A NINETIES rock star looks completely unrecognisable after finding fame with a smash hit with Santana.
The German-born musician, now 51, won a whopping three Grammy Awards for singing on the band’s 1999 track Smooth.
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Rob Thomas, who is part of band Matchbox Twenty, originally penned the track for George Michael.
Yet he then became inspired by his wife to finish off the lyrics to the song, which he then confessed: “really opened up the door for me as a songwriter and a solo artist.”
The If You’re Gone was then rocketed to another level of fame after it was revealed he penned all the tracks on Matchbox Twenty’s new album.
At the time, Ron Shapiro, an executive at Atlantic, said: “It was our intent to get Rob and this band a substantial amount of credibility.”
During his height of fame, he had a blonde cropped hairstyle.
He accessorised with two stud earrings and silver chain necklaces for an edgy look.
He also often donned rock-star style long fur coats and sunglasses.
Yet after leaving their families and holing up together in a log cabin for a song-writing session, the band argued and drank in what he dubbed a “$100,000 bender.”
Back in 2012, Rob recalled the incident which happened the same year and told Hollywood Reporter: “We drank away a hundred thousand dollars easily.
“We didn’t have Matt onboard yet; we weren’t quite sure what we were going to do, so we were like, ‘Let’s just go there and start and we’ll use whatever we use.”
Yet none of the material was used in the end – although Rob still has the recordings.
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He added to the publication: “It was getting counterproductive it would be, like, 5 o’clock and even in the middle of recording, we’d say, ‘Let’s take a break, get some wine and cook.’
“It’s funny listening back to the demos: the after-dinner demos is always all of us drunk around a microphone thinking that we’re really doing great.”
The Push hitmakers then made a vow to get clean – with cocaine banned.
Rob now performs as a solo artist – and still delights fans with Matchbox Twenty’s hits in acoustic form.
He has switched up his blonde locks for a brunette style.
The singer now opts for chunky knitwear and T-Shirts contrasting to the fur coats of the band’s hey day.
Ona recent Instagram snap, he was captured in health store Whole Foods.
Recently, we reported how Britpop music giants Space looked completely unrecognisable 27 years after finding fame.
Meanwhile, a Nineties rocker has traded in chart fame to become a psychologist.
Simon is not the only member of Wallasey-based group The Boo Radleys to return to a normal career.
Bassist Tim Brown quit fame to become an IT teacher in Northern Ireland.
Meanwhile, we recently reported how American rocker Dan Spitz traded in his guitarist role in metal band Anthrax for a career as a watch-maker.
A Nineties band also re-formed for a surprise performance before releasing a new single.
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