Andrew Michael Rourke (17 January 1964 – 19 May 2023) is a British musician best known as the bassist for the Smiths. He was well-known for his melodious bass-playing style.
Rourke joined the Smiths shortly after their first show, having known guitarist Johnny Marr since elementary school, and played on all four of their studio albums. After the band disbanded in 1987, he appeared on lead singer Morrissey’s solo albums.
Rourke was a member of the supergroup Freebass and the band D.A.R.K. in the early 1990s, as well as Sinéad O’Connor and the Pretenders. From 2006 to 2009, he also organized the Versus Cancer performances.
What does Andy Rourke do now?
Rourke, his then-manager Nova Rehman, his production firm, Great Northern Productions, and others organized Manchester v Cancer, a series of performances to aid cancer research, which was later shortened to Versus Cancer.
Rehman’s father and sister were both afflicted with the condition, prompting the project. In January 2006, the inaugural Manchester v Cancer concert took place. It featured a song performed by Rourke and his former Smiths bandmate Johnny Marr. He staged other concerts throughout the next three years.
Rourke founded Freebass in 2007 with bassists Mani (ex-Stone Roses) and Peter Hook (ex-New Order) and remained a member until August 2010. Early in 2009, he relocated to New York City, where he hosted a show on East Village Radio and performed as a club DJ under the name Jetlag with Olé Koretsky.
Rourke and Koretsky went on to join the alternative rock band D.A.R.K. with Irish lead vocalist Dolores O’Riordan of the Cranberries. On September 9, 2016, the group released their debut studio album, Science Agrees.
