Johnny Marr and John Frusciante ‘hit it off immediately’

Johnny Marr “hit it off” immediately with John Frusciante.

The Smiths star was invited by the Red Hot Chili Peppers rocker to play guitar on his 2009 solo LP ‘The Empyrean’, and the pair had an instant connection in the studio.

Johnny, 58, told Total Guitar magazine: “Without being overly simplistic or corny, guitar players are definitely a breed, and John and I hit it off straight away. There is this obsessive thing with guitar players – whether it’s about sound or scales or models of guitar, it just seems to be part of the package.

“John and I were recording in his house, which was nice. And with him, there was a quiet sort of intensity.”

Johnny also hailed John, 52, for his “almost sacred” approach to music.

He said: “There’s an almost zen-like stillness about his focus when he’s writing. There’s this underlying honour in what he’s doing. John has an approach to music which is almost sacred.”

Similarly, John loved working with the Smiths star and was amazed by his “totally unconventional” approach to music.

He recalled: “It was really fun. I got to see how Johnny’s creative process worked on the guitar. He’s very unorthodox: in The Smiths’ stuff, the guitar is often a thing blending in with the band, but when you actually see the way Johnny comes up with things, and the way he thinks through the instrument, it’s just totally unconventional.

“And it was amazing to see that creative process at work fitting into the context of a pre-recorded piece of music.”