From millionaire heartthrob to tragic end: The sad story of Brian Connolly

Rock star Brian Connolly was the captivating lead singer of the popular band The Sweet.

In the 1970s, his fame and fortune seemed unstoppable with the success of The Ballroom Blitz.

However, many people were unaware of the tragedy that marked the end of his life.

Brian Connolly appeared to have it all as the gorgeous lead singer of the glam rock band The Sweet, who were at the top of the charts. The band ruled the 1970s, playing to enormous audiences all around the world and enjoying the opulent lifestyle that accompanied celebrity.

Both men and women were adored by their fans, and their music is still relevant today. Brian’s vocals could light up any stage, while Mick Tucker was praised as one of the greatest drummers of the time.

The Sweet first appeared in the mid-1970s, when rock was at its height. The world was being overtaken by bands like Aerosmith, Queen, and Led Zeppelin. However, Sweet also possessed talent, charisma, and a number of singles. Additionally, they were among the few British performers to make it to the American charts.

Ballroom Blitz’s frantic energy, recognizable drum opening, and thrilling guitars are all well-known, but Sweet was much more than just a glam rock group.

They possessed the Beatles’ hooks, the Rolling Stones’ attitude, and Deep Purple’s weight. Sweet F.A. possessed the raw aggression of early AC/DC, while Set Me Free could have well been a Judas Priest record.

A staggering 50 million recordings were sold globally by Sweet at the height of their career.

Brian Connolly was at the heart of it all. The band’s charismatic frontman became its face because to his impressive appearance and strong stage presence.

He had millions of fans, the voice of an era, and the world at his feet. However, as history would demonstrate, wealth and notoriety were unable to protect him from the worst aspects of rock stardom.

Born in Scotland in 1945, Brian was known as Brian MacManus until he became eighteen.

Brian’s life was challenging from the start; he was raised by a nurse and her husband after being abandoned as a baby.

When Brian reached adulthood, he learned that he was the half-brother of renowned Scottish actor Mark McManus, who portrayed Detective Taggart in one of the longest-running television series in the United Kingdom. However, the identity of his biological father was never disclosed.

In the UK, Brian was becoming well-known as a vocalist by the middle of the 1960s. He co-founded the band Sweet a few years later, and the group went on to have tremendous success in the 1970s.

Andy Scott, the band’s guitarist, attested to their enormous success:

“During that time, a significant amount of money passed through the bank accounts. He mentioned that Sweet had 39 global successes and 13 top-20 singles in the UK, including the number-one hit Block Buster!, and that “we moved into the millionaire status.”

Brian Connoly, the face of Sweet, was unquestionably the epitome of 1970s glam rock with his signature coiffed, flicked-back golden hair.

However, he departed The Sweet in 1979 to pursue a solo career, which marked the beginning of his decline. He was already having problems with alcohol by that point, which was beginning to affect his standing in the band.

It simply got out of control over time. I guess I don’t know what would have occurred if I had told myself, ‘I’ve had enough,’ but I always said that if I ever wanted to stop, I could,” Connolly once remarked.

Even though he had a devoted following, his career never took off the way he had intended, and his solo singles were unsuccessful.

He gained a brief reprieve in January 1983 when he supported Pat Benatar for three gigs in Birmingham, Newcastle, and London, but then financial ruin struck.

Connolly had to sell his house to pay for the band’s enormous multimillion-pound tax burden that was associated with their successful records.

His health started to deteriorate at about the same period.

He was admitted to the hospital in 1981 due to extreme bloating, frequent heart attacks, and partial left-sided paralysis, which would eventually develop into a chronic nervous system illness.

He continued to tour the UK and Europe with his reformed band, the New Sweet, starting in 1984, despite his medical difficulties. However, he was unable to maintain the rigorous schedule due to his health. It became evident that he could no longer withstand the demands of touring when he was hospitalized for dehydration during a 1990 tour in Australia.

His finances were further depleted by legal disputes over The Sweet’s moniker. The two groups eventually broke up, with guitarist Andy Scott’s group becoming Andy Scott’s Sweet and Brian Connolly’s Sweet becoming Brian’s band.

Connolly continued to tour, but his health was getting worse and the fees were a small portion of what he had made in his heyday.

His solo album Let’s Go, which was published in 1995, was only moderately successful. Jean, his 23-year-old spouse, gave birth to their son the same year.

Connolly revealed in a 1996 Don’t Leave Me This Way broadcast on Channel 4 that he had experienced six heart attacks and that years of alcohol misuse had severely damaged his physique.

The once-golden kid of glam music was hardly recognizable by the middle of the 1990s. He shook noticeably, walked with a limp, and his performances revealed the effects of his decline.

Brian stated in his last interview with reporter Jasper Rees that he had been the one with the most responsibility when Sweet first became well-known. Connolly also talked openly about his heart attacks; his ex-wife claimed that he had 13 heart attacks in a 24-hour period, but the singer said that he had closer to 12 over around six weeks.

At that point, he was living alone in a dead neighborhood on a quiet cul-de-sac, his hands shaking and his once-strong voice visibly reduced.

His last performance was held at the Bristol Hippodrome on December 5, 1996, where he shared the stage alongside John Rossall’s Glitter Band Experience and Slade II.

Brian Connolly died just over three months later. On February 9, 1997, the former teen idol passed away at Wexham Park Hospital from liver and kidney failure, which was exacerbated by many heart attacks.

In remembrance of the musician who once lit up stadiums all over the world, fans later collected money for a memorial plaque at Breakspear Crematorium.

Are you able to recall Brian Connolly or The Sweet? Were you aware of his sad tale? Post your ideas and anecdotes in the comments section.