Herb Wiley (Rye Coalition, Black Hollies, WYLIE) just shared a health update and disappointing news for fans. The guitarist of Rye Coalition (and more) has been diagnosed with the progressive neurodegenerative disease ALS.
Wiley recently recorded his first solo album, under the name WYLIE, shortly before losing the function of his hands and arms -- playing every instrument and self-recording the collection.
Wiley says:
I wrote all these songs back in the day around '98, '99 and played them out a couple times using my friend Scott (Black Hollies) on drums and Justin (Rye Coalition) on bass. Then I stopped writing the album joining Rye Coalition to record the "On Top" LP sessions. During Covid, when everybody was holed up and and nobody wanted to do shit with the sky falling, I recorded this slowly in my friend's basement to tape. I basically waited 25 years to record them properly with hopes to put together a band and play them out. As soon as I was done recording and mixing, all of this started happening to me. It was almost as if, subconsciously, I need that I needed to record them now or I might not be able to. And here we are. Very strange synchronicity. Life is definitely stranger than fiction.
The Dancing Man EP by Rye Coalition was recently reissued on Numero Group.
Herb Wylie's GoFundMe campaign.
Pictured: Rye Coalition (Herb 2nd from left)
