Wet Wet Wet

Wet Wet Wet
Wet Wet Wet at the Montreux Pop Festival 1988
General information
Genre (s)	Pop , soul
founding	1982, 2004
resolution	1999
Website	http://www.wetwetwet.co.uk
Current occupation
singing	Marti Pellow
Bass , vocals (background)	Graeme Clark
Keyboard , vocals (background)	Neil Mitchell
Drums , vocals (background)	Tommy Cunningham
Guitar , vocals (background)	Graeme Duffin

Wet Wet Wet is a British pop band . It was founded in 1982 in Clydebank near Glasgow ; the name comes from a song by the band Scritti Politti . In the 1980s and 1990s they had their greatest successes to date. After a temporary separation in 1999, they reunited in 2004.

Members

• Marti Pellow (born March 23, 1965 in Clydebank ; actually Mark McLachlan )
• Tommy Cunningham (born June 22, 1964 in Drumchapel , Glasgow)
• Graeme Clark (born April 15, 1965 in Glasgow)
• Neil Mitchell (born June 8, 1965 in Helensburgh )
• Graeme Duffin (born February 28, 1956)

Band history

The band was formed in 1982 under the name Vortex Motion and mainly played clash cover songs in bars. But that same year it renamed itself Wet Wet Wet. The name comes from a line in the song Gettin ', Havin' and Holdin 'by the band Scritti Politti .

Wet Wet Wet had their first hit in 1987. The single Wishing I Was Lucky reached number 6 on the UK charts. In the same year the band released their first album Popped in Souled Out , which made it to number 1 on the UK charts. Other singles were released from the album, including Sweet Little Mystery , Temptation and Angel Eyes . With a cover version of the Beatles classic With a Little Help from My Friends , which was recorded for charity, Wet Wet Wet made it to number 1 in the charts for the first time with a single.

In 1989 the band Holding Back the River released the second album , from which the single Sweet Surrender comes. On September 10, 1989, they gave a free concert in front of 75,000 fans in Glasgow Green, a park in east Glasgow. They wanted to thank the fans at home for their support and enable those who otherwise might not have been able to afford to watch them play. The third album High on the Happy Side was released in 1992. It included her second number one hit Goodnight Girl . With this single, the band held the top position for four weeks.

Wet Wet Wet had their greatest success in 1994. For the soundtrack to the British film Four Weddings and a Funeral , they recorded a cover version of Love Is All Around , the original of which was made by the Troggs . With this single, the band was number 1 in the British charts for 15 weeks in the summer of 1994, as long as only two other singles in the history of the British charts.

Cunningham left the band in 1997, Pellow in 1999. The latter then began a solo career.

At the beginning of 2004, Wet Wet Wet announced their reunion at a press conference , and at the end of the year they went on a successful tour through Great Britain and released the single All I Want and a greatest hits album. A new song can be found on the Special Edition of the Greatest Hits with Walking on Water . In 2005 the band had other live appearances, including Live 8 in Edinburgh . On New Year's Eve 2006, Wet Wet Wet performed at the Aberdeen Hogmanay Celebrations , a free concert by the City of Aberdeen , and delighted the audience who had come to the Castlegate despite the cold, gusts of wind and a high probability of rain. The new album called Timeless , on which the band has been working since 2005, was released on November 12, 2007 on their newly founded own label Dry Records. In December 2007 the band toured the UK.

On July 20, 2012 Wet Wet Wet gave a concert in Glasgow Green on the occasion of their 25th stage anniversary.

In November 2013, the band released the album Step by Step , which included the three new titles Step by Step , Sad Kind of Love and Playin 'Like a Kid in addition to their greatest hits . The corresponding Greatest Hits tour through Great Britain followed in December 2013.

On the occasion of their 30th anniversary, the band gave three concerts in the UK in 2017. Shortly afterwards, Marti Pellow separated to advance his solo career. In November 2018 "The Voice of Uk 2016" winner and ex "Liberty X" singer Kevin Simm was presented as the new front man.

Discography

Studio albums

year	title	Top ranking, total weeks, awardChart placementsChart placements (Year, title, rankings, weeks, awards, notes)					Remarks
		DE	AT	CH	UK	US
1987	Popped in Souled Out	DE44 (18 weeks) DE	-	-	UK1 × 5 Quintuple platinum (74 weeks)UK	US123 (7 weeks) US	First published: September 28, 1987 Producers: Axel Kröll, JWWWL, Michael Baker, Wilf Smarties
1988	The Memphis Sessions	-	-	-	UK3 platinum (13 weeks)UK	-	First published: November 7th, 1988 Recording: Royal Studios, Tennessee Producer: Willie Mitchell
1989	Holding back the river	DE34 (19 weeks) DE	-	-	UK2 × 2 Double platinum (26 weeks)UK	-	First published: October 30, 1989 Recording: Puk Recording Studios, Denmark Producer: Wet Wet Wet
1992	High on the happy side	DE18 (13 weeks) DE	AT13 (7 weeks) AT	CH40 (2 weeks) CH	UK1 platinum (25 weeks)UK	-	First published: January 27, 1992 Producers: Wet Wet Wet, Albhy Galuten, Axel Kröll
1995	Picture This	DE6 (17 weeks) DE	AT1 (13 weeks) AT	CH8 (11 weeks) CH	UK1 × 3 Triple platinum (47 weeks)UK	-	First published: April 10, 1995 Producers: Wet Wet Wet Graeme Clark, Graeme Duffin
1997	10	DE30 (9 weeks) DE	AT28 (5 weeks) AT	CH50 (1 week) CH	UK2 platinum (27 weeks)UK	-	First published March 3, 1997 Producers: Graeme Clark, Graeme Duffin
2007	Timeless	-	-	-	UK41 (2 weeks) UK	-	First publication: November 12, 2007 Cover design: Klaus Voormann Producer: Wet Wet Wet

More studio albums

• 1992: Cloak & Dagger (as Maggie Pie & the Impostors; released January 28th)

Live albums

year	title	Top ranking, total weeks, awardChart placementsChart placements (Year, title, rankings, weeks, awards, notes)					Remarks
		DE	AT	CH	UK	US
1993	Live at the Royal Albert Hall	-	-	-	UK10 (4 weeks) UK	-	First published: May 17, 1993 with The Wren Orchestra

More live albums

• 1990: Wet Wet Wet: Live (released December 1st)
• 2004: Live at Birmingham National Exhibition Center (2 CDs)
• 2004: Live at the Point (2 CDs)
• 2004: Instant Live SECC Glasgow 09.12.04
• 2006: Live Volume One
• 2006: Live Volume Two

Compilations

year	title	Top ranking, total weeks, awardChart placementsChart placements (Year, title, rankings, weeks, awards, notes)					Remarks
		DE	AT	CH	UK	US
1993	End of Part One - Their Greatest Hits	DE1 platinum (39 weeks)DE	AT1 gold (20 weeks)AT	CH5 platinum (21 weeks)CH	UK1 × 4 Quadruple platinum (74 weeks)UK	-	First published: November 8, 1993
2004	The Greatest Hits	-	-	-	UK13 platinum (13 weeks)UK	-	First published: November 8, 2004
2013	Step by Step - The Greatest Hits	-	-	-	UK53 silver (3 weeks)UK	-	First published: November 25, 2013

More compilations

• 1989: Holding Back the River - The Ballads
• 1991: Classic Tracks from Wet Wet Wet
• 2007: The Best Of (2 CDs)
• 2015: Picture This: The Big Picture (20th Anniversary Edition) (box with 3 CDs + DVD; release: October 30th)

Singles

year	Title album	Top ranking, total weeks, awardChart placementsChart placements (Year, title, album , rankings, weeks, awards, notes)					Remarks
		DE	AT	CH	UK	R&B
1987	Wishing I Was Lucky Popped In Souled Out	-	-	-	UK6 (17 weeks) UK	R&B58 (8 weeks) R&B	First published: March 16, 1987
	Sweet Little Mystery Popped In Souled Out	DE46 (8 weeks) DE	-	CH23 (6 weeks) CH	UK5 (12 weeks) UK	-	First published: July 13, 1987
	Angel Eyes (Home and Away) Popped In Souled Out	DE17 (13 weeks) DE	-	-	UK5 (12 weeks) UK	-	First published: November 23, 1987
1988	Temptation Popped In Souled Out	-	-	-	UK12 (8 weeks) UK	-	First published: March 7, 1988
	With a Little Help from My Friends	-	-	-	UK1 silver (11 weeks)UK	-	First published: May 2, 1988 Split single with Billy Bragg - She's Leaving Home Authors: John Lennon , Paul McCartney Original: The Beatles , 1967
1989	Sweet Surrender Holding Back The River	DE37 (21 weeks) DE	AT24 (3 weeks) AT	-	UK6 (8 weeks) UK	-	First published: September 18, 1989
	Broke Away Holding Back The River	-	-	-	UK19 (7 weeks) UK	-	First published: November 27, 1989
1990	Hold Back the River Holding Back The River	-	-	-	UK31 (4 weeks) UK	-	First published: February 26, 1990
	Stay With Me Heartache / I Feel Fine	-	-	-	UK30 (4 weeks) UK	-	First published: July 30, 1990 Authors: Wet Wet Wet / John Lennon, Paul McCartney Original (B-side): The Beatles, 1964
1991	Make It Tonight High On The Happy Side	-	-	-	UK37 (3 weeks) UK	-	First published: September 2, 1991
	Put the Light On High On The Happy Side	-	-	-	UK56 (2 weeks) UK	-	First published: October 21, 1991
1992	Goodnight Girl High On The Happy Side	DE35 (12 weeks) DE	AT27 (3 weeks) AT	-	UK1 (11 weeks) UK	-	First published: December 23, 1991
	More Than Love High On The Happy Side	-	-	-	UK19 (5 weeks) UK	-	First published: March 9, 1992
	Lip Service High On The Happy Side	-	-	-	UK15 (5 weeks) UK	-	First published: June 29, 1992
1993	Blue for You / This Time (Live)	-	-	-	UK38 (2 weeks) UK	-	First published: May 26, 1993
	Shed a tear	DE53 (8 weeks) DE	-	-	UK22 (5 weeks) UK	-	First published: October 25, 1993
1994	Cold Cold Heart	-	-	-	UK20 (5 weeks) UK	-	First published: December 27, 1993
	Love Is All Around Picture This	DE2 platinum (40 weeks)DE	AT1 platinum (25 weeks)AT	CH2 (27 weeks) CH	UK1 × 2 Double platinum (43 weeks)UK	R&B41 (20 weeks) R&B	First published: May 9, 1994 Author: Reg Presley Original: The Troggs , 1966
	Goodnight Girl '94	DE46 (11 weeks) DE	-	CH12 (7 weeks) CH	-	-	First published: October 25, 1994
1995	Julia Says Picture This	DE42 (11 weeks) DE	AT19 (6 weeks) AT	-	UK3 silver (14 weeks)UK	-	First published: March 13, 1995
	Don't Want to Forgive Me Now Picture This	DE66 (10 weeks) DE	-	-	UK7 (9 weeks) UK	-	First published: June 5, 1995
	Somewhere Somehow Picture This	DE78 (10 weeks) DE	-	-	UK7 (7 weeks) UK	-	First published: September 18, 1995
	She's all on my mind	-	-	-	UK17 (8 weeks) UK	-	First published: November 20, 1995
1996	Morning	-	-	-	UK16 (6 weeks) UK	-	First published: March 18, 1996
1997	If I Never See You Again 10	DE63 (9 weeks) DE	-	CH36 (2 weeks) CH	UK3 (12 weeks) UK	-	First published: March 10, 1997
	Strange 10	DE95 (3 weeks) DE	-	-	UK13 (8 weeks) UK	-	First published: June 2, 1997
	Yesterday	DE81 (4 weeks) DE	-	-	UK4 (7 weeks) UK	-	First published: August 4, 1997 from the soundtrack of the film Bean Authors: John Lennon, Paul McCartney Original: The Beatles, 1965
2004	All I Want Live At The Point	-	-	-	UK14 (3 weeks) UK	-	First published: November 1, 2004
2007	Too Many People Timeless	-	-	-	UK46 (1 week) UK	-	First published: November 5, 2007
2008	Weightless Timeless	-	-	-	UK10 (2 weeks) UK	-	First published: February 4, 2008

More singles

• 1985: I Can Give You Everything (Flexi single)
• 1987: Four Track Wet Pack (12inch vinyl)
• 1988: This Time
• 1989: You've Had It
• 1991: Extracts from High on the Happy Side (EP, Promo)
• 1990: Blue for You
• 2013: Step by Step

Video albums

• 1988: Video Singles
• 1989: Live in the Park
• 1992: High on the Happy Side - Video so Far ...
• 1992: The Wets at the Castle: Edinburgh Castle 5th September 1992
• 1995: Picture This - Live at Wembley Arena, July 30, 1995 (UK:gold)
• 2001: Playing Away at Home: Live at Celtic Park, Glasgow, 7th September 1997
• 2002: The Wets at the Castle: Edinburgh Castle 5th September 1992
• 2003: Greatest Hits: Classic Clips
• 2004: The Greatest Hits and More

swell

1. ^ Pellow quits Wet Wet Wet, BBC News, May 11, 1999
2. ↑ ^{a b c d} Chart sources: Singles albums UK US
3. ↑ ^{a b c d} gold / platinum databases: DE AT CH UK

Web links

• Official website (English)
• Wet Wet Wet at Allmusic (English)
• Wet Wet Wet at Discogs (English)