Early Music Career and Sweet
At the age of twelve Connolly moved to Harefield, Middlesex, where Connolly played in a number of local bands before eventually replacing singer Ian Gillan (later of Deep Purple and Black Sabbath fame) in a band called Wainwright's Gentlemen, which included drummer Mick Tucker. Tucker and Connolly left Wainwright's Gentlemen in early 1968 and recruited guitarist Frank Torpey, and bassist Steve Priest, naming their new band The Sweetshop.
On the eve of releasing their debut single, Slow Motion, in July 1968, the band shortened their name to The Sweet. They recorded a further three unsuccessful singles; Andy Scott joined the line-up in late 1970, just before the release of their first hit single "Funny, Funny". After this, Connolly was propelled into the limelight, with many appearances on Top of the Pops, with the other members of the Sweet. A flood of very successful singles would follow and both The Sweet and Connolly became instantly recognisable around the world with Brian enjoying a large fan base.
In 1974 Connolly was badly beaten up after leaving a nightclub in Uxbridge where he received several kicks to his throat which resulted in him being unable to sing for some time and losing some of his vocal range permanently. This event also meant the band missed out on supporting The Who at Charlton Athletic Football Ground. Several songs on the Sweet Fanny Adams had to be sung by other members of the band.
As time progressed issues between Connolly and other members of Sweet developed and he would find the band excluding him from decisions. Brian developed a significant alcohol problem in the mid-1970s. During 1977, when no tours were undertaken and two of Sweet's most successful albums were recorded, the power struggle within to run the band became even more apparent. Brian's alcohol abuse further compromised his role with the band as his voice began showing the impact in recordings and on stage during Sweet's 1978 US tour. He played his last British show with the classic Sweet line-up at Hammersmith Odeon, London on 24 February 1978. His final live performance with the band was in July 1978 in Florida, USA when they supported Alice Cooper. His departure was not made public until March 1979.
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