Tony Clarkin, founder and guitarist/songwriter of British rock legends, Magnum, passed away on January 7.

The Clarkin family issued the following statement: "On behalf of the family it is with profound sadness that daughter Dionne Clarkin is sharing the news of the passing of Tony Clarkin. Following a short illness, he died peacefully surrounded by his girls on Sunday 7th January 2024."

Having launched a campaign to raise £2,000 for animal care, Tony's daughter Dionne Clarkin has issued the following on behalf of the family:

"My dad would have much preferred & wished to do this. Rather this than receive flowers and cards. We will be looking to set up a trust in Tony Clarkin’s name to do something similar in good time. These things take time to organise, so thank you for your patience. In the meantime time please follow the link. Thank you."

Visit the campaign here.

At the time of Tony's passing, Olly Hahn, head of Steamhammer wrote: "We at SPV/Steamhammer are devastated about the passing of Tony. We can't believe that he's gone. For 22 years the whole team and I had the pleasure to work with him, 22 years of fantastic music, trust and loyalty. We are forever grateful for this. Rest in peace, Tony!"

Magnum's new studio album, Here Comes The Rain, will be released on January 12 via Steamhammer / SPV. The album’s highly inspired artwork is once more designed by the great Rodney Matthews, who has already created a number of Magnum sleeves to support the band’s atmospherically dense music.

Apart from Magnum's typical trademarks, Here Comes The Rain also holds a number of thoroughly pleasant surprises. First single, "Blue Tango", is a real riff-rock number that makes you want to move your feet while "The Seventh Darkness", is filled with awesome brass sections courtesy of guest musicians Chris ‘BeeBe’ Aldridge (saxophone) and Nick Dewhurst (trumpet), which lend the song brilliance and shape.

There is no doubt about it: Here Comes The Rain sees the Magnum lineup consisting of Catley, Clarkin, keyboardist Rick Benton, bassist Dennis Ward and drummer Lee Morris, once again succeed in creating an outstanding, colorful, varied and inspired new studio album.

Here Comes The Rain will be released on January 12 via SPV/Steamhammer in the following configurations:

- CD+DVD ('Live At KK's Steel Mill') DigiPak
- CD Jewel Case Version
- Limited Box Set
- 2LP Gatefold, 140 g, solid baby blue vinyl, printed inner sleeves
- Download / Streaming
- Exclusive CD/LP Bundles with a shirt only at the Steamhammer shop
- 2LP Gatefold exclusive colored edition only at the Napalm shop

Pre-order here.

Here Comes The Rain tracklisting:

"Run Into The Shadows"
"Here Comes The Rain"
"Some Kind Of Treachery"
"After The Silence"
"Blue Tango"
"The Day He Lied"
"The Seventh Darkness"
"Broken City"
"I Wanna Live"
"Borderline"

"Blue Tango" lyric video: