Elton John opens up about battling painful vocal cysts that left him nearly mute during a pair of shows in Australia.
December 4, 2024, published at 12:29 PM ET
British rocker Elton John has always refused to let health issues get in the way of giving his fans everything.
The musician, who rose to fame in the late ’70s, once suffered severe and ‘painful’ vocal cysts during a series of shows in Sydney, Australia, leaving him almost mute, RadarOnline.com can reveal.
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“I want to make the most of my time while I’m around,” the iconic hitmaker said recently.
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In his new book Goodbye Yellow Brick RoadJohn spoke about the enormous difficulty of singing through his health crisis on a particular show, but stressed that he was still determined to give the fans everything, despite the terrifying thought that this might be his last performance.
The I’m still standing hitmaker said that although he had previously suffered from vocal fatigue, things became more serious when his tour came to Sydney.
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The singer’s poor health forced him to stop touring.
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He wrote: “I’ve performed with an orchestra several times in my career, and it’s always a bit nerve-wracking. But this time I also had trouble with my voice.
“I had been suffering from vocal fatigue for several years, to the point of remaining completely silent when not on stage, but in Sydney it came to a head. Whenever I opened my mouth to sing, I had absolutely no idea what was going to happen.
“Sometimes I was fine, and sometimes I just squeaked and rasped. My voice was completely destroyed by the time the Sydney shows came around.”
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The five-time Grammy winner said on the first night between shows that he knew he needed medical attention when he was “coughing and spitting up wads of gunk.”
He explained that he “couldn’t keep croaking through the shows”, adding that he went to a doctor in Sydney who discovered cysts on his vocal cords.
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While the doctor told John to cancel the rest of his shows during the week, the singer sharply refused.
He wrote: ‘There were too many people involved in the tour and too much money at stake. And I still wanted to sing.
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The British singer said he met Lev when he realized he wanted to be a father.
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“On the last night of the tour, scheduled for December 14, I was exhausted and in pain. I could barely say words.”
John said the show was broadcast live on television and later released as Live in Australia with the Melbourne Symphony Orchestra.
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The ordeal was so “terrifying” for John that he “ran out” of the Sydney Entertainment Center just minutes before he and the orchestra were due to start.
He admitted, “I didn’t know if I could do it. But I turned around before I even got to the car. If this was going to be my last show, I was going to go out with a bang.”
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While John found the courage to continue with the show, things took a turn when he came to one of his most famous songs.
He said: ‘While we were performing, I felt myself faltering Rocket man. I was afraid that the audience would be turned off by my voice.
“But I didn’t want to give up halfway through the show. I always believe in giving the fans my very best, and that’s what I did that night.”
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Three weeks after his shows in Australia, John underwent throat surgery and was able to continue touring – although he said the sound of his voice had changed slightly.
John has been struggling with serious health problems for years and can only survive thanks to one secret key: the love of his family and friends.
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The hitmaker recently lost his sight after contracting a bacterial infection in his right eye in France earlier this year, which has since spread to both.
The update on the rocker’s health comes after he previously underwent treatment for prostate cancer.
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Other health-related issues John faced in the latter part of his life include contracting pneumonia in 2020 and getting a stent to widen the arteries to his heart in 1999.
He also underwent one hip and two knee replacements, as well as an undiagnosed appendicitis that nearly killed him in 2013.
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He revealed earlier this year: “I don’t have tonsils, tonsils or an appendix. I don’t have a prostate. I don’t have a right hip, a left knee or a right knee. In fact, the only thing to my left is my left hip. But I’m still here .’
Through it all, John has received a lot of support from his husband, David Furnish, their two sons: Zachary, 13, and Elijah, 11, and supporters around the world, who have helped the songwriter stay hopeful during his health struggles. .
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The singer said he felt close to his LGBTQ+ fans in Russia and that they needed his support.
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In September, John also hinted at his morality, especially after his numerous health battles.
He said: “The boys are thinking about my mortality. They worry about my mortality. They love their dad, so they want me to be there forever. I would love to be there forever.
‘I want them to have children and get married. I don’t think I’ll be around for that. Who knows? You never know.’
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