The Charlatans‘ Tim Burgess has spoken to NME about the legacy left behind by The Stone Roses’ icon Mani, and explained how the late bassist managed to “inspire generations” with his work. Watch our full interview above.
- READ MORE: Gary “Mani” Mounfield, 1962-2025: baggy bass hero whose melodies made the Madchester movement
The indie vertain caught up with us on the BRITs 2026 red carpet in Manchester last night (Saturday February 28), shortly before he took to the stage to introduce the ‘In Memoriam’ segment, which remembered the artists and industry giants who died over the last year.
His speech predominantly centred around friend and Manchester music icon, Gary ‘Mani’ Mounfield.
The musician, who was also a member of Primal Scream between 1996 and 2011, passed away from respiratory issues in November at the age of 63. He was laid to rest the following month at a funeral at Manchester Cathedral, which was attended by Liam Gallagher, Paul Weller, Ian Brown and more.
Speaking to us about how honouring Mani on stage, Burgess said: “I’m feeling pretty good about it, I’m not really saying anything that people don’t already know, though. I just think it’s important to recognise Mani… His legacy is in his songs, but it’s also [good] to be able to do that here too.”
As for why the the bassist is so fondly remembered by fans, Burgess added: “It’s because the records that he played on inspired generations. The [music] he played on, that is his legacy, and he was one of the phenomenal ones who come very few and far between.”
“I think we should all cherish the thought that we shared the timeline as he did,” he continued. “His personality was great. He was always there [in the heart of things], whether it was an unexpected gig or by showing up to a gig unannounced. It would always be great.”
Burgess also spoke about the new rerelease of The Charlatan’s debut album ‘Some Friendly’ – explaining that he wanted it to stand out from other reissues by having it “fully remastered” to sound “gorgeous” – and also shared insight into how the band joined forces with Dev Hynes (AKA Blood Orange) on their new material.
The Charlatans enlisted Hynes to co-produce their 14th studio album, ‘We Are Love’, which arrived last October and marked their first new album since 2017’s ‘Different Days’.
“Working with Dev was great. He was someone who we wanted to work with for a while, and we noticed that our paths crossed a lot throughout the years,” Burgess said, adding that the partnership finally came together after he saw Hynes perform as the drummer in Florence + The Machine.
“I just kept bumping into him throughout the years, and I didn’t realise he was such a big fan! We are big fans of his, so when we [found out] he was a fan of ours, things really just seemed to click into place… It’s one of those things that might not have worked, but luckily it really did!”
The Charlatans are gearing up for their upcoming UK tour, which kicks off later this spring. Support comes from The Cords, and you can find any remaining tickets here.
As for the BRITs, this year’s show marked the first time in the 46-year history that the ceremony was held outside of London.
Jack Whitehall hosted for the sixth time, and there were live performances from Harry Styles, Olivia Dean, HUNTR/X’s EJAE, Audrey Nuna and REI AMI, Wolf Alice, Mark Ronson, Alex Warren, Sombr, and RAYE.
The night also saw a surprise appearance from Bjork alongside Rosalía, and Olivia Dean took home the most awards on the night, including Album of the Year with ‘The Art Of Loving‘.
Noel Gallagher attended after Oasis’ ‘Live ‘25’ reunion tour, and was awarded the Songwriter Of The Year award. PinkPantheress also became the youngest recipient and first female winner of the Producer Of The Year award. Check out the full list of winners here.
At the end of the night, Ozzy Osbourne was honoured with the BRITs Lifetime Achievement Award following his passing in July, and there was a tribute performance from Robbie Williams and members of Ozzy’s band over the years, including Adam Wakeman, Robert Trujillo, Tommy Clufetos and Zakk Wylde.
The post Tim Burgess on remembering Mani at the 2026 BRITs: “He was one of the phenomenal ones who come very few and far between” appeared first on NME.
