Singer and guitarist Tony McPhee, who led the British blues-rock band The Groundhogs for sixty years, has died at the age of 80. It has been reported Guard.
The group said McPhee “died peacefully at home” last year due to complications from a fall. Recently, he also suffered a series of strokes.
In 1962 the musician joined the South London band The Dollar Bills and changed his name to The Groundhogs. McPhee also recorded solo tracks under Jimmy Page’s production and acted as a session guitarist – joining Mayall and Eric Clapton during the recording of Champion Jack Dupree From New Orleans to Chicago.
A few years after McPhee joined The Groundhogs, several members left, and the musician contributed to the introduction of new artists to the group. The band’s debut album was released in 1968.
McPhee later performed with Current 93 and often collaborated with vocalist Joanna Deacon. In 2009, the first of the blows he received affected the vocal abilities of the musician, so after a while he stopped his concert activity.