Saw Doctors star who won Lottery dies in Thailand
A FORMER musician with The Saw Doctors who famously scooped almost £1m in the National Lottery has died.
Welshman Tony Lambert, who was part of the band during their most successful years in the 1990s, died in Thailand yesterday after a period in hospital with a heart condition.
The Galway band paid a glowing tribute to Tony – who left the band in 1993 and has lived in Thailand ever since – having a couple of stints living in Galway in between.
When going to Wales to record hit singles such as ‘I Useta Love Her’, the band was recommended a musician who could play both the accordion and keyboard.
“Tony arrived and gave the tracks even more than we had imagined or hoped for. The song released was ‘I Useta Love Her’, which became a success and Tony joined the band and moved with his dog, Squirm, to Ireland,” guitarist Leo Moran said online.
“Tony was a virtuoso musician on many instruments.
“He could play with great feel and hit so many right notes, as few or as many as were appropriate, and he also had the expertise to squeeze every classic electric and mechanical trick out of the Hammond organ and its accompanying twirling Leslie speaker.
“His presence added warm, deep and dynamic textures to the songs of The Saw Doctors.
“In 1993, he won the Irish Lotto and not long after moved to Thailand, never again having to wait for a late-arriving minibus to shake him on bad roads to some end of the country or other.
“It is with deep sadness we learn of Tony’s passing today, a truly magnificent man of music,” he added.
Speaking to the Irish Independent last night, band manager Ollie Jennings said that after recording ‘I Useta Love Her’ with the band, Tony was invited over to gig with them
“He came over with all his possessions and lived in a caravan on Davey Carton’s family’s land,” he said. “He was with us for the glory years. We did the Féile, we did Knebworth one time with Genesis.”
He also toured Europe and Australia with the band.
Asked about the time Tony won £852,643 in the Lotto in 1993, he said: “He was still living in a caravan and had about 140 quid in his bank account at the time.”
When asked following the big lottery win what he would do with his new fortune, Tony explained that he would like to buy a house but he was in no rush.
“That’s everybody’s dream come true, isn’t it, winning the Lotto...I feel relieved, I don’t know what it is really,” he told RTÉ at the time. “I’d love to get a house sometime, I’ll look for the right one,” he added.