Motorhead manager Todd Singerman has discussed the battles involved in keeping Lemmy’s health under control – saying the rock’n’roll icon “trades one demon for another”.
Lemmy spent much of 2013 struggling with diabetes and related problems which led to periods in hospital, postponed tours and even a rumour that he’d died after cutting short his comeback appearance at Wacken in August.
Singerman tells Decibel (via Blabbermouth): “He’s been up and down. He’s got a really bad diabetic problem and it changes on a daily basis.
“A lot of it is fighting the bad habits, the things he’s not supposed to do any more. He’s stopped smoking but he probably sneaks Jack and Coke here and there – he’d be lying if he said he’d stopped.
“He’s been trying to substitute it with wine. That was the compromise with the doctors: trade the Jack for the wine. He thinks wine’s better than Jack, but it’s still got tons of sugar. He doesn’t tell them he’s drinking two fucking bottles, either.
“These are the battles we’re up against. He doesn’t grasp that he’s just trading one demon for the other.”
Singerman says Lemmy wasn’t fit to return to the stage when he played Wacken. “He was supposed to rest for three months and he refused,” says the manager. “It ended up being 105 degrees out there. The only thing I’m proud of him for is stopping when it didn’t feel good. That was smart of him.
“The bottom line is that he needs to find a balance and then live that balance for a few months. But we can’t find the balance yet. He has great days and then he fucks it up. And when you fuck up, you go backwards.”
Motorhead drummer Mikkey Dee last year told Classic Rock: “I think after all he’s been through, I’d say this: ‘Lem, when are you going to get sick and tired of feeling sick and tired? it’s time you started to take care of yourself.’”
The band, who released latest album Aftershock in a Classic Rock Fanpack, tour the UK next month:
Feb 13: Glasgow Academy
Feb 14: Newcastle City Hall
Feb 16: Manchester Apollo
Feb 17: Wolverhampton Civic Hall
Feb 19: London Brixton Academy
Feb 20: Nottingham Royal Concert Hall
-Classic Rock
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