JAKE E. LEE Offers Health Update, Says He Is Playing Guitar Again And Wants To Go On Tour

In a new interview with Tone-Talk, legendary rock guitarist Jake E. Lee (OZZY OSBOURNE, BADLANDS, RED DRAGON CARTEL) was asked if he ended up getting surgery on his hands after it was reported earlier this year that he was suffering from carpal tunnel syndrome. He responded (as transcribed by BLABBERMOUTH.NET): "I did not. I thought I had carpal tunnel. I went to a neurologist, and they poked the needles in me and then zapped me. They said I had carpal tunnel. So then I made an appointment with a wrist surgeon, which took a while. I went there. She asked to see some X-rays, which nobody had ever done. She said, 'Well, before we talk about surgery…' She took X-rays, came back and said, 'You don't have carpal tunnel. You don't have it. If anybody had taken an X-ray of your wrist, they would have seen you don't have carpal tunnel.' And apparently I don't have any cartilage left in [my right] hand. She said I have very little in [my left hand], but [my left one] doesn't bother me. So it's all bone on bone, rubbing against each other, and that's agitating it. So, right now, I'm getting cortisone shots in the wrist — lots of fun — and physical therapy to get the muscles stronger around it, do a lot of stretching. It's about pain management now. It's either that or fuse the bones together, which I think Steve Morse did. And it will change your playing style. If you get this fused, now it's all elbow — maybe fingers, I guess. Then I'll get tennis elbow. So she said she recommends pain management. 'Let's see if we can get you playing without fusing the bones together,' which sounds pretty radical. And it is better. I am playing again. For four or five years, I just really didn't play that much, unless I had a song idea, which always happens when you're falling asleep. And then I pick the guitar up and put the idea down. So I do have a bunch of ideas. I've been playing. It doesn't hurt as much. I feel like everything's getting better, so I'm not gonna get surgery. I'm just not. I'm not, I'll learn how to play more from the elbow. But I still have that option with the wrist and manage the pain. But I am playing again — I have been for about two months maybe — and I wanna go out and do a tour. I wanna finish doing the 'Patina' tour, which got canceled because of COVID. I would like to go out and do that [with] RED DRAGON CARTEL, focus on the 'Patina' record and do some more recording. We'll see where that goes."

"Patina", the second offering from Jake E. Lee's RED DRAGON CARTEL, was released in November 2018. The follow-up to RED DRAGON CARTEL's eponymous 2014 debut, "Patina" marked the group's first release with drummer Phil Varone (SAIGON KICK, SKID ROW) and bassist Anthony Esposito. The band's most recent lineup was rounded out by singer Darren James Smith.

RED DRAGON CARTEL's latest album was mixed by legendary producer Max Norman, who has previously worked with OZZY OSBOURNE, MEGADETH, SAVATAGE and LOUDNESS, among others.

In addition to being the bassist for RED DRAGON CARTEL, Esposito co-produced the album alongside Lee.

"Patina" marked a change of style from the debut RED DRAGON CARTEL album, featuring a more bluesy hard rock direction as opposed to its predecessor's heavier leanings.

Back in September 2015, RED DRAGON CARTEL was rejoined by Darren James Smith after a period of several months during which the band played shows with a number of other vocalists, including former JONES STREET frontman Shawn Crosby, Canadian singer Paul D'Eath (CITIZENS UNITE, MUSHROOM TRAIL),Chas West (Jason Bonham, LYNCH MOB, 3 LEGGED DOGG) and Michael Beck.

Lee, who was tapped by Ozzy Osbourne to replace the late Randy Rhoads in the singer's solo band, played on two Ozzy records: 1983's "Bark At The Moon" and 1986's "The Ultimate Sin".