Stray Cats’ Brian Setzer reveals autoimmune disease has left him unable to play guitar

Brian Setzer, the frontman of Stray Cats, has revealed he has been diagnosed with an autoimmune disease that has left him unable to play guitar.

The singer and guitarist, also known for his time fronting the big band revivalists The Brian Setzer Orchestra, shared the news in a post on Instagram earlier this month.

“I just wanted to check in with you all,” he wrote on February 13. “Towards the end of the last Stray Cats tour I noticed that my hands were cramping up. I’ve since discovered that I have an auto-immune disease. I cannot play guitar.”

“There is no pain, but it feels like I am wearing a pair of gloves when I try to play,” he continued. “I have seen some progress in that I can hold a pen and tie my shoes. I know this sounds ridiculous, but I was at a point where I couldn’t even do that. Luckily, I have the best hospital in the world down the block from me. It’s called the Mayo Clinic. I know I will beat this, it will just take some time.”

Stray Cats formed in 1979 in Massapequa, New York, with Setzer joined by Lee Rocker on bass and Slim Jim Phantom on drums. Their music was heavily indebted to 1950s rock and roll and rockabilly music and the band helped revive the latter style in the early 1980s.

They are best known for their hits ‘Stray Cat Strut’, ‘(She’s) Sexy + 17’ and ‘Rock This Town’, and while they split up in 1984, they have reformed several times in the decades since and have been together again since 2018. Their most recent studio album is 2019’s ‘40’.

The Brian Setzer Orchestra formed in 1992 and led a big band revival in the ‘90s. Their breakout album ‘The Dirty Boogie’ in 1998 featured a full horn section and blended the energy of rock and roll with the epic sweep of big band music.

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