Melville John "Mel" Galley (8 March 1948 – 1 July 2008) was an
English guitarist and a former member of the
Hard rock bands
Whitesnake,
Trapeze,
Finders Keepers and
Phenomena. He was born in
Cannock,
Staffordshire,
England. While a member of Whitesnake, he badly injured his arm in an accident at a fairground in Germany and had to leave the band, as he was unable to play guitar because of nerve damage as a result of incompetent surgery. Later he became known for playing with "The Claw", a specially developed spring and wire device fitted to his hand which enabled him to play guitar again. Together with his brother Tom Galley and Wilfried Rimensberger, he was a founding member of Phenomena where his songwriting and guitar playing skills had a major impact on its success.