In 2003, Smiths guitarist Johnny Marr founded the side project Johnny Marr & The Healers. The band was comprised of Marr on guitar, lead vocals, and keyboards, drummer Zak Starkey, from The Who and son of Ringo Starr and former Kula Shaker bassist Alonza Bevan. The band released their first and only album, Boomslang. Upon initial release, the album received a mixed reception with some critics writing off the album as a “half-hearted attempt of the earlier work of Marr’s previous band The Smiths”. Twenty-one years after, the album’s reputation has been better well received. Some of the album’s notable detractors have now called the album’s songs well written, creatively crafted and deeply textured. With this in mind, Marr and company have decided to announce the upcoming special edition release of Boomslang, which will be available on September 20^th, 2024 via BMG.

The special edition of Boomslang, will not only feature the original 11 songs, but will also contain previously unreleased archive recordings from the Healers era of Johnny Marr’s career. Such tracks like “All Out Attack’, “You Are The Magic (Union Mix)”, a cover of Bob Dylan’s “Don’t Think Twice, It’s Alright” and “The Way That It Was”. The latter song, has received the most recent attention as Johnny Marr & The Healers release the officially single version of “The Way That It Was”. This recording of the previously unreleased track highlights the unique period of Marr’s creativity during the dawn of the 21st century. Much like the original release of Boomslang, “The Way That It Was” is one of the many examples that highlight Marr’s deeply layered guitar work and lush wall of sound, creating a sense of ethereal delivery in the vocals, strings and production.

In a press release from Dawbell PR, Marr offers his reflections on Boomslang:

“We holed ourselves up in our own otherworld and experimented with different ways to write, record and think: guitars and percussion all together in a room, and programming with new technology from the electronic scene. Everything was about discovery.

Twenty years on, I’m pleased we created the music and this new release of Boomslang has given me the opportunity to revisit it and present some songs that we weren’t able to include the first time around. The Healers was something special that happened to me and I’m grateful that it did. A special group of people in a special moment in time.”

Photo Credit: Raymond Flotat