Judas Priest have issued a statement after their lead guitarist Glenn Tipton was diagnosed with Parkinson Disease.
The band says:
Ten years ago Glenn was diagnosed to have the onset of the early stages of Parkinson’s – from then until recently Glenn has lived his life as the great heavy metal guitar player he has always been, maintaining by his own definition a standard of quality and performance that is incredibly important.
Right now Glenn is able to play and perform some of the Priest songs that are less challenging but due to the nature of Parkinson’s progression he wants to let you all know that he won’t be touring as such –
True to the metal spirit of ‘the show must go on’ Glenn has requested Andy Sneap to fly the flag on stage for him
“I want everyone to know that it’s vital that the Judas Priest tour go ahead and that I am not leaving the band – it’s simply that my role has changed. I don’t rule out the chance to go on stage as and when I feel able to blast out some Priest! So at some point in the not too distant future I’m really looking forward to seeing all of our wonderful metal maniacs once again”
Rob, Richie, Ian and Scott have this to say:
“We have been privileged to witness Glenn’s determination and steadfast commitment over the years, showing his passion and self-belief through the writing, recording and performing sessions with Priest – he is a true metal hero! We are not surprised by Glenn’s insistence that we complete the Firepower tour and thank Andy for joining us to make Glenn’s wishes become real – As Glenn has said we also can’t wait to have him with us at any time any place on the road….. We love you Glenn!”
Tipton joined Judas Priest in 1974 in time for the debut album ‘Rock Rolla’. He will be part of the new album ‘Firepower’ to be released in March.
The first Judas Priest album to break the band was their sixth album ‘British Steel’ in 1980. Their biggest chart success in the USA was their last album ‘Redeemer of Souls’ in 2014.
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