Country singer Ricky Skaggs, 66, reveals he underwent a quadruple bypass and is now on the mend: ‘It was a major blessing I didn’t have a heart attack’
Country singer Ricky Skaggs is on the mend following major heart surgery.
The 66-year-old star revealed in an interview with People Magazine that he was feeling good after undergoing a quadruple bypass in June at Centennial Medical Center in Nashville.
‘Don’t put off tomorrow what you can do today,’ Skaggs said, reflecting on his recovery. ‘That surgery gave me a brand-new heart. Not only a real heart, but a spiritual heart that has now been cleaned out, so I can hear Him better than ever before.’
Health scare: Country singer Ricky Skaggs is on the mend following major heart surgery and revealed in an interview with People Magazine that he was feeling good after undergoing a quadruple bypass in June
Seven months after open heart surgery, Ricky Skaggs tells People that he is ‘150%’ better than he was before.
Due to COVID-19, the Country Boy crooner was forced to cancel his tour and had been in lockdown with his wife when his heart malady was first discovered.
‘I have thanked the Lord hundreds of times that I wasn’t out in the middle of Texas on a tour bus, miles away from a hospital,’ he said.
He had brushed off symptoms like shortness of breath and tightness in his chest but thanks to a routine check up, doctors were able to get him on the operating table to repair his heart in the nick of time.
‘Don’t put off tomorrow what you can do today,’ Skaggs said, reflecting on his recovery. ‘That surgery gave me a brand-new heart. Not only a real heart, but a spiritual heart that has now been cleaned out, so I can hear Him better than ever before.’ (Pictured in March)
‘Scripture tells us God always knows the thoughts of man,’ Skaggs exaplained. ‘That was proven to me at that moment, because while I did not speak it from my mouth, I thought about putting the angiogram off for a week. When I thought that thought, it was like I saw the Lord with a jeweler’s eye glass on.
‘He was peering at me but never said a word. But just by His look, I knew He was saying, ‘Absolutely no.’ It put the fear of God in me. He had given me so many grace situations, but He was serious that I needed to take care of this now.’
Skaggs admitted that he had been testing ‘the boundaries’ of God’s grace and that he was ‘fearful of a heart attack or getting a stent put in’ but finally got the push he needed to ‘address it.’
After spending a few days in the hospital, the Country Music Hall of Famer has been working to strengthen his heart muscle and says he is feeling feels much improved.
Truth: Skaggs admitted that he had been testing ‘the boundaries’ of God’s grace and that he was ‘fearful of a heart attack or getting a stent put in’ but finally got the push he needed to ‘address it’ (Pictured in 1984)
News of Skaggs’ medical issues comes just days after he paid his respects to fellow blue grass musician Tony Rice who died at the age of 69.
The master guitarist renowned for his innovative style passed away at his home in Reidsville, North Carolina, on Christmas Day.
Ricky posted a tribute to Tony on Facebook, writing: ‘Sometime during Christmas morning while making his coffee, our dear friend and guitar hero Tony Rice passed from this life and made his swift journey to his heavenly home.’
Skaggs described Rice as’the single most influential acoustic guitar player in the last 50 years.’
He shared: ‘Many if not all of the Bluegrass guitar players of today would say that they cut their teeth on Tony Rice´s music. He loved hearing the next generation players play his licks. I think that´s where he got most of his joy as a player.’
Loss of a legend: News of Skaggs’ medical issues comes just days after he paid his respects to fellow blue grass musician Tony Rice who died at the age of 69 at his home in Reidsville, North Carolina, on Christmas Day