The band ‘Brotherhood of Man‘ announces today with sadness that Martin Lee passed away on the evening of Sunday, September 29, at the age of 77. Martin was the lead singer who performed the song “Save Your Kisses For Me”, which won the Eurovision Song Contest in 1976, marking the third victory for Britain in Eurovision. Martin passed away from heart failure after battling an illness. In a statement released by the band, it was written: “For 50 years, the four of us traveled the world together in harmony and we have so many memories, but now we are in complete shock and cannot imagine a world without Martin Lee.”

Martin was born in London in 1946 under the name Martin Barnes and joined ‘Brotherhood of Man’ in 1972. He, along with the three band members Nicky Stevens, Lee Sherden, and Sandra Stevens, represented Britain in the Eurovision Song Contest of 1976 held in The Hague, Netherlands. The song “Save Your Kisses For Me,” performed by the band members, won first place with 164 points, of which 12 were from Israel.

After winning Eurovision, the song reached number one on weekly charts in several countries across Europe and sold over six million copies. The band continued their activities and won numerous awards, including albums and singles that reached platinum, gold, and silver status.

The band members announced that they will not perform together again after their last performance in October 2020, but have kept the possibility open to perform if an interesting opportunity arises, such as some Eurovision event. In 2015, during a special broadcast honoring the 60th anniversary of Eurovision called “Eurovision’s Greatest Hits,” the band performed the song with which they won Eurovision.

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