His first solo album in 1979, 'All Things Are Possible,' reached No. He left America in 1977 and turned to Contemporary Christian music. 'He was a Christian and he just got tired of the rat race,' his father said. In the late 1970s, Peek became disenchanted with the travel and lifestyle. 'The three of them were Air Force brats,' Milton Peek said. He met Bunnell and Beckley in the late 1960s. His father was in the Air Force and the family frequently moved. He also had a home in the Cayman Islands. Peek had lived in Farmington since 1978, soon after he left the band. 'Dan & his music will live on in the great songs he shared with us all,' Beckley wrote on the group's website. Peek played lead guitar on many of the songs, and wrote some of them, including the 1974 hit 'Lonely People.' Other hits followed: 'Tin Man,' ''Sister Golden Hair,' and 'Daisy Jane,' among them.

'We created lasting music together and experienced a life that we could never have imagined.' The group's first album in 1971 included the No. 'It was a joyous time for the three of us, full of excitement and laughter,' Bunnell wrote on the band's website after learning of Peek's death.

All told, America had three platinum and three gold albums, along with eight Top 40 hits, from 1971 through 1975. Air Force, had met the two other members of America - Dewey Bunnell and Gerry Beckley - while attending high school in London.Īfter signing a record contract, America was an almost instant sensation with songs featuring tight harmonies over catchy tunes. The cause of death was not known, and an autopsy was planned.ĭan Peek suffered from arthritis, but it wasn't known if that was a contributing factor. Peek's wife, Catherine, found him dead Sunday in bed in his home in Farmington, Mo., about 60 miles southwest of St. Louis: Dan Peek, a founding member of the popular 1970s band America and singer of high harmonies on hits that included 'A Horse With No Name' and 'Ventura Highway,' has died, his father said Tuesday.

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