Mani’s writhing, relentless bass was the Stone Roses’ secret sauce

His love of ‘good northern soul and funk’ was always in evidence and had a lasting impact on alternative music • Gary ‘Mani’ Mounfield dies aged 63

Gary ‘Mani’ Mounfield dies aged 63

By any metric, the rise of the Stone Roses was a sudden and remarkable thing. It took place over the course of 12 months. At the start of 1989, they were just a local cause of excitement in Manchester, largely ignored by the traditional outlets for alternative rock in Britain. John Peel wasn’t a fan. The music press had barely mentioned their most recent single, Elephant Stone. They were barely able to fill even a more modest London venue such as Dingwalls. But by November they were huge. Their single Fools Gold had entered the charts at No 8 and their performance was the big attraction on that week’s Top