Jonny Marr of the Smiths... HOW?

[idealflaw]

How does this guy play? This is what I've always wanted to bea ble to do but my fingers just can't match it. What's his secret? Any inside tips??

[kansas_parker]

it's all the sweet luvin' he got from morrissey.... no, really, I want to know too. Some people just have it, and i'm not one of them.

[danno]

three words (something i should do a lot more): practice, practice, PRACTICE. And just being born to be one of the greats can help, too.

[idealflaw]

okay, i practiced lots today. i'm still not jonny marr. oh well, i'm alittle better than I was yesturday.

[joeinthebox1980]

that guy is simpley incredible.

he's very underrated too.

anyway, from what i've read in interviews... he finger picks a lot... and uses a thumb-pick at times.

also, he is a studio rat. so he spends a lot of time carefully layering guitar parts and what not. sometimes it's not as apparent, but if you listen to Smiths stuff... it's there... the key is that the layers are not just to make the sound thick, but rather, they are subtle.

and...he's just brilliant with coming up with interesting riffs and chords structures and such.

[idealflaw]

i found a way to dissect his sound.. download live performances.. it really stripps apart the multilayering and I could figure him out..

[joeinthebox1980]

yah, i recently downloaded a live performance of 'how soon is now' and it was indeed a lot more stripped down and now the song seems less daunting if i ever wanted to cover it. heh.

[Pointcloud]

Johnny Marr is a great fan of Roger McGuinn, I think. So he'd probably be adept at that folky picking technique.