• facebook
  • twitter
  • rss

LESLIE WEST Says He 'Cried A Couple Of Times' After Having Half Of His Leg Amputated

July 12, 2011

Legendary guitarist and MOUNTAIN founder Leslie West tells Billboard.com in a new interview that his upcoming album and concert tour have given him incentive to recover from having the bottom half of his right leg amputated last month.

"I don't think there is another attitude," West tells Billboard.com from the New Jersey rehabilitation facility where he's being taught how to live without the leg after it was removed just above the knee on June 20 in Memphis, due to complications from diabetes. "I cried a couple fuckin' times. I look down 'Where is it?!' You still feel the nerves and stuff like that. I had to make a decision lose my leg or lose my life. What are you gonna do?

"But I'll tell you," the guitarist adds, "it's a good thing it wasn't one of my arms. Then I'd be really fucked."

Read more from Billboard.com.

Leslie West will release a brand new solo album entitled "Unusual Suspects" in Europe on Monday, September 19 via Provogue Records. The follow-up to 2006's "Blue Me" features West alongside a hand-picked line-up of the finest guitar players alive today including Slash, blues-rock guitar superstar Joe Bonamassa, BLACK LABEL SOCIETY frontman and ex-OZZY OSBOURNE guitarist Zakk Wylde, ZZ TOP's Billy Gibbons and TOTO's Steve Lukather.

"Unusual Suspects" track listing:

01. One More Drink For The Road (ft. Steve Lukather)
02. Mudflap Mama (ft. Slash)
03. To The Moon
04. Standing On A Higher Ground (ft. Billy F. Gibbons)
05. Third Degree (ft. Joe Bonamassa)
06. Legend
07. Nothing's Changed (ft. Zakk Wylde)
08. I Feel Fine
09. Love You Forever
10. You & Me
11. Turn Out The Lights (ft. Slash & Zakk Wylde)
12. Beetle "I Don't Know" (bonus track)

Find more on
  • facebook
  • twitter
  • reddit
  • email

Comments Disclaimer And Information

BLABBERMOUTH.NET uses the Facebook Comments plugin to let people comment on content on the site using their Facebook account. The comments reside on Facebook servers and are not stored on BLABBERMOUTH.NET. To comment on a BLABBERMOUTH.NET story or review, you must be logged in to an active personal account on Facebook. Once you're logged in, you will be able to comment. User comments or postings do not reflect the viewpoint of BLABBERMOUTH.NET and BLABBERMOUTH.NET does not endorse, or guarantee the accuracy of, any user comment. To report spam or any abusive, obscene, defamatory, racist, homophobic or threatening comments, or anything that may violate any applicable laws, use the "Report to Facebook" and "Mark as spam" links that appear next to the comments themselves. To do so, click the downward arrow on the top-right corner of the Facebook comment (the arrow is invisible until you roll over it) and select the appropriate action. You can also send an e-mail to blabbermouthinbox(@)gmail.com with pertinent details. BLABBERMOUTH.NET reserves the right to "hide" comments that may be considered offensive, illegal or inappropriate and to "ban" users that violate the site's Terms Of Service. Hidden comments will still appear to the user and to the user's Facebook friends. If a new comment is published from a "banned" user or contains a blacklisted word, this comment will automatically have limited visibility (the "banned" user's comments will only be visible to the user and the user's Facebook friends).