Ian Hill says a Brussels onstage snap forced his Judas Priest retirement
Judas Priest bassist Ian Hill says arthritis and an onstage tendon snap in Brussels forced his Oct. 9 retirement.
Judas Priest fans now have a clearer picture of what finally pushed Ian Hill off the road. The bassist says arthritis had already turned touring into a struggle, and one painful moment in Brussels made the decision final.
Hill announced his departure from Judas Priest on Oct. 9, saying the reason was the onset of arthritis. In a new explanation of that decision, he said the problem had been affecting his shoulder and thumb and had made the last couple of tours difficult. He said the condition had not improved and was only getting worse, adding that he had nearly retired at the end of the previous tour.
Hill said he believed he might still be able to cope when a four week US tour with Iron Maiden was proposed. He said that changed after Maiden pulled out. Bloodstock in Britain was then put on the schedule, and more European dates were added around that festival. What had sounded manageable grew into a nine week run, he said, and a stretch of six shows in eight days leading up to Brussels proved too much.
The turning point came during the Brussels show, just before the encores. Hill said he felt a snap and then a sharp pain. He described having to rest his elbow on his stomach and pull the bass back so he could reach the lower part of the neck. He said the shoulder pain had become so severe that he physically could not play the instrument properly.
For Judas Priest, the change means the band loses its longest serving member, who joined in 1970. Hill said retiring was not only about his own health. He did not want to risk going out on another tour and ending up in the same position in the middle of it, with possible cancellations affecting the other musicians, the fans and the people paying to bring the band to those shows. He said that left him with no real alternative but to stop.
Hill also said the decision gives him a chance to spend more time with family. He said life on the road had cost him two marriages, and that he now wants to give some of that time back to the people close to him.
