He bounds on stage resembling - at the ripe old age of 62 - a young Tony Hicks of The Hollies circa “Bus Stop”. Both proudly boasted full mops of black hair, both lead guitarists with the foremost Manchester groups of their times twenty years apart. There is not an ounce of fat, it seems, on his meat and alcohol-free body, which is more than can be said for a large number of his followers of the same vintage at the packed XTRA concert hall for this rare visit to Zurich.

The Marr, the merrier: Johnny and his band in great form

The Smiths, whose short shelf life spanned the years 1982-1987, are arguably one of the top ten British groups of the last seventy years, and Johnny Marr, for it is he we have come to see, as distinctive lead guitarist and co-songwriter playing Keith to Morrissey’s Mick or Hicks to the latter’s Clarke, is probably more responsible for the string of unforgettable indie hits of that period than even the chief lyricist Morrissey himself. Sure, the awkward shy singer was the main focus of the media and of fans at the time, but who can ever even begin to imagine The Smiths without the sweet jangly sound of the 20 year old Johnny Marr’s guitar on standout songs such as “What Difference Does It Make?” and the classic evergreen “This Charming Man”? What this 90 minute set was to prove is that it would indeed have been possible to imagine The Smiths without Morrissey’s vocals, distinctive and legendary though they are – for Johnny Marr over the course of his post-Smiths career has turned into a fine and note perfect lead singer, which we were privileged to witness here as he compiled a set of solo material interspersed with Smiths classics and the occasional cover.

Kicking off energetically with “Generate Generate” from solo offering The Messenger, Marr and his three bandmates launched immediately into “Panic” from the Smiths back catalogue. It was a triumph as the masses joyfully joined in the chorus to ‘Hang the DJ’. The evening continued in much the same vein with Smiths classics “This Charming Man”, “How Soon Is Now?” and “Bigmouth Strikes Again” providing highlights to what was turning into a memorable evening. As he returned for an encore the assembled were treated to a cover of Iggy Pop’s “The Passenger” as well as his other band Electronic’s classic “Getting Away With It”. The stage was set for a singalong exit as he gave us a rendition of “There Is a Light That Never Goes Out”, which had the crowd still singing as they exited into the cold Zurich night.

Johnny Marr had put on a perfect show, seemed humbled by the roars of delight from the audience and promised to return again soon. His fellow Lancastrian guitarist Tony Hicks is still going strong approaching his 80th birthday so there must be a good chance his promise will be kept. It must be something to do with those mops of thick black hair. Thanks Johnny.

A Night Out with… Johnny Marr

A Night Out with… Lemonheads