For decades, fans of the Smiths have fervently hoped, wished, and prayed for the chance to see the iconic ’80s indie rock group to put aside past differences and perform together once again. To them I would say, don’t hold you breath. On the other hand, if drummer Mike Joyce’s social media is to be believed, you could be in for a small taste of the band’s rhythm section in the not-too-distant future.
Earlier today, Joyce took to Twitter where he shared an image of his name next to bassist Andy Rourke and guitarist Craig Gannon with a caption that read, “Summer 2018” underneath.
https://twitter.com/mikejoycedrums/status/954431424353972225
Does the trio have an album on the way? Are the hitting the road? Who knows! The whole thing will remain a mystery until one, or all three of them decide to shed a bit more light on their intentions.
For those reading along wondering if this might portend to a full-blown Smiths reunion somewhere down the line with singer Morrissey and lead guitarist Johnny Marr jumping in for a jam, I personally wouldn’t count on it. In 1996, Joyce sued both Moz and Marr to gain a share of performance and recording royalties, a case that he won that forced the pair to pay out somewhere in the neighborhood of 1,000,000 pounds.
In his Autobiography written years after the fact, Morrissey lambasted his one-time bandmate while also shooting down any prospects of ever working with him again. “Joyce has lost his Smiths,” he wrote in the wake of his legal defeat. “Now, today, tomorrow and always, and his own sentence begins on the day of his confusing victory, and it would run longer and harder than the sentence bestowed upon me…I am as I always was.”
