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Stone Roses and Primal Scream Bassist Gary “Mani” Mounfield Passes Away at Age 63
Gary “Mani” Mounfield, the British rocker and legendary bassist of the Stone Roses and Primal Scream, has passed away at the age of 63.
His passing was announced in a Facebook post by his brother Greg on Nov. 20, almost two years after the death of Mani’s wife, Imelda.
“Unfortunately, the very heaviest of my hearts is the one I have to write this sad, sad message of the passing of my brother Gary ‘Mani’ Mounfield. Rip RKid,” Greg said, referring to his brother with the Northern English slang “our kid” for sibling.
Greg didn’t mention the reason for the death and later he wrote, “Reunited with his beautiful wife Imelda.”
Imelda was diagnosed with cancer and died in November 2023. The couple’s 12-year-old twin sons, Gene and George, are the heirs of their parents.
Gary “Mani” Mounfield’s Career with the Stone Roses and Primal Scream
Gary “Mani” Mounfield was the bassist of the Stone Roses when he became well-known. Alongside Mani and the other members of the band—vocals by Ian Brown, drums by Alan “Reni” Wren and guitar by John Squire—who, just to let you know, is the godfather of Mani’s twin sons—they released their highly praised self-titled debut album in 1989 but only made one more studio album before going their separate ways in 1996.
Post-breakup, Mani became a member of Primal Scream in 1996 and after 15 years with the band, he left to be part of a Stone Roses reunion.
The Roses comeback concert was in 2011. Then, in 2016, they released two new singles—the first new material from them since their ’90s split—before calling it quits again in 2017.
Gary “Mani” Mounfield Remembered Stone Roses’ Early Confidence in a Podcast Interview
One of his last Gary “Mani” Mounfield’s moments was a late October interview on the Rockonteurs podcast where he remembered how the Stone Roses from the very beginning were extremely sure of their potential.
“People used to say, ‘God, what an arrogant bunch of [people]’. But we were just 100% self-confident because we knew the power of what we had in our hands, and those songs, and we knew people would get on it and it was just a process,” he explained. “Ian said in an interview that people are bound to fall in love with you eventually and we just kept plugging away. We knew where we’d be.”
Mounfield was quoted as saying that he was “in a great space at the moment” and “couldn’t wait to get back” to playing music.
Gary “Mani” Mounfield Before His Death Said He Was “Itching to Get Back” to Music
“I would love to. I’m so bored. It’s okay being daddy day care [but] watch this space,” Mounfield said in an interview with Rockonteurs. “You never know. I am always asked by people to do something… the timing is never right, either I am not in a good mental state or there is stuff going on at home. Johnny Marr is always trying to get me to do things, Liam [Gallagher] is always trying to get me involved with things before the Oasis thing. Now I am feeling that I could actually take up the thread again.”
After the news of his death, Gallagher, 53—whose band Oasis is also from Manchester—took to X to honor Mani.
Liam Gallagher Pays Tribute to Gary “Mani” Mounfield
Shock, disbelief, total devastation on the news of Mani. My hero RIP RKID LG,” was Liam Gallagher’s reaction on X.
Mounfield, on the Rockonteurs podcast, revealed that he and Gallagher had met recently at the funeral of boxer Ricky Hatton and that the “Wonderwall” singer kept telling him “If it wouldn’t have been for you, there’d be no me.”
“I was always saying at least we didn’t finish with the Manchester band but we passed the baton to another Manchester band,” Mounfield reflected.
