Judas Priest guitarist Richie Faulkner “struggling” to play after suffering stroke that led to brain damage
nme.comJudas Priest guitarist Richie Faulkner has admitted he is “struggling” to play after suffering a stroke that subsequently led to brain damage.In 2021, Faulkner’s aorta ruptured on stage during Louder Than Life Festival in Louisville, Kentucky, leading to lifesaving 10-hour emergency surgery.
What had not been previously made public, however, is that just a month later, the guitarist suffered a stroke that continues to affect his physical ability.Faulkner was talking to Premier Guitar about his series of health challenges when he disclosed the nature of his stroke and how it is still limiting his capacity to play guitar.“We went back out on the road in 2022 and have kind of been on the road since,” he began. “But there’s a bit of collateral damage.
Well, not a lot of people know – some nearest and dearest, they know about it. So about a month after the incident, I went back in and we were walking the dog in the neighbourhood back here [in Nashville], and I had the dog, [my girlfriend] Mariah had [our daughter] Daisy.
And I felt it come.”He describes the experience as “my face went” and “I couldn’t talk”. His family took him to hospital and doctors told him they believed he had suffered a transient ischaemic attack (TIA), which is often described as a small stroke.
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