Pete Wylie is an English singer-songwriter from Liverpool, born in 1958. He is best known as the leader of the post-punk and new wave group Wah!, which appears under several names including Wah! Heat, The 5,000 Names of Wah! and The Mighty Wah!.

Early bands

Before Wah!, Wylie forms The Crucial Three with Ian McCulloch and Julian Cope. McCulloch and Cope later go on to success with Echo and the Bunnymen and The Teardrop Explodes. Wylie is also associated with Spitfire Boys.

Wah! and chart success

Wah! begins in 1979 and gains critical attention with the single Better Scream and the album Nah Poo! The Art of Bluff. The group’s biggest hit is The Story of the Blues, which reaches number 3 in the UK singles chart. The Mighty Wah! also has a top 20 hit with Come Back in 1984. Both songs are chosen by John Peel as his single of the year.

Solo work and later projects

After leaving the backing group behind, Wylie has a solo hit with Sinful!, which becomes the title track of his 1987 solo album. He later releases Songs of Strength & Heartbreak in 2000, which includes Heart As Big As Liverpool. That song is popular in Liverpool, especially among Liverpool Football Club supporters, and is used in the official Hillsborough tribute video.

Dead Men Walking and injury

Wylie later joins Dead Men Walking with Mike Peters of The Alarm, Kirk Brandon of Spear of Destiny and Glen Matlock of the Sex Pistols. The group tours extensively, performing older material and new songs. In 1991, Wylie suffers a near-fatal fall in Upper Parliament Street, Liverpool, and fractures both his spine and sternum. He leaves Dead Men Walking in 2003 after acrimonious circumstances.