Johnny Marr (born John Martin Maher; 31 October 1963) is an English musician, songwriter and singer. Between 1982 and 1987 he was the guitarist and – with Morrissey – co-songwriter of The Smiths, an English rock band formed in Manchester. Critics have called them the most important alternative rock band to emerge from the British independent music scene of the 1980s. Q magazine's Simon Goddard argued in 2007 that the Smiths were "the most influential British guitar group of the decade" and the "first indie outsiders to achieve mainstream success on their own terms". NME named The Smiths the "most influential artist ever" in a 2002 poll, even topping The Beatles.