Posted on 10/30/2009 2:37:59 AM PDT by markomalley
It may not surprise parents that the head-banging, string-shredding world of heavy metal can seriously damage your health. But now Tony Iommi, the British guitarist who helped to invent the genre, has revealed that he is undergoing stem-cell treatment to save the hand that inspired a generation.
The number of rockers suffering from repetitive strain injuries is on the increase, and medical specialists have warned that their careers will come to an end unless they seek professional help.
As a founder member of Black Sabbath, the Birmingham rockers fronted by Ozzy Osbourne, Iommi, 61, hit on the distortion-heavy riffs that powered the group to fame. But more than 40 years of working a plectrum has taken their toll on Iommi, who has been forced off the road to undergo treatment.
“I’ve had this problem with my hand and I’ve had this stem-cell treatment on it,” Iommi told the BBC Radio 2 Radcliffe and Maconie Show. “The cartilage [was worn out between] the joints, and the joints [were] rubbing on the joints. It was bone to bone and it was getting a bit painful.”
Iommi has worn a hand guard to protect the injury but after taking painkillers and anti-inflammatories, he has turned to adult stem cells, which can restore defective muscles and help to regenerate cartilage growth. “This is the latest thing, so we’ll see if it works,” he said.
(Excerpt) Read more at entertainment.timesonline.co.uk ...
**Gee, he didn’t use embryonic stem cells for his treatment? I’m shocked...shocked!8*
Shhhhhh ...it’s a FR Secret... the embryonic ones don’t work... shhhhh
LOL
Sometime around 1971 or 1972 I saw the most mis-matched concert in history: Yes and Black Sabbath. Yes destroyed Black Sabbath, and we left halfway through the headliner’s set.
Worse yet I saw Van Halen open for them in Philly. After Eddie tore it up on guitar Tony should have went home.
Agreed. Most of those guys owe their careers to Tony and Geezer Butler.
Bingo. I saw Sabbath at the Fox in Atlanta in '84. Tony did a 15 minute solo onstage alone, and it was amazing, let alone the concert as a whole. (And I am a musician with hundreds of concerts under my belt.)
most of those guys (with the exception of evh)
couldn’t hang in a country band
i thought the article was going to be something about him trying to grow the tips of his fingers back
You can get repetetive strain injury on a hand? Is it just guitarists? Maybe I better learn to use my other hand, just to be safe.
I agree - expecially with the bluegrass flatpicking talents.
(Tony Rice!)
I really do like ‘Buckethead’, though.
I am IRON MAN!!!
Personally, I think this is punishment from above for destroying the sanctity and beauty of music, not to mention lots of eardrums.
:-)
Tonni is and always was a pretty lame guitarist . There would be no Eddie if there were no Hendrix perhaps. We’re talking about people who revolutionized the instrument.
Everybody knows Owner of a Lonely Heart completely shreds Ironman any day of the week. :P
Eddie is and always was a pretty lame song writer. He may be able to revolutionize an instrument, but Tony revolutionized music itself, inventing an entirely new genre.
Try, “Heart of the Sunrise” and “Perpetual Change” over “Paranoid.” It wasn’t close.
I've played all styles, and most of the guys I know that play country now came from the rock bands first. Take a look at most of the bands for today's country acts. They are all rock & rollers that found out they could make a lot of money playing country. I personally know a few of them that play in Nashvegas.
Yeah ...... RIGHT.
At first I thought the stem cells would help grow back the tips of the fingers he lost in a factory accident before the start of BS.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.