Ian Gillan of Deep Purple shares his health struggles

Ian Gillan, the frontman of Deep Purple, has stated that retirement is “not far off” and that he is losing his vision, as reported by nme. The band has one-off performances in Tbilisi, Georgia on November 16 and in Dubai and Kuala Lumpur the following week, although the iconic singer, who is eighty years old, last performed live with the group in November 2024.

In a recent interview with Uncut, Gillan stated that he is unsure of how long he will be able to continue working with the band, despite the fact that they have already booked a European tour for June and July of 2026.

It’s one of those things. I’ve only got 30 per cent vision. That won’t get better. It makes life mysterious. The hardest thing is working on my laptop. I can’t see anything on the screen unless I use my peripheral vision – I pick up a line by looking at it sideways. But you find a way. You adapt. It’s hilarious this growing old thing. It’s a laugh a minute. Well, sometimes yes and sometimes no. I walk down the road and hear something drop off – clang, there’s something else gone. Nothing’s changed really apart from I can’t pole vault any more. Other than that, things move a little more slowly. But nothing’s changed.

These are his thoughts about what’s to come.

I think if I lose my energy I’m going to stop. I don’t want to be an embarrassment to anyone. We’re not far off that. It creeps up on you – you don’t really notice.

Roger Glover, bassist for Deep Purple, discussed the band’s current tour, “The Long Goodbye,” which began in May 2017, on August 26 on SiriusXM’s “Trunk Nation With Eddie Trunk.” Without ever announcing a final performance, he was asked if the band will “just keep moving forward” with live performances while they are still physically capable.

Well, I see a lot of bands doing the farewell tour or the farewell gig — Black Sabbath just did it recently, and other people have done it before — but it doesn’t appeal to me, and I don’t think the rest of the band either. To actually put a date on the final [show], now where’s it gonna be? The pressure is too great. I’d much rather just play and play and play, and suddenly we’re not playing. We don’t need to go out with a fanfare — I don’t think, anyway. It’s possible other people disagree with me, but that’s my feeling.