It has been two months since Tony Clarkin, the highly acclaimed English guitarist, songwriter, and the driving force behind the iconic rock band Magnum, passed. Tonight, Bob Catley has issued a tear-inducing statement, saying “I really can’t carry on with Tony not here anymore.”
“I wish I didn’t have to tell you this,” Bob Catley says in a video posted to Facebook, “but, I really can’t carry on with Tony not here anymore. Please forgive me, and I hope you can understand how I feel.
“I’ve been thinking about it a lot lately. Since we lost Tone, we lost our guiding light, the Magnum force behind the band, our songwriter, our producer, our guitar player.
“He was everything to the band. He was everything for me for the last 50 years. We never went anywhere without each other. On tour, in the studio, I was beside him constantly working on stuff with them.”
“I had a wonderful life with Tony. But now, it’s all too much for me, people. I can’t carry on without Tony. I may pop up in some other shape or form in the near future. You never know.
“But I can’t keep going on like this. It’s far too sad. It’s all too sad.
“So I hope you understand. You’ve been fantastic. The best audience ever. You kept this band going year after year, album after album, and we thank you for that.
“So be good. Keep Tony’s music in your heart always. I know I will. I will always carry Magnum inside me, and I will always have Tony Clarkin beside me wherever I go.
“I love you. You’ve been brilliant, but it’s time for me to bow out now it’s my last curtain call. Ok. I’ll see you sometime. Be good, cheers.”
