Defenders Of The Faith, le forum Metal

Mel Galley a écrit :"Well, as some of you may already have read in the press or seen/heard on other websites, the verdict from the doctors following a full MRI scan is that my condition is terminal. Rather than sit around feeling sorry for myself, I intend to make the most of the time I have left with my family and friends. I am blessed with a fantastic wife and two sons who I am very proud of. For now am just aiming to make my 60th birthday in March.

"I have enjoyed a great life, travelled the world having some amazing experiences, met all sorts of people and played with some of the best musicians there are.

"Back in the late '60s when I first started playing in local bands I never imagined how far I would go and the shows I would play. I seemed to tour non-stop with Glenn and Dave in TRAPEZE in the early 70s. We supported THE KINKS and THE MOODY BLUES while still very young men, had people like John Bonham come on and do encores with us, and the likes of ZZ TOP as our support act. We loved to play live and the fans seemed to love us, especially in the Southern States of the USA — HELLO TEXAS!

"Playing on the same bill as THE EAGLES and THE ROLLING STONES, with MONTROSE opening, in front of 100,000 fans in Dallas in 1975 and headlining the 1983 Monsters of Rock festival while in WHITESNAKE are two shows that I will treasure. There have been so many highlights that it's impossible to name them all.

"Glenn still occasionally throws in a TRAPEZE song during his shows and they sound as fresh as if written yesterday. That tells me how good they are. The fact that he has always had one of the most amazing voices you have ever heard helps too! God bless you, Glenn.

"Due to my arm injury, my time in WHITESNAKE sadly only resulted in one album. Playing with those guys was a buzz and both line-ups I was involved in contained tremendous musicians. I'm sure John Sykes and I could have written some great songs together. It was so nice to meet him again recently over 20 years later and to see him still playing the same Gibson as back then.

"Over the last 12 months, since the launch of my page and the TRAPEZE page, I have regained my love for playing and taken real pleasure from reading the comments and messages you have all left. I have heard from people I had lost touch with years ago. It has been fantastic and I thank you all. I honestly didn't realise the amount of people out there who still remember or have discovered my music. I just wish I could have had the chance to play the shows I had planned for this year.

"Thank you all so much for your love and support over the years.

"You are the music — I was just in a band!"

Dark Avenger a écrit :RIP Mel.

UK's Express & Star reports: WHITESNAKE guitarist Mel Galley celebrated his 60th birthday against the odds, surrounded by celebrities, friends and family.

The rock legend from Cannock revealed last month that he only has a short time to live after being diagnosed with cancer.

Friends were planning to bring forward his birthday celebrations after hearing the devastating news, but Mel was determined to make it to the landmark occasion. Former DEEP PURPLE star Glenn Hughes flew over from his Los Angeles home to celebrate the birthday of his former bandmate at The Park Gate Inn, in Cannock Wood.

Even as his condition worsened, Galley continued to post encouraging, amusing updates. When he was no longer able to go to the pub, 'now the pub [comes] to me," he joked. "Friends visit me each day, I have drugs in me 24/7, and I have a plentiful supply of gin and tonic by my bedside. I even have my own ice machine! In fact, it's just like my WHITESNAKE days."

"I am so very sad to report the passing of my oldest friend Mel. He drifted into his golden sleep at 10 PM last night. He is now with his higher power... he has come home.

"I will cherish his memory and all the things that Mel shared with me in his full and rich life... but most of all, he showed me to live like a man. He took my hand as a boy and walked me through my earliest chapters as a young musician....he alone is responsible for my career as a working musician/singer-songwriter.

"Let's all remember Mel with love in our hearts and he wanted you all to know how overcome he was with the global outpouring of love for him... He said to me, 'I had no idea how many people cared and loved me'… he was the man, he was my childhood idol along with Jimi and Eric.

"You are the music.

"I'll see you in the Garden one day and I will recognise you as my brother....."

During WHITESNAKE's recently completed European tour, David Coverdale dedicated "Love Ain't No Stranger", a song he co-wrote with Mel for the "Slide It In" album, to Galley on a nightly basis.

FaN2MeTaL a écrit :Oui sur l'actuelle tournée du Snake, Coverdale a rejoué "Guilty of Love" en hommage au guitarite de l'album "Slide it in".
J'ai vraiment apprécié!

According to a posting on the Deep Purple Appreciation Society web site, a venue in Wolverhampton, England (The Robin in Bilston) is advertising two GLENN HUGHES shows for June 2009. The first is on Saturday, June 6, with Glenn and his band performing music from his latest solo album, "First Underground Nuclear Kitchen (F.U.N.K.)", with the promise of "some rarely played songs, including material that Glenn has never played in the UK before." The Sunday, June 7 show promises to be very special, with Glenn and his band performing a full set of TRAPEZE material, preceded in the afternoon by a showing of showing of "rare Glenn Hughes- and TRAPEZE-related films".