Mural depicting late Smiths bassist Andy Rourke is a go, says drummer

As Morrissey and Johnny Marr take shots at each other online, The Smiths‘ drummer, Mike Joyce, is focusing on paying tribute to the band’s late bass player, Andy Rourke.

Rourke died in 2023 from pancreatic cancer, and Joyce told BBC Radio Manchester that an online fundraiser to create a mural in Rourke’s memory had surpassed its target of about $27,000. The excess funds will go to the charity Pancreatic Cancer Action.

Joyce said, “He was such a brilliant musician and such a great bloke that I thought a permanent memorial would be apt for the man.” Rourke played on The Smiths’ four albums, as well as their various compilation albums, and their one and only live album, Rank.

The mural, which will be located in the band’s hometown of Manchester, will show Rourke performing onstage in 1985. It’ll be unveiled in November, which is Pancreatic Cancer Awareness Month.

As Morrissey and Johnny Marr take shots at each other online, The Smiths‘ drummer, Mike Joyce, is focusing on paying tribute to the band’s late bass player, Andy Rourke.

Rourke died in 2023 from pancreatic cancer, and Joyce told BBC Radio Manchester that an online fundraiser to create a mural in Rourke’s memory had surpassed its target of about $27,000. The excess funds will go to the charity Pancreatic Cancer Action.

Joyce said, “He was such a brilliant musician and such a great bloke that I thought a permanent memorial would be apt for the man.” Rourke played on The Smiths’ four albums, as well as their various compilation albums, and their one and only live album, Rank.

The mural, which will be located in the band’s hometown of Manchester, will show Rourke performing onstage in 1985. It’ll be unveiled in November, which is Pancreatic Cancer Awareness Month.