Wishing I was solo: Marti PellowquitsWetWetWet
CLYDEBANK crooner Marti Pellow has announced he is leaving the band which propelled him to fame.
The singer has called it quits with Wet Wet Wet after 30 years of hits and sell-out concerts.
Pellow, 52, said he is to leave the band to concentrate on his solo career.
Wet Wet Wet previously split up in 1999 and later reformed in 2004.
The latest announcement comes after three hugely successful concerts – with the final night at Edinburgh Castle celebrating the band’s 30th anniversary.
He said: “I will be spending more time on my solo work - performing concerts, acting and my own songwriting - as an artist I feel a lot more settled in this world. I have had a great time and loved my career with Wet Wet Wet and to me they will always be the best band in the world.
“When I started in Wet Wet Wet I gave it 100% of my heart and soul and that’s what it demands and that is also what the fans demand – and if I can’t do that because my focus is elsewhere, then this is not fair on the fans or the rest of the guys in the band.”
Wet Wet Wet shot to fame after forming in the early 80s. The band, which also features drummer Tommy Cunning- ham, bassist Graeme Clark, guitarist Graeme Duffin and keyboardist Neil Mitchell, are best know for their 1994 cover of The Troggs’ 1960s hit Love is All Around. The song spent 15 weeks at the top of the British charts and featured in the movie Four Weddings and a Funeral.
The group also had hits with Wishing I Was Lucky, Sweet Little Mystery, Angel Eyes and Goodnight Girl.
Pellow grew up in Clydebank before he quit Scotland 20 years ago for a new life in Windsor.
He battled with an addiction to heroin during the late 90s before checking into The Priory rehab clinic for treatment.
The handsome star is now writing a new stage musical with his long-term music col- laborator and producer Grant Mitchell, along with leading theatre dramaturge and playwright, Jack Bradley.
Last year, Pellow had a successful stint as evil sorcerer Abanazar in the hit panto Aladdin, which ran at the city’s Clyde Auditorium.
He has also had a successful musical theatre career with roles in Evita and The Witches of Eastwick.