Having remained largely quiet since the release of his 2014 album 'Playland', former Smiths guitarist Johnny Marr has now unveiled a new song, with the intention of raising awareness of an issue rampant in his hometown.
The new single 'The Priest' sees the frontman team up with actor Maxine Peake to produce a video which aims to highlight the growing number of homeless people in Manchester.
Speaking to The Guardian, Marr said, “You can’t avoid it in Manchester, it touched us both.” With Peake adding, “I would come out every night at 11 o’clock and there was a gang of guys who always used to camp on the steps of the theatre. And there was another guy called Steve who was always at the car park I was using. One night, he was sat with another guy, who looked official. He had a clipboard. I said, ‘Are you all right?’ And Steve said: ‘My friend’s just OD’d. I tried to resuscitate him.’"
You can check out the exclusive video of the song, directed by Marr and Peake, from The Guardian in the player below.
