Jeff Cook of Alabama announces Parkinson’s diagnosis

NASHVILLE – Jeff Cook, guitarist and fiddle player with the country band Alabama, announced he has Parkinson’s disease and will no longer be regularly touring with the band.

Cook, along with frontman Randy Owen and bassist Teddy Gentry, told The Tennessean in a story published Tuesday that Cook was diagnosed about four years ago, but the band kept the news private until now. Cook said the chronic neurological disorder gives him tremors that make it hard for him to play his instruments, but he didn’t want to stop playing music.

He said he is not quitting the band, but won’t be regularly touring with them so he can rest.

The band dominated country music in the 1980s with hits like “Love in the First Degree,” ”Mountain Music,” and “Dixieland Delight.”

___

Information from: The Tennessean, http://www.tennessean.com