Pete Garner original Stone Roses bassist dies

Reports are coming out of Manchester that original Stone Roses bassist Pete Garner has tragically passed away due to cancer.

Pete was there right from the beginnings of the The Stone Roses, seeing them morph from The Patrol and The Waterfront into The Stone Roses, joining them on bass to work out their punk rock beginnings playing on tracks like their debut solo single So Young / Tell Me plus what was to be their debut album Garage Flower which was released years after the band recorded it.

Pete’s stage presence was that of a rock god, long thick black hair, handsome, wearing shimmering on stage clothes setting him apart from the rest of the band looking a mix between New York Dolls and The Stooges. His playing on such tracks like Tradgic Roundabout, All I Want and early versions of I Wanna Be Adored and This Is the One no doubt set the scene for when he left the band and Gary (Mani) Mounfield took over the bass mantle.

Years later there were videos that appeared on line of Pete speaking fondly of his time in the band, with an extensive interview also appearing in Simon Spence’s book War And Peace. The world will no doubt be a little different now Pete is no longer around, but his influence on fans of The Stone Roses is forever cemented as one of their heroes.

RIP Pete Garner