They are two indie rock favourites from Manchester who have been feuding for years – and yet, unlike reunited Oasis brothers Noel and Liam Gallagher, heaven knows these two remain miserable now when it comes to reconciling.
Devotees of The Smiths pleading to get what they want in the form of a reunion tour look set to remain disappointed as the decades-long dispute between Morrissey and Johnny Marr shows no sign of abating.
Guitarist Marr this week issued a social media statement pouring cold water on the prospects of a reunion which would seem even more startling than the recently-announced Oasis rapprochement between fellow Mancunians Noel and Liam.Â
Singer Morrissey, 65, had suggested he and his former friend were approached to go on tour as the Smiths next year, for the first time since splitting in 1987.Â
He claimed Marr, 60, ignored the approach and also accused his ex-bandmate of trademarking the Smiths’ name which could prevent anyone else using it – continuing an ongoing squabble involving open letters, Instagram posts and claims of ‘fake news’.
Johnny Marr, former guitarist with the Smiths, this week issued a statement in response to claims made by ex-bandmate Morrissey – he is pictured on-stage in Chicago in August 2007
Morrissey posted on his website about Johnny Marr apparently trademarking the Smiths’ name
Morrissey (left) and Johnny Marr (right) formed the Smiths in Manchester in 1982
Singer Morrissey (centre), bass player Andy Rourke (left), guitarist Johnny Marr (right) and drummer Mike Joyce (back) are seen performing as The Smiths on Channel 4 show The Tube
Their exchanges this week are just the latest instalments in a war of words dating back almost 40 years to when the band broke up – with Marr complaining then about Morrissey wanting to cover kitsch 1960s songs by the likes of Cilla Black and Twinkle.Â
They were aligned again in the 1990s, albeit via lawyers in court when sued by fellow Smiths bandmates Mike Joyce and the late Andy Rourke in a royalties row.
And yet hostilities remain clear in the new barrage of statements which began with Morrissey, using his personal website, aiming jibes Marr’s way – not only over a mooted reunion tour but also the possibility of a new compilation album.
The Smiths’ fourth and final studio album, 1987’s Strangeways Here We Come, included the song Paint A Vulgar Picture which satirises record companies for cashing in on artists – with the sardonic lyric: ‘Reissue, repackage, repackage.’
Eleven different Smiths compilations have been officially released in the UK but Morrissey said this week that Marr had blocked the idea of a new Greatest Hits-style collection.
The highest charting singles during the band’s time together were Heaven Knows I’m Miserable Now in 1984 and 1987’s Sheila Take A Bow which both got to number 10. Â
And the singer’s official Morrissey Central website shared a message on Monday this week under the headline ‘The plot thickens’.
It read: ‘J Marr has successfully applied for 100% trademark rights / Intellectual Property ownership of The Smiths name.
‘His application has been accepted on whatever oaths or proclamations he has put forward.
‘This action was done without any consultation to Morrissey, and without allowing Morrissey the standard opportunity of “objection”.Â
A statement on Morrissey’s website, titled ‘War is Old, Art is Young’, claimed he ‘said yes’ to the offer by AEG to tour as The Smiths throughout 2025, but ‘Marr ignored the offer’
Morrissey – pictured performing at Meadow Brook Ampitheatre in Rochester Hills, Michigan in September 2019 – has had a decades-long feud with former friend Johnny Marr
Johnny Marr – seen at the Rock-en-Seine Festival in Saint-Cloud, France in August 2019 – has said this week he rejected an offer for the Smiths to reform and tour
Guitarist Johnny Marr, singer Morrissey, drummer Mike Joyce and bassist Andy Rourke of The Smiths pose for a portrait before their first show during the Meat Is Murder Tour in 1985
‘Amongst many other things, this means that Marr can now tour as The Smiths using the vocalist of his choice, and it also prohibits Morrissey from using the name whilst also denying Morrissey considerable financial livelihood.
‘Morrissey alone created the musical unit name “The Smiths” in May 1982.’
Marr hit back on Tuesday night with a statement saying the musician had taken steps to trademark the group’s name ‘following an attempt by a third party’ to use it and ‘as a gesture of goodwill’ – had offered to share it with Morrissey.
The message shared on Instagram and X, formerly Twitter, said: ‘Here are the facts: In 2018, following an attempt by a third party to use The Smiths’ name – and upon discovery that the trademark was not owned by the band – Marr reached out to Morrissey, via his representatives, to work together in protecting The Smiths’ name.
‘A failure to respond led Marr to register the trademark himself. It was subsequently agreed with Morrissey’s lawyers that this trademark was held for the mutual benefit of Morrissey and Marr.
‘As a gesture of goodwill, in January 2024, Marr signed an agreement of joint ownership to Morrissey. Execution of this document still requires Morrissey to sign.’
Adding to the statement, Marr said: ‘To prevent third parties from profiting from the band’s name, it was left to me to protect the legacy.
‘This I have done on behalf of both myself and my former bandmates.
Johnny Marr posted a statement to fans on X, formerly Twitter, on Tuesday evening
Johnny Marr (left) and Morrissey (right) of The Smiths pose together in the store room of record label Rough Trade in London in 1983
Singer Morrissey and guitarist Johnny Marr of The Smiths perform on stage at Hammersmith Palais in west London on March 12 1984
‘As for the offer to tour, I didn’t ignore the offer – I said no.’
Marr also rejected as ‘untrue’ speculation that he was planning to tour under the name of the Smiths but with a different singer taking Morrissey’s place.
The festering animosity between the pair is a far cry from when a young Marr turned up with his guitar on Steven Morrissey’s doorstep in Stretford, Greater Manchester, in May 1982 and suggested they start writing songs together.
The two had previously first met in 1978, when Marr was 14 and Morrissey 19, at Manchester’s Apollo Theatre for a Patti Smith concert.Â
Marr was inspired by lyricist Jerry Leiber having taken similar action to doorstep and team up with composer Mike Stoller, forming a duo behind such 1950s and 1960s hits as Hound Dog, Jailhouse Rock and Stand By Me.
Morrissey has insisted he came up with their band’s name, the Smiths – saying: ‘It was the most ordinary name and I thought it was time that the ordinary folk of the world showed their face.’
And he later recalled of his instant rapport with Marr: ‘We got on absolutely famously. We were very similar in drive.’
The duo, who dominated the Smiths, provided complementary contrasts – Morrissey’s droll and self-deprecating lyrics blending with Marr’s chiming, Byrds-influenced guitar arpeggios and soaring melodies.Â
Singer Morrissey performs songs in Madrid, Spain on October 9, 2014
The Smiths (left to right: Andy Rourke, Morrissey, Johnny Marr and Mike Joyce) released four studio albums between 1983 and their split in 1987
Morrissey provided lead vocals on hits such as This Charming Man, Ask and Panic
Their debut single Hand In Glove reached number three on the UK indie chart before This Charming Man made number 25 in the official Top 40 and remains an indie nightclub mainstay.
They released four studio albums between 1983 and 1987 but had split by the time their final LP Strangeways, Here We Come came out in September 1987.
Marr later revealed he felt the rest of the band had fallen out with him – and also suspected Morrissey had planted an article in the music newspaper the NME in July that year which was headlined ‘Smiths To Split’.
He also complained about his bandmate’s interest in 1960s pop stars, saying: ‘I didn’t form a group to perform Cilla Black songs.’
The Smiths’ last sessions included covers of Twinkle’s 1965 single Golden Lights and Cilla’s Work Is A Four-Letter Word from three years later.
Morrissey is also thought to have been frustrated by Marr’s collaborations with other artists.
The guitarist later had chart success with New Order’s Bernard Sumner as Electronic, as well as working with the likes of the Pretenders, the Pet Shop Boys and The The.Â
Morrissey said following the Smiths’ break-up: ‘It was a fantastic journey. And then it ended. I didn’t feel we should have ended. I wanted to continue. He wanted to end it. And that was that.’
The pair did come together, of sorts, in the 1990s when facing a lawsuit from Joyce and Rourke.
Morrissey was widely reported to have been frustrated by Marr’s work with other artists
Johnny Marr, Mike Joyce, Morrissey and Andy Rourke got together as a band in Manchester
The Smiths’ rhythm section challenged how Morrissey and Marr each took 40 per cent of the group’s recording and performance royalties, allocating 10 per cent apiece to the other two.
Morrissey and Marr were represented separately in court, in a case which ultimately saw Rourke settle for a lump sum of £83,000 and 10 per cent of royalties.
A judge at London’s High Court then awarded Joyce £1million in back royalties and a 25 per share going forwards.
In his damning judgment, Judge Weeks told how Morrissey ‘appeared devious, truculent and unreliable where his own interests were at stake’ while Marr was ‘willing to embroider his evidence to a point where he became less credible’.
Morrissey himself later accused Marr of ‘trying to please everyone and consequently pleasing no one’.Â
The pair have not worked together since the 1980s and – until Morrissey’s recent suggestions – the prospect of a Smiths reunion has seldom seemed realistic.
They did meet for a drink in 2008, Marr later revealed – and they did discuss reforming the band, saying they seemed ‘both as keen as each other’, only for the idea to go nowhere.Â
He then told Uncut magazine in 2022: ‘It won’t come as any surprise when I say that I’m really close with everyone I’ve worked with – except for the obvious one.
‘And that isn’t that much of a surprise because we’re so different, me and Morrissey.’
The singer posted an open letter on his website that same year urging his former friend to stop talking about him in the media, saying: ‘Move on.
‘It’s as if you can’t uncross your own legs without mentioning me. Our period together was many lifetimes ago, and a lot of blood has streamed under the bridge since then.
Morrissey, pictured in 2017, posts messages to fans on his website Morrissey Central
Compilation album The World Won’t Listen was released shortly before the Smiths split in 1987
Johnny Marr paid tribute to Smiths bassist Andy Rourke after his death aged 59 in May 2023
‘There comes a time when you must take responsibility for your own actions and your own career, with which I wish you good health to enjoy. Just stop using my name as click-bait.’
Marr responded on X, formerly Twitter, with a barb that open letters have not ‘really been a thing since 1953’, adding: ‘It’s all “social media” now. Even Donald J Trump had that one down. Also, this fake news business…a bit 2021 yeah #makingindiegreatagain’
Liam Gallagher revealed last month he and brother Noel were reforming Oasis for concerts next summer including at Wembley Stadium, having last played together in 2009. The Smiths look unlikely to be among the support acts.
MailOnline has contacted representatives of both Morrissey and Marr for comment.Â
