Robert Fripp suffers heart attack and postpones work commitments
King Crimson guitarist Robert Fripp has revealed that he is currently recovering from a heart attack.
Fripp made the announcement on his shared YouTube channel with his wife, Toyah Willcox. They regularly post covers of popular songs as part of their Sunday Lunch series, but this week’s video instead saw the pair open up about Fripp’s recent health struggles.
The musician explained that he began to suffer from chest pains that he believed to be acid reflux before he flew to Bergamo, Italy, for the Orchestra Of Crafty Guitarists event at Castione della Presolana last month.
Despite his health fears, Fripp still made the journey to Italy and organised to meet a doctor once he arrived at his destination. However, he was instead immediately taken to a hospital.
While in the hospital, Fripp was tested and then taken to intensive care ahead of undergoing two bouts of emergency surgery.
However, due to the language barrier, Fripp was not fully aware of the severity of his health issues until afterwards, revealing, “I was in A&E not quite knowing what was going on other than I knew they were going to do something, and an orderly came along and shaved my balls.”
He continued: “Now the dear man, I really didn’t wish his job on him at that point. Now this is the thing. So you’re concerned with my heart, fine. What are you doing shaving my balls?”
Fripp has been diagnosed with a trifurcated artery, and medical staff inserted a pair of stents into his body during the operation.
Willcox also said there “were complex moments” while he was undergoing medical care due to the language barrier. However, he has been making a positive recovery and was able to direct the Guitar Circle show at Castione della Presolana less than a week after undergoing the surgery.
“It was stunning. The audience were prepped with orchestral manoeuvres and it really was a magical event for me,” Fripp reflected on the concert.
Fripp has been ordered to rest up for the next six to eight weeks while he continues to focus on his recovery.
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