Stray Cats frontman Brian Setzer on autoimmune disease's toll: 'I cannot play guitar'

Brian Setzer of the Stray Cats has developed an autoimmune disease that prevents him from playing guitar, according to a recent Instagram post from the Massapequa-raised frontman.

Setzer, 65, did not cite a name for the disease, but noted that it has affected his ability to perform other tasks with his fingers.

“Toward the end of the last Stray Cats tour I noticed that my hands were cramping up,” Setzer wrote on Feb. 13. “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 play.”

Setzer added that he seems to be recovering. “I have seen some progress in that I can hold a pen and tie my shoes,” he wrote. “I know this sounds ridiculous but I was at a point where I couldn’t even do that.”

Setzer formed Stray Cats in 1979 with two fellow Massapequans, double bassist Lee Rocker and drummer Slim Jim Phantom. The Stray Cats, a rockabilly revivalist group that stuck out like a sore thumb in the New Wave 1980s, nevertheless scored a string of hits, including "Stray Cat Strut,” “(She’s) Sexy + 17” and "Rock This Town.” Setzer revived another bygone sound, big-band swing, with his popular Brian Setzer Orchestra in the 1990s. As a solo artist in the 2000s and beyond, he has released a handful of albums, including 2021’s “Gotta Have the Rumble” (Surfdog).

Setzer, now based in Minneapolis, has bounced back from a medical setback before. In 2019, tinnitus forced him to cancel his annual holiday concerts with his Orchestra. On Instagram, he struck a positive note, writing: “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.”

By Rafer Guzmán

rafer.guzman@newsday.com