Caithness businessman helped Nazareth rocker Dan McCafferty on the road to fame
A SCOTTISH rock star, who died last week, was helped on the road to fame by a Caithness businessman.
Bill Fehilly played a key part in launching the career of Dunfermline band, Nazareth, whose lead singer Dan McCafferty, passed away at the age of 76 on November 8.
Fehilly, who was well-known in the Caithness music scene in the late 1960s, went on to manage the band and was instrumental in getting them to London and obtaining a record deal. Tragically, he, his son Liam and Thurso solicitor, Bob Storm were killed in a plane crash in 1976. The light aircraft was making its way from Blackpool to Perth when it crashed near Moffat in the Borders killing a total of five people.
Bill Fehilly and his brother Dave came to Caithness as house painters and worked at Dounreay but later became involved in the music business and took many well-known groups and artistes to the far north to play at the old BB Hall in Wick and the Town Hall in Thurso. They also branched out into the then growing bingo market.
Former Caithness Courier editor and Daily Record reporter, Bill Mowat, recalled the role played by Bill Fehilly in Nazareth's rise to stardom.
He pointed out that when Bill Fehilly left Caithness he moved to Dunfermline and managed Nazareth who featured McCafferty on vocals, Pete Agnew on bass, Darrell Sweet on drums and Manny Charlton on lead guitar. They had been called The Shadettes but changed their name to Nazareth. Fehilly funded a trip to London and got them a record deal.
Mr Mowat said Fehilly played a key role in getting the band on the road to stardom and was pivotal in persuading Alex Harvey to come out of retirement to form the Sensational Alex Harvey Band with Scottish rockers Teargas. They, too, went on to achieve international acclaim.
Mr Mowat also paid tribute to the impact the Fehilly brothers had on the local music scene. He said: "They made a real impact in Caithness as far as modern music is concerned. The bands they brought here required local backing and it gave opportunities to many musicians such as Johnny Sutherland, Robbie Manson and Stefan Kocemba."
Nazareth achieved international success with hits such as Broken Down Angel, Bad Bad Boy, My White Bicycle, This Flight Tonight and Love Hurts.
McCafferty performed on all the bands albums up until 2014 but ill health meant he had to give up live performances the previous year. He recorded his third solo album in 2019.
He is survived by his wife, Maryann, and their sons, Derek and Colin.