Painting a Legacy – The Stone Roses
Here’s a band that formed in 1983 and exploded into fame after their debut album, which took them a good six years to make, being released in 1989. Yet after its release, they only saw one other album released five years later in ‘94. Despite so few releases, the band went on to inspire other great artists of the 90’s from The Charlatans to the Verve, Oasis, and Damon Albarn of Blur. So, what’s the story behind the band of so few albums, yet had such a big impact on the sound of Manchester and the UK? This is the story of the forming, departure, reforming, and current state of the Manchester band The Stone Roses.
The beginnings of The Stone Roses date back to 1980 with friends Ian Brown and John Squire forming a short-lived Clash-inspired band: the Patrol. The other members along with Brown and Squire lost interest in music shortly after their formation in 1981 and after, Squire would join a new band called The Waterfront, meeting future Roses bassist Gary “Mani” Mounfield for the first time. Soon after, Squire offered Brown a position as a singer and he soon joined the band in ’83. However, just like The Patrol, The Waterfront was very short lived, fizzling out in late ’83. The remnants of the second scrambled band soon became what we know as The Stone Roses today, as after hosting auditions in ’84, they hired Alan “Reni” Wren to be their drummer.
The band achieved their greatest success right off of their debut album, a self-titled masterpiece released on May 2nd, 1989, The Stone Roses. The album was preceded by two singles “Elephant Stone” and “Made of Stone” and after its release saw five more single releases. Three in 1989, “She Bangs the Drums”, “Fools Gold”, and “I Wanna Be Adored”, and two in the 90’s: “Waterfall” in ’91, and “I Am The Resurrection” in ’92. All of the artwork for the band, the Album covers and the subsequent singles covers were created by guitarist John Squire. Squire even very briefly worked for a UK animation company; Cosgrove Hall Films
The Stone Roses gained quite a lot of notoriety for their antics and the band’s relationship with the media. One of the most infamous incidents with the band came in 1990, when The Stone Roses band members “attacked” their record label Revolver Records with a bombardment of paint. Tossing paint at the staff and property, they were protesting the label’s handling of their single “Sally Cinnamon”. In the 2004 BBC documentary series Blood on the Turntables, Mani said the group had asked to go to a DIY store to pick up some paint cans and overalls so Squire could “do some art”. The members were all arrested and fined for £15,000–20,000 in damages.
After the long-awaited release of The Stone Roses’ second album Second Coming in 1994, The band eventually dissolved in 1996 starting with Squire’s departure, leading too six months of poor touring quality, and the final dissolution. In the 15-year period following their breakup, each member went on to form other bands or work solo. Though eventually, they would reform in 2011, and it was during their reunion period in 2013 when a documentary would be made all about the band: The Stone Roses: Made of Stone. The band held their final concert on May 24th, 2017, and the band disbanded once more, never to reunite again as of today.
The Stone Roses’ impact on Manchester culture and the UK cannot be understated. The band has heavy ties to the English Premier football club Manchester United and has even collaborated with them on clothing wear designs. When bassist Mani passed away back in 2025, the entire city of Manchester had a public ceremony in remembrance. His coffin was painted in the album art from their debut album, and it was carried by the remaining Stone Roses members along with, Liam Gallagher of Oasis, and two members of Primal Scream, another band with which Mani had played for. Thousands of fans lined the streets for his funeral, with speakers blaring the band’s music. The Stone Roses might not have made music for too long but the impact they left behind will forever be set in stone.
