Watch footage from Mani’s final gigs with The Stone Roses and Primal Scream

2 days ago7 min read2 comments

The bass line is more than just rhythm; it’s the heartbeat of a band, the steady pulse that holds the chaos together, and for decades, Gary 'Mani' Mounfield provided that vital thrum for two of British music's most seminal acts. Following the heartbreaking news of his passing, a poignant digital wake has emerged across social media, with fans collectively unspooling grainy, passionately shot footage from his final performances with both The Stone Roses and Primal Scream.These aren't just clips; they are sacred relics, the last communion. In one video, from what is now understood to be a Primal Scream show, you see Mani, locked in with the rhythm section, a look of pure, unadulterated joy on his face as he lays down that unmistakable, propulsive groove for 'Loaded' or 'Rocks'.It’s the same effortless cool he brought to the Roses' legendary Heaton Park reunion, where the opening rumble of 'I Wanna Be Adored' felt less like a note and more like a tectonic plate shifting, reuniting a generation with its youth. His journey from the baggy-headed glory of Madchester with the Roses to the sleazy, psychedelic rock 'n' roll soul of Primal Scream wasn't a sidestep; it was an expansion of a singular musical philosophy.In the Roses, his bass was the melodic anchor to John Squire's florid guitar, the warm, human counterpoint in 'Waterfall'. In Primal Scream, it became the swaggering, drug-fueled engine of 'Screamadelica', a record that redefined what a band could be.To watch these final performances is to witness a master who never lost the thread, whose instrument was an extension of his own vibrant personality. The shared grief online, soundtracked by these videos, underscores a brutal truth in music: we often don't know we're witnessing the final bow until the curtain has already fallen. The archives are now a memorial, and every shared clip is a testament to a groove that, thankfully, will never truly fade out.

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