Singer Gerry Rafferty still missing

LONDON, Feb. 16 (UPI) -- Scottish singer Gerry Rafferty has been missing since August when he left a hospital where he was being treated for liver failure, his friends said.

The Daily Telegraph reported Monday that the 61-year-old recording artist has been battling an addiction to alcohol and was admitted to St. Thomas' Hospital in London last year after he was kicked out of the city's Westbury Hotel. He left the hospital on his own and has since been out of touch with his friends, the report said.

The newspaper also said some fear the musician may have been abducted, while others speculate he might be living abroad.

Tony Williams, who performed in the band Stealers Wheel with Rafferty in the 1970s, told the Daily Mail he has enlisted the help of police to find Rafferty.

"It's absolutely tragic. If he has liver failure, he obviously needs someone to look after him. If he is still alive, somebody must be caring for him," he said.

Rafferty, who played with actor-comedian Billy Connolly in the Humblebums before forming Stealers Wheel, is best known for his 1978 solo hit "Baker Street."