morrissey's soul in exchange for bringing Andy back?) -What would the market value of Morrissey's soul be? Heck, even Satan rejected it! This was very sad news indeed, The Smiths basically was the soundtrack to my teens (Which were after they had split, but I had a few older acquaintances who strongly urged me to check them out despite the albums being very, very old - almost ten years!) Think I'll put on 'Meat is Murder' now.
deleted 3y ago
[deleted]
hluska 3y ago
Hold on, Morrissey has a soul? I’ve had the misfortune of seeing Morrissey play a few times and my god, what a twat.
- apelapan 3y ago
  He is indeed a right knob, but that hasn't stopped me from enjoying the few shows of his that I've gone to. Assuming one accepts the basic premise of his music (melodical moping), he has an amazing catalogue of songs and a lovely voice to deliver them with.

robga 3y ago

I was surprised to see the BBC report that he’d lost his battle with cancer as I’d thought BBC retired the term. Here is BBC reporting on the unusefulness of the term https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/health-47002578 https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/health-47002578 Here is a Wikipedia page on the topic https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/War_metaphors_in_cancer https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/War_metaphors_in_cancer

dumpsterdiver 3y ago
> Calling a person's cancer diagnosis a "war" or a "battle" and saying they had "lost their battle" or "lost their fight" when they died, were other unpopular descriptions, according to the poll carried out by YouGov. I am responding to the weakly linked poll, which I didn't read because there wasn't actually a link provided (that's why it is weak). YouGov is not a complete URL. Did you mean YouGov.io? Or perhaps YouGov.porn? Would we have better luck with YouGov.com, or will that lead us to a similarly questionable site? Response: Um, okay. I'll be sure to not to mention such words when I refer to my girlfriend who is "having so much fun" with uterus cancer.
- kashunstva 3y ago
  > I'll be sure to not to mention such words when I refer to my girlfriend who is "having so much fun" with uterus cancer. The issue is around bellicose metaphors in oncology. While some people respond to that language, many do not. In particular, in some studies it increases feelings of guilt regarding the transition from active to palliative care in situations where the malignancy is not responding to active treatment or where the patient doesn’t want to accept the adverse effects of treatment, as in “Oh, you’re giving up?” But surely there are choices of language that are neither war-like nor cynical.
  - chiefalchemist 3y ago
    Across the board, we should "retire" the war-esque (i.e., violence normalizing) language. There's got to be better ways to communicate such things without promoting the species' worst habit.

nappy-doo 3y ago

At least it'll give Morrissey a reason to be depressed.

wiz21c 3y ago
rtfl!!! sarcastic !!!

hestefisk 3y ago

May Keats and Yeats be on his side…

melling 3y ago

He died from pancreatic cancer. Anytime, I read someone dying from this particular cancer, I think of Randy Pausch and the Last Lecture. https://youtu.be/ji5_MqicxSo https://youtu.be/ji5_MqicxSo HN discussion from 2008: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=256623 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=256623 It’s really a shame no progress has been made in treating this cancer in the last 16 years.

kjs3 3y ago
It’s really a shame no progress has been made in treating this cancer in the last 16 years. https://www.mskcc.org/news/can-mrna-vaccines-fight-pancreatic-cancer-msk-clinical-researchers-are-trying-find-out https://www.mskcc.org/news/can-mrna-vaccines-fight-pancreati... https://www.hopkinsmedicine.org/health/conditions-and-diseases/pancreatic-cancer/pancreatic-cancer-vaccine https://www.hopkinsmedicine.org/health/conditions-and-diseas...

uhtred 3y ago

Very sad. On a more positive note, my spirits are lifted seeing people talk about his bass playing prowess. I didn't think anyone listened to anything pre 2010 anymore, let alone noticed bass playing.

minimal-o 3y ago

I'm old enough to remember when "The Smiths" album was released and hit the underground club scene in the city where I grew up. "How Soon Is Now" was a smash hit with the ecstacy crowd and was the track that compelled me to go right out and buy the record. I can't count how many times I listened to that album for the lyrics, but moreso for the music. To that point, Andy Rourke's bass lines were prominent in the mix of every song, and a core component to The Smith's "sound". As much as Johnny Marr's rhythm and lead guitar in my opinion. And as important as Peter Hook's bass playing or Ian Curtis' off key vocals were to Joy Division's sound. RIP young brother

remote_phone 3y ago

Another person dying of pancreatic cancer. I commented on this less than a week ago. It’s getting more and more common and we need to figure out why. https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=35920445 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=35920445

relyks 3y ago

This is terrible :( and on a somewhat unrelated note, the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame sucks for not having inducted them already... though the rest of the band probably wouldn't have gotten back together to play for the ceremony. The Smiths deserve more respect (especially Andy Rourke's bass playing)

cowanon222 3y ago
> the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame sucks for not having inducted them already The Rock and Roll Hall of fame sucks in general - they have inducted a ton of pop, rap, and country stars but have kept out some of the legends of rock, especially in hard rock, punk, and heavy metal. The actual museum is also a bit boring too IMO; it needs more experiences with actual music.