Dan Peek, Founder and Lead Singer of America, is Dead at Age 60

     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. He was 60.

     Peek’s wife, Catherine, found him dead Sunday in bed in his home in Farmington, Mo., about 60 miles southwest of St. Louis, Milton Peek said. The cause of death was not known, and an autopsy was planned. Dan Peek suffered from arthritis, but it wasn’t known if that was a contributing factor.

     Peek, whose father was in the U.S. Air Force, had met the two other members of America — Dewey Bunnell and Gerry Beckley — while attending high school in London. After signing a record contract, America was an almost instant sensation with songs featuring tight harmonies over catchy tunes. All told, America had three platinum and three gold albums, along with eight Top 40 hits, from 1971 through 1975.