Along with Gerry Rafferty, Egan was one of the two main members of the folk rock band Stealers Wheel, and co-writer of their hit song "Stuck in the Middle with You".

Egan was born into an Irish Catholic family in Paisley in Renfrewshire, Scotland.

Along with former St Mirin's Academy schoolmate Gerry Rafferty,[1] he played in various smaller British bands, such as The Sensors and The Maverix,[2] and worked as a session musician.

[3] After two unsuccessful singles, their debut studio album Stealers Wheel, produced by the American songwriting duo Jerry Leiber and Mike Stoller, became a commercial success.

[5][6] Subsequently, the band had a few smaller successes, among others, with the Egan-penned song "Star", but stagnating sales figures and artistic differences finally led to the band's break-up in 1975,[7] with both Egan and Rafferty embarking on solo careers, with Rafferty scoring a hit with "Baker Street" in 1978.