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 happened to bass player The Smiths?
Rourke dropped out of school at the age of 14 and worked in a variety of menial jobs, playing guitar and bass in numerous rock bands as well as in the short-lived funk band Freak Party with Marr.
Later, Marr formed the Smiths with Morrissey. Rourke joined the band shortly after its debut performance and stayed for the majority of its lifespan.
As a result of his heroin addiction, he was fired from the band in early 1986, only to rejoin two weeks later, shortly before the release of their third studio album, The Queen Is Dead. Craig Gannon, the band’s second guitarist, filled in for him. Marr hailed Rourke’s contribution to the record as “unrivaled by any other bass player.”
Strangeways, Here We Come, The Smiths’ fourth and final studio album, was released to tremendous acclaim in 1987, and the band disbanded soon after.
Rourke and drummer Mike Joyce filed a lawsuit against Morrissey and Marr for unpaid royalties. Rourke settled out of court for £83,000 and 10% of future revenues while waiving all further rights; Joyce fought the suit until 1996 and was paid significantly more in court. After spending the settlement, Rourke was declared bankrupt on January 25, 1999, as a result of an Inland Revenue petition.
