Johnny Marr’s latest gig is that of lecturing students in the Musicology department at England’s University of Salford. Following up last year’s lecture, “Always from the Outside: Mavericks, Innovators and Building Your Own Ark,” Marr is taking time off from his busy schedule with Neil Finn and The Cribs to give more advice to college students.
Times Online reports that Marr has been criticized by some for demystifying the “rock star” persona by making music an intellectual subject. Marr rejects that notion:
“I don’t see anything wrong in education in any creative sphere, as long as it’s not to the detriment of the emotion. What I do know is that if, when I was 16, someone had told me there was a building with a ton of amps in it, musicians hanging about and loads of resources, I’d have walked 10 miles every day to get there,” he told Times Online.
Marr joins the ranks of many other UK musicians-turned lecturers, such as Brian Eno, Jarvis Cocker, Alex James, and George Martin. For a very interesting article on the subject, go here, and to read an abridged version of Marr’s November lecture, click here.