Born John Maher in Manchester, England on October 31, 1963, johnny marr played in such little-known groups as Sister Ray and Freaky Party before forming the Smiths with singer Morrissey in 1982; in the years to follow, they emerged among Britain's most successful acts, but in 1987, following sessions for the LP 'Strangeways, Here We Come', Marr dissolved the group, claiming their musical approach had gone stale.

In the wake of the Smiths' demise, he made cameo appearances on records from the likes of Talking Heads and Kirsty MacColl before joining Matt Johnson's The The with 1989's 'Mind Bomb'. Marr also teamed with New Order's Bernard Sumner and Pet Shop Boys' Neil Tennant in the alternative group 'Electronic', scoring a hit with the single 'Getting Away with It'.

Marr - who many predicted would flourish while Morrissey faded into obscurity - kept a relatively low profile during the 1990s, most notably lending his talents to The The's 1993 effort 'Dusk' and Electronic's long-awaited 1996's 'Raise the Pressure'. He returned to music three years later to release Electronic's third album 'Twisted Tenderness', which wasn't released in the US until fall 2000. He also spent time working with his new band, The Healers, playing dates across England.

The next few years were a time of redefinition and reflection for Marr. He finally assembled his Healers with ex-Kula Shaker bass-player Alonza Bevan and Ringo Starr's drumming son Zak Starkey in 2002; a deal with ARTISTdirect's iMusic followed before the end of the year. Fans of this legendary guitarist were treated to Marr's proper singing debut in early 2003 with the release of 'Boomslang'.