America band founder dies aged 60

Dan Peek, the founder of folk rock band America, died Sunday in his sleep in Farmington, Missouri, former band members announced Wednesday.

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The American musician had formed the group renowned for his song A horse with no name, a worldwide success in the 1970s, with Gerry Beckley and Dewey Bunnell. He had met them in secondary school, in London, in the late 1960s.

“I am so sad to hear of Dan’s death,” reacted Dewey Bunnell on the band’s website. He remembers in particular the “joyful moments, full of excitement and laughter” that they shared in the past.

« We’ve created songs together that have lasted and lived a life we ​​could never have imagined. […] Even though we took different paths, his contribution to America’s music has always been present and will last forever. This news is very sad. »

Dan Peek had left the group America in 1977 to start a solo career. He retired in the 1990s and published an autobiography about America’s early days, An American Band : The America Storyin 2004.

“Dan and his music will live on through the great songs he shared with all of us,” wrote Gerry Beckley.

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