There are times, though, such as when Marr talks animatedly about the new album he’s making with his band, The Healers – which “has the vibe of [Meat is Murder’s] ‘I Want the One I Can’t Have’” – that you have to wonder: why not reform? In fact, it’s such an obvious question that I have to ask all three: not why would they, but why wouldn’t they?
“Why wouldn’t we reform? Because of Morrissey’s hatred towards me, I suppose,” says Joyce. “Musically it’d still be fucking brilliant, I think. Imagine coming on to ‘The Queen Is Dead’! But it’s too hypothetical.”
“That’s a tough one,” ponders Rourke. “It really is. I’d like to say ‘never say never,’ but I think it’s pretty unlikely, for one reason or another.”
“Why wouldn’t we ever?” frowns Marr. “That is interesting. Why wouldn’t we reform? Aw, shit! I’ve never been asked that question in my life!” He mulls it over for a few seconds. “There’s been an awful lot of very dirty water gone under the bridge,” he finally says. “But it’s true that no one’s ever asked us.”
So, you get home tonight and there’s a message asking you to reform. What do you do?
“Well,” he smirks, “I think we’d have to go to some new age retreat in Arizona, all wear muslin and get up every morning to share the dawn. For several months. Go on some meditation walks and then share.” He laughs, raising an eyebrow. “Share! Share! Share! That’s a very Smithsy thing to do, isn’t it?”
Then, suddenly, the laughter subsides. For a second, Johnny Marr looks almost serious.
“Or we could all go for a walk around Ancoats,” he says. “And sort it out.”
–written by Simon Goddard, p. 66 of Uncut Take 104, January 2006.
