Is Great Big Sea kaput? Séan McCann isn't holding his breath

Has Great Big Sea stopped rolling for good? Co-founder Séan McCann admits he doesn't expect to see anything from the St. John's-based group any time soon, particularly with him on stage.

"I think it might be years before we even sit down again," said McCann, who announced his plans to leave the trio in November 2013.

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Since then, Great Big Sea's remaining members — Alan Doyle and Bob Hallett — wrapped up promotion for XX, a retrospective of the group's work over two decades.

The group's website still exists, but it focuses largely on the members' solo projects, including Doyle, who heads out this week on a tour to promote a solo album.

In a feature interview with CBC Radio's The Current, McCann said he felt he needed to leave the group, citing a lack of communication between the three members.

"We'd been on a bus for a year, and no one talked about it. We had all this time to deal with this issue — which is still not dealt with," said McCann, who retains a one-third ownership of the band's business.

McCann said he and the others have yet to resolve their differences.

"I don't think it's a priority for anyone right now," he said. "I was under the impression that they would try to deal with me fairly quickly … but I honestly think that Alan's busy, and Bob's busy, and I'm in a different direction."

Great Big Sea launched as a pub-oriented band that honed its Celtic-influenced style in St. John's bars in the early 1990s. Within a few years, it was touring the country — and well beyond — playing to a devoted fan based.

I think it might be years before we even sit down again.- Séan McCann, on Great Big Sea reunion

"The reason we were successful I believe, is because we were all pulling the sled in the same direction. We were very focused," he said.

"[But] we don't agree on so many things now. People have multiple priorities now. At the end of it I think we were held together by money … and if there's something I've learned, money can ruin a lot of great friendships, and money has never brought out the good in anybody."

McCann said things came to a head in late 2013, when he decided to put the brakes on the band, or at least his involvement in it.

"I literally wanted to say goodbye," he said of his decision to tell fans directly through Twitter and Facebook.

"I wanted the opportunity to say goodbye, and I took it, I suppose."