90s boyband heartthrob reveals that when he left the band he felt ‘abandoned’ and ‘lost’ – and had to deal with huge debts

Lee Murray has revealed the mental toll leaving the band had on him, and how it left him in £40,000 of debt.

He joined 90s boyband Let Loose as a drummer when he was 22 after responding to an advertisement in Melody Maker.

Lee became the third member, joining lead singer Richard John ‘Richie’ Wermerlin and guitarist Robert George Edward ‘Rob’ Jeffrey.

They unleashed their vocal talents on the pop charts in the nineties, scoring a number two hit single with their 1994 song Crazy For You in their heyday.

But, while they may have relished in their success at the time, Let Loose drummer has opened up on feeling ‘abandoned’ when it ended. 

He told The Sun: ‘When it finally comes to an end, it truly is the end. The phone stops ringing, your schedule is completely cleared, and you feel abandoned. That’s just how it is, and it can be a harsh wake-up call.

‘Coming back to reality was a huge shock and took a toll on my mental health. I wanted to get married but had to put that on hold.

Lee shared: ‘It was a really dark, horrible, horrible period where I was utterly lost. When I came out of the band, I distanced myself from music completely I thought it was the devil, something that caused me problems.’

Now, Lee enjoys music again, with the band about to embark on a busy touring schedule in 2025 and are even about to release a new single called Glorious.

In the 1990s, the trio appeared on Top of the Pops with Oasis, Blur, Take That, and East 17, enjoying a glamorous lifestyle. However, this changed when he left due to creative differences, resulting in the band’s disbandment in 1996.

Things took a downturn when it was revealed that the band owed £40,000, a huge burden for Lee, who had responsibilities to pay his mortgage and fund a wedding.

To survive, he took on humbling odd jobs and briefly turned away from music. Eventually, he began teaching, rediscovered his passion, and reformed the band 30 years later. 

Between 1993 and 1996, the band released two albums titled Let Loose and Rollercoaster, as well as 12 singles.

In August 2023 it was announced Rob and Lee would be reuniting and heading out on tour with the help of new member Matthew Pateman, who was previously in fellow 90s boyband Bad Boys Inc.

And the boys may be hoping for a more relaxed run as they may their show business comeback as they recall their fans being rather overzealous at the height of their fame – with one inviting themselves to their parents’ house and staying for seven hours.

Rob told the Mirror: ‘Our management said don’t let the fans in. Of course, as soon as we got on the bus and bu**ed up on the M1, my parents and Lee’s parents let the fans in. They stole the toilet rolls from Lee’s house for souvenirs.

‘My mum and dad let some fans in, they couldn’t get rid of them. Seven hours later, they couldn’t get rid of them.

‘I’ve had girls sleeping in the bushes outside my house. So back in the day when I woke up in the morning and I wanted to get a packet of cigarettes, I couldn’t go down there in my old trackie bottoms and t-shirt, I had to put on the old leather trousers – they couldn’t see you in the raw could they?’

Let Loose reunited to record a brand new single – a whopping 29 years after their hit song Crazy For You shot up the charts.

Let Loose released a plethora of tracks in the 90s including Seventeen, Best In Me and One Night Stand.

While the trio also had two albums Let Loose and Rollercoaster.

The group, who toured with the likes of Boyzone and Take That went on to split in 1996 after the pressures of fame became too much.

Lee and Richie went on to reform in 2011 and release Paint It In Gold after previously being championed by Gary Barlow.

And while Richie has declined to return to the band once again due to other commitments, Lee and Rob have joined forces with Bad Boys Inc’s Matthew in a bid for chart domination once against.

Speaking about their return to the spotlight, Lee told Metro last summer: ‘We’re so excited to be coming back with Let Loose. 

It’s something our fans have been asking us to do for years, and we’re so happy that everything’s fallen into place with Matthew now as our lead singer, as he’s so brilliant.’

While Matthew added: ‘I’ve always had a respect for Let Loose and their music. In the industry, they were always ‘dumped’ into the ‘boy band’ category – but they’re more than that.

‘They’re great musicians and the craftsmanship of the Let Loose songs have truly stood the test of time. I’m excited to work with Lee and Rob on this new venture. We have some great new material lined up and the new single is sounding awesome.’