Nazareth singer Dan McCafferty has retired from the band due to health issues.
The group released a statement advising fans that McCafferty suffers from C.O.P.D. ( Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease), which has gotten worse lately.
After trying to play a festival in Switzerland last weekend, Dan found it impossible to continue after performing only three songs; in the dressing room afterwards, the singer told the band that he couldn’t go on any longer.
The news comes following an on-stage collapse in Canada last month that led to the cancellation of the remainder of the band’s tour there.
Nazareth formed in December 1968 in Dunfermline, Scotland, from the remaining members of semi-professional local group The Shadettes (formed in 1961) by vocalist Dan McCafferty, guitarist Manny Charlton (ex Mark V and The Red Hawks), bassist Pete Agnew, and drummer Darrell Sweet.
The group took their name from Nazareth, Pennsylvania, which is cited in the first line of The Band's classic song "The Weight" ("I pulled into Nazareth / Was feelin' about half past dead...").
The band has included several players through the years, with McCafferty and bassist Agnew the only continuous members. The current lineup had been stable since 2002, with guitarist Jimmy Murrison and Agnew’s son, Lee, on drums.
