The music focuses on a guitar, bass and drum sound. They blend 1960s rock and post-punk. This sounded very different to the synthesiser-based contemporary dance pop that was popular in the early 1980s. Marr's guitar playing on his Rickenbacker often had a jangly sound influenced by Roger McGuinn of the 1960s group The Byrds. It influenced later bands from Manchester, such as The Stone Roses and Oasis. Morrissey's lyrics combined stories about ordinary people's lives with a sense of humour.