US singer Billy Joel has shared his hunch that heavy drinking may have caused his newly diagnosed brain condition.
However, the iconic singer reassured fans he was feeling ‘good’ after being forced to cancel all his scheduled concerts, including a show in Edinburgh and Liverpool, after announcing he had normal pressure hydrocephalus (NPH).
The statement shared on Joel’s Instagram account in May announcing the news also revealed that the condition appeared to have been exacerbated by recent performances, leading to problems with hearing, vision and balance.
Speaking to Bill Maher on his Club Random Podcast, the Piano Man singer shared an update on his health, saying that he was feeling ‘good’.
‘It’s not fixed, it’s still being worked on,’ he revealed, adding: ‘I feel fine, my balance sucks. It’s like being on a boat.’
When asked what causes the disorder, Joel shared that he wasn’t sure but had his own theory.
‘Nobody knows. They don’t know. I thought it must be from drinking. I don’t anymore, but I used to like a fish,’ the Uptown Girl chart-topper shared.
According to the NHS website, NPH is an uncommon and poorly understood condition that often affects people over the age of 60 and can be difficult to diagnose as its symptoms include mobility problems and dementia, which are associated with more common conditions such as Alzheimer’s disease.
‘They keep referring to what I have as a brain disorder, so it sounds a lot worse than what I am feeling,’ he insisted.
Alongside cancelling his live shows, Joel’s diagnosis also meant he was forced to miss the premiere of his two-part documentary Billy Joel: And So It Goes at the Tribeca Film Festival in June.
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Addressing his absence, documentary co-director Susan Lacy assured the audience at the premiere that the star ‘will be back’.
‘Billy wishes he were here tonight, and he asked us to convey his greetings to you all,’ she continued. ‘He said, “Getting old sucks, but it’s still preferable to getting cremated.”‘
In the aftermath, he had also insisted he was ‘not dying’ in a previous health update.
On an early June episode of the Howard Stern Show, on SiriusXM, the presenter gave listeners an update days after the pair met for dinner.
‘He does have issues, but he said, “Yeah, you can tell people, I’m not dying”,’ the host declared.
‘He wants people to know that. He’s got to deal with some medical stuff, but he was delightful.’
In a spate of updates shared to his Instagram Stories on Monday night, mostly from excited fans watching his documentary, Joel also reposted a heartwarming interaction with fans who spotted him being driven down the road in New York.
The music icon had wound down the window to chat and take photos with them after their tourist rickshaws pulled up alongside the vehicle.
The New York-born singer is best known for songs including Piano Man, Tell Her About It and An Innocent Man and has achieved five UK top 10 singles and eight UK top 10 albums.
Since beginning his career in the mid-1960s, Joel has won five Grammy Awards and been nominated for 23, and was inducted into the Rock And Roll Hall of Fame by one of his heroes, Ray Charles, in 1999.
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