The British New Wave band Duran Duran had some sad news during their induction to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame Saturday night: original guitarist Andy Taylor has stage four prostate cancer.
In a letter read by his bandmates, Taylor said he was “massively disappointed” to miss the show in Los Angeles, BBC reported.
Duran Duran guitarist has cancer
The group started off the evening by performing some of their biggest hits, like “Hungry like the Wolf,” “Ordinary Wolf,” and “Girls on Film.” It was the first performance for the original group, minus Taylor, since 2006.
While he still has time to live, Taylor said that there “is no cure” for the disease.
“Many families have experienced the slow burn of this disease and of course, we are no different; so I speak from the perspective of a family man but with profound humility to the band, the greatest fans a group could have and this exceptional accolade,” he wrote.
“No cure”
Taylor said that he had received “sophisticated life-extending treatment,” but his health had taken another bad turn recently which forced him to miss the ceremony.
“Although my current condition is not immediately life-threatening, there is no cure,” he wrote.
“Recently I was doing okay after some very sophisticated life-extending treatment, that was until a week or so ago when I suffered a setback, and despite the exceptional efforts of my team, I had to be honest in that both physically and mentally, I would be pushing my boundaries. However, none of this needs to or should detract from what this band (with or without me) has achieved and sustained for 44 years.”
“Truly sorry”
Taylor said he was “truly sorry and massively disappointed I couldn’t make it” and extremely proud of his bandmates.
“I’m so very proud of these four brothers; I’m amazed at their durability, and I’m overjoyed at accepting this award. I often doubted the day would come. I’m sure as hell glad I’m around to see the day.”
One of the biggest groups of the MTV era, Duran Duran have the distinction of being the only musical artist — including Paul McCartney and Carly Simon — to reach number one on the Billboard Hot 100 with a James Bond theme, for the movie A View To A Kill.
Carly Simon, Dolly Parton, Eminem, Lionel Richie, Harry Belafonte and Judas Priest were also inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame Saturday night.